Evans Dog Trainers Are Rescuing Shelter Dogs and Veterans

The Austin Rhodes Show got a special visit from someone who is rescuing shelter dogs and veterans alike.  Service K9 Sailor and his handler Jerry Lyda from Veterans K-9 Solutions came by the studio a few weeks ago and spent some time with Austin.

Mr. Lyda is a Master Dog Trainer and the co-owner, along with his son Jay, of Southern K-9 Solutions in Evans and they're dedicated to all aspects of dog training. They're also the co-founders of Veterans K9 Solutions, an organization that's bringing canines and veterans together in a unique concept that has a simple goal; rehabilitate a canine in order to rehabilitate a veteran. VK9S takes shelter dogs from a bleak life in a stressful situation and trains them to be service dogs for veterans.

Jerry and Jay already had a successful dog obedience training and boarding business with Southern K-9 Solutions when they were asked to board some pups that were going to be trained as service dogs back in 2011. It occurred to them that they could do that as well and Veterans K-9 Solutions was born.

Since Jerry is a veteran of the Vietnam war himself, they decided to make a not-for-profit side of the business and incorporated it as a 501(c) (3) non-profit, volunteer run organization, providing free Service Dog training to disabled veterans.

Today there are so many veterans in need of help from emotional to physical disabilities. Likewise, there are hundreds of dogs in shelters waiting and hoping for the chance to be rescued. The unique concept of Veterans K9 Solutions, Inc is bringing these two disproportionately marginalized communities together and helping them both find solace in each other.

Utilizing the shelter dogs and rehabilitating them provides these dogs with a purpose.  It gives life back to them and, in turn, enables them to provide an emotional and physical bond with the veteran in need. Jerry and Jay’s love for dogs and gratitude towards those who have served makes Veterans K9 Solutions' distinctive goals a real asset to the CSRA, our veterans and civilians as well.

When Jerry brought service dog Sailor into the studio, Sailor really stole our hearts with his beautiful manners. The elegant dog performed well, but we could tell that Jerry really knew his stuff and we couldn't help but be impressed. And we weren't the only ones to notice what a fantastic fellow Jerry is.

The folks at the Community Foundation, the non profit part of the Augusta National even named him a "Hometown Hero", an award for locals whose hard work and sacrifice uplift the Augusta community. To honor and thank the Hometown Heroes for their unparalleled service, all of them were invited to attend the Tournament this weekend. So Jerry got to enjoy a beautiful Sunday at the world's most famous golf tournament and a hefty grant for more than $13,000 to aid him in his worthy mission.  A fitting reward for a hard working Hometown Hero!

The 2024 Masters Tournament gave us everything we could hope for, and more.

The images of the final round spoke to a fun Sunday on the course at Augusta National Golf Club.

For the first time in the four days of the tournament, the weather was actually good for the golfers. Wind was light most of the day, which was far from the case the previous three days.

That lack of wind made scoring conditions a little better, and gave the leaderboard a much needed shakeup. It wasn't shakeup enough to slow down Scottie Scheffler though.

Scheffler held strong on his lead going into the day, and shot a solid 4-under, 68 in the final round. That gave him a four-stroke win over Masters rookie Ludvig Aberg from Sweden.

Max Homa, Collin Morikawa and Tommy Fleetwood finished tied for third at 4-under. First-round leader Bryson DeChambeau stumbled to a final-round 73, and finished tied with Cam Smith at 2-under, in sixth place.

Of the 60 golfers who made the cut, Tiger Woods ended up in 60th. He couldn't get much going on the weekend, where he shot a combined 15-over. He finished at 16-over, but did manage to break the record for consecutive cuts made at the Masters with his 24th.