b'History always repeats itself. During the Reagan administra- Warsaw, last March, it was the first time I was truly behind thetion, the United States embarked on a strategy of contain- Iron Curtain. ment to prevent the spread of Soviet and communist influ- What he did bring along would quickly identify him. Heence in Western European nations. It became the centerpiece wore a jacket with an Army nameplate on the front and anof United States foreign policy from the early 1980s until the American flag on his shoulder. He knew it would cause himend of the Cold War in 1991. The Berlin Wall was still up, problems if he did come face to face with the Russians. Poland was still behind the Iron Curtain, and Ukraine was In the airport, Mike saw, what he surmised were, otherpart of the Soviet Union. Serving in the United States Army former military people, traveling in ones and twos. I couldunderPresidentReagan,MikeMerrillwastrainedtofight tell by the way they stood, the way the carried themselves,the Russians. eventheclothestheywerewearing,LastFebruary,asRussiawas thattheyweremilitaryveterans.WebombingUkraine,Mikesheart,like wereallcheckingeachotherout.many Americans, was breaking. They Ride to the Sound I suspect most of them were there towere trying to bomb them back in to of the Guns fight the Russians. the Stone Age, Mike said.Mike wasnt sure what he was goingInMarch2022,Mikemadethe I didnt know how to do once he arrived in Ukraine. Ifirst of what would end up being three didnt know how or even if we wouldtrips to Ukraine to help displaced pets or even if we would be able to help. I just knew we had toand people. As the founder of Florida be able to help. go and see if we could, he said. PriorUrgent Rescue, aka FUR, and through to leaving for Ukraine, he made certaintheFURUrgent TransportProgram, I just knew we had that FUR did not post any fundraisingMike and his team have experience in efforts on the their social media pages,disaster relief work. to go and see as so many other larger organizationsHurricane Harvey in August 2017 if we could. were already doing. I wanted to makewas the teams first foray into disaster sure that whatever we did would addrelief. Since then, theyve done 11 more Mike Merrill somevalue.Ididntwanttoraisehurricanes.Whiletheemergencyin money to buy dog food, he said. Ukrainewasdifferent,theproblems AsanArmyveteran,Mikehasawere similar: families evacuating with their pets, not knowing Napoleonicbenttofacinganextraordinaryhumanitarianif they would have a home to go back to; animals left behind; disaster: Ride to the sound of the guns. Dont wait for orders.shelteranimalsindanger.Therearealsosomeverybig Get there and help where you are able. When he first arriveddifferences.in Warsaw, there was no one in charge. There were a lot ofUkraineisawarzone,andmillionsofrefugeesare organizations helping, but no one was coordinating efforts,fleeing to neighboring countries, said Mike. After a hurri- said Mike. Dogs were being brought to the Polish border fromcaneortornado,nobodyisbombingresidentialneighbor- Ukraine by rescuers, volunteers and families. Once processed,hoods or preventing rescuers from coming in with food, water thedogswouldthenbetransportedtoFranceandotherand supplies. This is the largest humanitarian evacuation since European countries. It was insurmountable. As five dogs wereWWII.Therearemanyorganizationshelping,butthe being processed, 10 more dogs were coming in.magnitude of the problem is overwhelming. Its heartbreaking With the help and cooperation of several European rescuefor people and animals. groups on the ground in Ukraine, Mike put together whatWhile the groundswell ofinitial support has pretty much became known as Task Force FUR. He partnered with groupsdisappeared, Mike continues to help from his Florida base likeUkraineAnimalRescue,AnimalRescue inPortugal,throughtherelationshipshedevelopedduringhisrescue Husky Rescue of Ireland, and Fundacja ADA, a non-profiteffortsinUkraineandPoland.Hewillneverforgetthe veterinaryclinic.Heconnectedwithandcommunicatedexperience. The imagery is ingrained in him forever. through social media to share updates. Whatdoyoupackwhenyoureheadingintoawar They would meet at 7:00 a.m. each morning at a Polishzone? Thinking he was not going to get close to the front lines horserescuesanctuarycalledPegasus, neartheMedykaand see any fighting, Mike opted out of purchasing any armor. bordercrossing.TheyhadcreatedaminishelterforThere I was, without a ballistic vest, no weapon and no misplaceddogsandcatsinawarehouse,saidMike. Thesupport. It was ironic, that my first time in a combat zone, warehouse was used to also receive and distribute supplies.after having trained to fight Russians, all those years ago, was They are a great organization, and they helped save a lot ofasanon-combatant,Miketoldus.WhenIflewinto animals, Mike told us. Continued on page 40 g38 THE NEW BARKER www.TheNewBarker.com'