The Kidnapping of Icon

It was forecasted to be a dark and stormy afternoon and night, but there was no sign of it on this beautiful morning. The perfect morning to take your 13-year-old golden retriever to his favorite swimming spot – Cheat Lake in Morgantown, West Virginia. As a commercial pilot, I flew out of this location for a couple of years to places like Pittsburgh and Baltimore. Icon always traveled with me as I moved from base to base, but this was our favorite place, unarguably. It had a gorgeous lake for all water enthusiasts, especially Icon, who loved to jump for the dock, catch air like a bird, and land with a big splash to fetch his favorite thrown toy. I hadn’t been here in a while, so I was visiting friends and taking care of a small business matter. Of course, Icon had to come to see all his friends and revisit the lake.

It was already approaching 90 degrees and very high humidity. I wanted to get an iced coffee as we headed to the lake. With my own car, I usually keep it running and the air conditioning on for Icon for a quick trip inside. I would lock the car with an extra key. Regrettably, I had a rental without a spare key.  I wouldn’t dare leave Icon inside a car on such a hot day, even for a minute, unless the AC was on. I debated and looked around in all directions. I was the only car right in the front parking spot of the Sheetz gas station door. I could even see the coffee machine from the car and persuaded myself that I would be able to watch the vehicle through the doors and big glass windows the whole time. I literally backed myself up inside towards the machine, eyeing the car like a hawk.

I quickly turned and poured the coffee in just a few seconds. When I turned back, the car rapidly pulled out of the space and headed to the exit. I started to run, but even as I cleared the door, it turned right out of sight, heading for the freeway, which was not even a minute away. If a car were nearby, I would have taken it myself and given chase.

With a clenching panic in my throat, I immediately called 911. As a former police officer, I professionally told her what happened, the vehicle description, the license plate, and the last direction of travel. She calmly typed, asking the usual questions. It was just another auto theft, nothing serious.

Then I blurted, “My 12-year-old service-trained golden retriever is in the back seat!”

The tone immediately changed as she stated more than asked, “There is a dog in the car?! Standby!” I then heard her immediately broadcast all the information to a responding unit and emphasized the dog!

In minutes, a police car pulled in. He immediately told me that a BOLO (Be On Look-Out) had already been transmitted to all law enforcement agencies, locally and statewide, including Pennsylvania to the north and Kentucky and Virginia to the south. He said that usually, they confirmed the theft first (not a repo or an estranged girlfriend), but under the circumstances and being right off the freeway, they wanted to put it out instantly. And they loved dogs! Fortunately, a video at Sheetz captured the whole theft and her face. This would quickly identify her later, but the priority now was to FIND ICON!.

When the police had their information, I called for an Uber to take me to a rental company to have a car ready. The nearby Gainesville Police were checking all the parking lots in the multiple stores and shopping centers up the street, but I drove through them again. She could have gone north or south if she took the freeway, so I took a guess and moved north. I wasn’t going to try to catch up with her. I hoped she realized a dog was in the back seat and let him out at a gas station or restaurant. I pulled off each ramp and checked every open gas station and store. I would talk with employees, asking them if they have seen a golden retriever and asking them to be on the lookout for him.

After a couple of exits, I decided I needed a plan. When I got the rental car, I stopped at the hotel to grab some things, including my laptop. I was so glad I thought of that. I quickly made a poster on the laptop, then stopped at an Office Depot and printed a hundred flyers. I was then on my way, posting them at every exit at the gas stations, fast food, convenience stores, and coffee shops from here to Pittsburgh. Everyone was very open and sympathetic.  Some even asked for more flyers to be distributed elsewhere.

I had been posting what I could to my Facebook page, asking for PRAYERS and for them to share with anyone and everyone they could think of. One of my good friends is a television weather person who notified a television friend to contact me. It was already late, but they wanted a reporter to interview me in the morning if he wasn’t found by then.

I then called the popular WAJR radio station in Morgantown, telling them of the story and begging for their help to get the word out. I didn’t have to beg. Within a few minutes, the radio person on duty told the story to all the listeners for hundreds of miles. They continued broadcasting the story and description of the car and Icon every half hour at the news break.

I continued towards Pittsburgh for no reason other than a guess, stopping at every exit and distributing flyers. To my amazement, when I pulled off the freeway to inquire and leave posters, many people said they just heard about it on the radio. A few grabbed extra flyers from me and said they would post them all over town. All offered me food and coffee, and they wanted to help in any way. I was so grateful.

Hours passed, and it got darker and darker, very dark. A big storm was moving over the whole state, with hard rain, lightning, and thunder that shook my car. I prayed, “Please God. Please let him be somewhere safe and dry.” Tears flowed down my face, so much so that I had to pull over to the side and stop. Then, I would take a deep breath, clear my vision, and say, “Okay. Time to keep looking.” I’d pull out into the torrential rain to continue my mission to save Icon.

I decided another thing I could do was to call dog rescue shelters and animal control departments. After a few calls, I decided it wasn’t necessary. Every one of them had already received numerous calls from citizens. It gave me some hope. Everyone was looking for him. 

On one of the exits, I connected to the Internet to let people know I was still looking. On Facebook, I was amazed at the hundreds, later thousands, of people praying and encouraging Icon and me. The story of Icon had gone viral with postings of encouragement across the United States. Many were contacting friends and relatives who lived in the surrounding areas. I could not remember a more extensive “dog hunt” ever before.

Many hours had passed, and I was almost to Pittsburgh, which was usually an hour-and-a-half drive without stops. I concluded that even if she went in this direction, she would have dropped him off if she was going to do that. I turned around and sped south to start looking in that direction. Those are the times when the mind wanders into all the terrible things that could have happened. Perchance, she abandoned him on the side of the freeway. Possibly, he was attacked by another animal. Icon is so friendly and handsome; maybe she decided to keep him. Perhaps she gave him away to a friend, and I would never see him again. This was natural, but I had to fight to keep positive. I have to find Icon. I WILL find Icon.

When I got back to Morgantown, it was getting very late as the storm continued. I printed up more flyers. It was time to drive the route south, make every exit, and continue my search plan. The people and places southbound were just as helpful and consoling. Many had also heard the news story on the radio.

I went a couple of hours south and returned to Morgantown, arriving early in the morning darkness. I was still too wound up. I knew I wouldn’t/couldn’t sleep, so I continued driving the poorly lit city streets, mainly in the area where I knew the junkies hung out. I had seen a picture of the thief from the gas station video camera. The officer and I concluded that this was likely a local crackhead. They were known to steal running cars quite regularly. I might not see her, but maybe, just maybe, she gave Icon to one of her friends. I finally returned to my hotel for a few hours, but the stillness was overwhelming. Icon wasn’t there. As the sky had just started to get light, I headed out searching again.

I headed out to continue the local search on the smaller streets of Morgantown and post more flyers. Later, I met Veronica from Channel 5 News at WVU, and we conducted an interview. Then, I headed over to the radio station and met Dave Wilson from morning WAJR, and we recorded the interview in the studio. Everyone there was very conciliatory and even had tears in their eyes.

Over 30 hours had passed since the kidnapping. While in the parking lot, I checked my phone, and there were several urgent messages. they had a lead with a picture. My phone started ringing, and it was another one of my good dog friends. She said a picture had been posted about half an hour earlier. She then texted me a photo of the picture she took with her phone. While not that clear, I immediately knew that it was ICON!  There wasn’t much information except the person saying he found this dog on the side of the road and wondered if it was the dog on the radio. He would only give out his address and couldn’t take calls. 

At that same moment, Jaime came running out of the radio station to catch me. She had the posting on her phone and showed it to me. I tearfully replied that I had just got the same message and was on my way there now. I felt confident it was Icon, and I would let her know. I also texted Veronica at the news station, saying he had possibly been found. She said to please keep her updated.

I looked it up on my GPS, and it was over an hour and a half south, literally in the middle of nowhere. Actually, in the middle of nowhere in the middle of nowhere. It was all two-lane back-country roads. The car thief stayed off the freeways and took remote back roads (probably not her first theft). I had no cell signal almost all the time, and the GPS even got lost a couple of times. Most of it had forests on each side, and there was just an occasional house and small farm.

I drove by where the man said he found the dog on the side of the road, and I shuddered. It was thick forests and virtually no roadside. Icon could have easily been hit on this unlit road or attacked by an animal.

Millions of thoughts like this darted in and out of my mind. "Please, God. Let Icon be there!"

I kept losing GPS signals and getting turned around. It took over two hours, and I finally found the street, having missed it twice and having no signal. It was just a tiny, single-track dirt road leading to an old house with nothing else in sight. I got out of my car and called out. There was no response. I worked my way through the high grass and weeds, continuing to call out, “Hello!” and “Icon!” Icon had diminished hearing and I wanted to make sure he heard me.

My heart sank. There was no response, not even the sounds of a breeze. Still, I kept walking and shouting. I maneuvered all around the broken-down car and appliances, and I finally came around to the front of the house. I could barely see into the shaded front porch. As my eyes adjusted, I could see Icon lying there looking all around. He could hear me but didn’t know what direction I was from him.

He then looked my way and immediately jumped up and ran toward me, crying, barking, whining, and jumping up and down. With tears flowing down my face like Niagara Falls, I hugged him, pulling my face into his neck, and we both cried. Even when I stood up, he was still barking and jumping. I can’t imagine the ordeal he went through. Not knowing where he was and, especially, where I was. He wasn’t tied to the porch. He was smart enough to reason that he was safe and not to go anywhere. BRUCE WILL FIND ME! And I did – totally by Divine Intervention.

We got in the car, and I took a selfie. There was one bar on my phone, and I managed to post on Facebook, “I FOUND HIM.” I told people I had no signal and will tell more later. Just as I was ready to leave, a local Sheriff's Deputy pulled up. He said he had seen the posts and was coming there to check on Icon. He also wanted to confirm that I was the owner. But then he saw how excited Icon was and the stack of flyers scattered on my front seat. He smiled and said, “That’s enough proof for me.”

I gave Icon water and food that he gobbled up. As we pulled onto the road, he was already fast asleep, sprawled across the back seat. I could swear I saw a smile on his face. When I got out of the area and had a cell phone signal, I posted more news and said I would tell the whole story later. I let the wonderful radio station and the TV news know he had been found. The television did an incredible story that night on the kidnapping and the extraordinary reunion. I just wanted to get Icon back and let him swim, the best trauma reliever I knew. 

We were asked to do another interview with Dave Wilson at WAJR, where I spoke for Icon and told him about my - and his “iconic" adventure. Icon was mobbed by everyone at the radio station (yeah, of course, he flirted with the ladies). When we left, we headed for the lake, and Icon swam for hours – happy and content.

Coincidentally, that night was the 4^th of July and Morgantown had booths and festivities downtown. Icon and I walked around and were constantly approached by people asking, “Is that the dog?” “Is that Icon?” He gathered a crowd and was quite the celebrity. I even had a few police officers come up and tell me how hard they had also looked for him.

During the stormy night, a close friend sent me a Bible verse that helped so much.

"I cried out to Him with my mouth; His praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened, but God has surely listened and has heard my prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!" Psalm 66:17-20

GOD IS GOOD……ALWAYS.