A man and his dog Story of love, loss and recovery Jan 2, 2015 By Eli Ruiz - staff writer LIBERTY — This is a story about a man and his dog. Gene Schechter was raised in Brooklyn, and maintained homes in Santa Barbara, Ca. and Livingston Manor for the better part of the last three decades. Schechter made his fortune as the founder and president of NYCs Data Command, Ltd. and later founded Cardinal Construction, which built homes throughout the tri-state area and California. Several years ago, Schechter and fiancee Kim Delgado were leaving her fathers Santa Barbara ranch and on the side of the highway came upon a mother dog and a small litter. “There was one [puppy] in particular that just stood out… he just wanted us. You could totally tell,” Delgado said. The couple rescued the puppy, aand a second one to keep him company. They were named Truman and Winston, respectively. About three years ago Schechter, then in his early seventies, decided to make Sullivan County his permanent residence, moving into a cabin with what was described as “absolutely incredible” views in the northern part of the county. Schechter, a diabetic, had developed mobility issues, and just a few years after moving into his dream cabin had to leave it for a more suitable apartment in Liberty. This past November 12, just two days after his move, Schechter died unexpectedly. “My father was just one of those people who absolutely embraced life,” offered Adam Schechter. “He was just crazy… I liked to call him the lunatic who did everything.” Adam described a man who once lost his pilots license for flying a plane under the George Washington Bridge. A man who celebrated his 65th birthday with a trek up to Kala Patthar, just above Base Camp Everest. Dead owner, distraught dog On November 13 Village of Liberty Animal Control officer Joanne Gerow received a call from village police. Spurred by a call of concern from a Schechter relative, they had discovered Gene dead in his apartment. “[The police] wanted me to come by and remove a dog from the premises so they could perform their investigation,” explained Gerow. The dog in question was the pup Schecter had rescued, Truman, a rottweiler mix who was trained as a service dog able to sense when his masters blood-sugar had reached dangerous levels. Truman had even prevented, on two occasions, Schecter from going into diabetic shock. Gerow explained, “Id never seen a dog so traumatized… you could just see it in the poor things eyes and he just didnt want to leave the apartment… it was almost impossible to get him out of there.” Gerow loaded Truman into a large, reinforced portable kennel which she then placed onto the cabbed bed of her Toyota pickup, safely securing the heartbroken Truman. So she thought. A dog escapes Low on fuel, Gerow made a pit-stop at the Liberty X-Tra Mart. “I fueled up and went inside to pay… thats when a young boy walked in and asks me, ‘Did you have a dog in the back of your truck?” recalled Gerow. “I was mortified and ran outside, only to find Truman standing there between the X-Tra Mart and the Budget Inn... I went to try to catch him again but he just turned and took off behind the motel.” “He literally broke out of the kennel, which is just hard to believe,” said Gerow. “The dog actually pulled the kennel door in towards himself, which Ive never in my years doing this seen before. Then he somehow got out from the back of the truck…” Gerow, always grieved by losing any animal, soon learned the significance Truman held for the Schechter family. “After talking to [Adam Schechter] and realizing… just how much he meant to that family, oh boy was I devastated… I wouldnt be able to rest until I found this dog for this family,” she said. “I must have made three or four trips from my home in Connecticut, to Liberty to search for Truman,” affirmed Adam. “All this while Im trying desperately to get my fathers affairs in order… it was just a high stress situation and it was just frustrating having no sign of the dog.” ‘Trapping Truman For her part, a desperate Gerow came up with an idea: “I figured that if I could get my hands on some objects familiar to Truman I might be able to attract and then trap him,” she said. Gerow managed to gather a blanket used by Gene, some of Trumans toys and a few other items and set them up where she last saw Truman: the Budget Inns rear parking lot. “I was running back and forth checking on the trap constantly… and the owner of the motel was just great and would call me when he spotted Truman,” said Gerow. “He actually saw him back there a couple of times.” On Saturday, November 15, Adam, Kim and family and friends were in New Jersey preparing to lay Gene Schechter to rest. “I was literally 20 minutes from delivering my fathers eulogy when my phone rang,” offered Schechter. “Id blocked all numbers that morning except for Joannes…” Back in Liberty, Gerow decided to set still another trap for Truman and waited in her truck, behind the hotel. All of a sudden she spotted Truman on the embarkment and managed to coax him down. “He ran right at me and I was able to put him on a leash… I had him and boy, what a relief that was,” she said. Reunited In Connecticut, Schechter answered the call from Gerow during the solemn wake. “All she said was ‘I got him. I turned to the family and gave them the thumbs up, told them Joanne had found Truman,” he said. “My biggest worry at that point was that Id actually smile during my fathers eulogy. Youve never seen a more relieved group of people.” Schechter and Delgado wasted no time in getting to Liberty, heading out after the funeral to be reunited with their favorite pooch. “It was just amazing when they walked into my house… especially when Kim walked in and Truman just lost it,” said Gerow. “When I saw that, thats when I knew everything was going to be okay.” Delgado assumed ownership of Truman, taking him back to his native Santa Barbara and a reunion with his litter brother Winston. “The first week back was tough for [Truman],” said Delgado. “On three or four separate occasions he would go into these fits and just let out this horrible cry… I knew he was missing Gene because he was literally looking for him.” “Truman is fine and pretty much adjusted now… and of course, he and Winston are just inseparable,” she added. As for Gerow: “I just love happy endings,” she said simply. Photo 1 Contributed Photo Pictured is Truman, the rottweiler-mix, who went missing in Liberty in mid-November. He is pictured in his new Santa Barbara, California home. Photo 2: Gene Schechter, who passed away in his Liberty apartment on November 12, had as close a relationship with his dog, Truman, as a man could have. A service dog who often alerted Schechter, a diabetic, of his dropping blood sugar levels, Truman is said to have saved Schechters life on two separate occasions, preventing his master from lapsing into certain diabetic comas. Photo 3 Contributed Photo Town of Liberty Animal Control Officer Joanne Gerow managed to recapture Truman, the rottweiler-mix, after he managed an inprobable escape from her secured kennel in the back of her pickup truck.
Posted on: Sat, 03 Jan 2015 01:18:44 +0000
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