- December 15, 2025
How a Palm Coast dog and soldier rescued each other through the K-9s for Warriors program.
The American flag stands tall in the front yard of Larry Stewart’s home in Palm Coast. It waves through the warm Florida air.
In one of the windows, another flag leans up against the glass. The blue star honors a family member who is still on deployment.
Stewart, a sergeant in the U.S. Army, bleeds patriotism.
But because of post traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury, Stewart is going through the process to get medically discharged from the Army.
At the door, Stewart’s 15-month-old black Labrador mix, Orion, stands by his master.
Thanks to Stewart, Orion, who came from the Flagler Humane Society, was rescued. And Orion is returning the favor.
Army, through and through
Stewart, 41, is the classical Army brat. He said he knew he was going to join the military by the time he was 13.
Four years later, at 17, he enlisted.
Over his 24-year Army career, Stewart served four deployments — three in Iraq — his most recent being as an air-defense artilleryman from September 2010 to November 2011 in the continental U.S. He said he had nine different Military Occupational Specialty codes throughout his career, including being military police on two Iraq tours.
But in 2007, he was diagnosed with “clusters of post traumatic stress disorder.” On his most recent deployment, it came to a head. His plans to stay in the Army for another 22 years came to a screeching halt.
“Now, I’m more of a liability than an asset,” Stewart said Thursday as he sipped his coffee. “If I thought I could do my job 100%, then I’d stay in.”
One man, one dog
Because of the injuries, Stewart is trying to cope with a new life; a different life. One that involves nightmares every night. Paranoia. Depression. Regularly questioning “the purpose of life.”
One day, a fellow soldier told him about programs that provide service dogs for soldiers with PTSD. After a few Internet searches, Stewart came across K-9s for Warriors, a Ponte Vedra-based 501c3 company that pairs rescued dogs with U.S. military personnel. About 90% of the dogs come from humane societies or rescue shelters.
Brett Simon, the son of the president of K-9s for Warriors, also served in the military. He came back with PTSD, too. Simon is the director of K-9 operations, and he speaks with all the interested warriors and pairs them up with the dogs they bring in.
Once Stewart committed to finding a service dog, Simon said that simply by speaking over the phone, he had the perfect dog in mind: Orion.
All soldiers, active duty or veterans, are required to go through three weeks of training at the facility. On the second night, Stewart knew Orion was meant to be his dog.
“I was in the middle of a nightmare, and Orion nudged my arm, but that didn’t work,” Stewart said. “So he crawled into bed and laid with me and started licking my face until I woke up.”
If that wasn’t proof enough, Orion came to the rescue again the next night.
“Because of my restless leg syndrome, my legs were twitching and moving and I couldn’t fall asleep,” Stewart said. Orion then laid on Stewart’s legs to keep them down until Stewart fell asleep.
“Orion and I — we got lucky. He bonded with me,” Stewart said.
Paying it forward
In the 18 months K-9s for Warriors has been open, 25 dogs and soldiers have been paired up. More pairs graduated Thursday.
Because Orion is certified through the Americans with Disabilities Act, he can go anywhere with Stewart. It’s brought joy and fulfillment back to Stewart’s life.
His wife, Gerri, said Orion has made things somewhat normal again.
“Orion gave me my husband back,” she said.
“They are rescuing the dogs and the dogs are rescuing us,” Stewart said of K-9s for Warriors.
Orion helps Stewart get up and down stairs. Because of the PTSD, Orion is always on the lookout for Stewart — watching for people coming up behind him and also reminding him when to take his medications. He also provides Stewart with comfort in going out in public.
It’s all about a routine — it’s what rescue dogs and military personnel live their lives by.
“Dogs love routine,” Stewart said. “If they can get a routine, they’re happy. The warriors who have PTSD and (traumatic brain injury) require a routine ... so it fits.”
Sherri Keshner, coordinator of K-9 operations for the company, has trained service dogs for more than 15 years. She said there’s irony in pairing rescue dogs with soldiers.
“It’s like having a battle buddy again so they are more comfortable going out in public because they’re not alone,” Keshner said.
Stewart is proof.
“Before I met Orion, I hadn’t been to a movie in at least three years,” he said. “We’ve been to two movies in the last three months, and it was OK.”
Shari Duval, president of K-9s for Warriors, said while holidays — such as Memorial Day — bring awareness, military personnel should be recognized year-round.
“The rest of the year, everyone needs to be reminded that they are still at war,” Duval said. “We’re losing lives every day, and the catastrophes we’re seeing when they come home don’t end.”
Duval said they are on pace to pair about 40 dogs and warriors this year.
“That’s just a drop in the bucket of what has to be done,” she said. “But it’s all we can do, and we are absolutely honored to be able to do this.”
Because of the program, Stewart intends on paying it forward once he’s officially out of the Army. He intends on getting a master’s degree in social work and becoming an advocate for PTSD and TBI. He also wants to help give back to K-9s for Warriors.
“It’s a lifetime injury,” Stewart said of the PTSD. “But you can learn to cope, and you can be a productive member of society. The military family is very small. The K-9s for Warriors has translated that into the civilian aspect of our life.”
And Orion, his four-legged companion, is helping him get there — one command and one treat at a time.
