In June of 2013, an Australian Shepherd mix named Molly was discovered at Herding Rescue Dogs of Wyoming (HeRD of WY) by long-time SDF friends Kellee and Tim Matthews. The Matthews’ family own and operate the South Dakota Canine Center in Sturgis and frequently visit neighboring states in search of dogs they can offer a new leash on life!
Kellee contacted the director of HeRD, as Tim was scheduled to travel through the WY area to evaluate several prospective candidates for SDF. The Matthews’ had mapped out the trip with some good leads at shelters along the way and Kellee threw an email out to HeRD in hopes of making a good contact for future trips. She received an email response right away that they had a dog named Molly that seemed like a good fit for SDF, so a meeting was set up for Tim to stop at HeRD on the final day of his journey.
Tim met and tested Molly and called Kellee immediately saying, “You are going to love this dog!” HeRD had rescued Molly from a shelter in Utah where she was slated for euthanasia. She had been owner-surrendered by a family that was expecting a baby and had two other pet dogs. There simply was not enough room for Molly as well. Tim wasted no time in adopting Molly from HeRD and drove her back home with him where she would begin her medical clearances and prepare for her trip to SDF’s kennels in California.
Upon arrival at SDF’s National Training Center (NTC) in Santa Paula, CA, Molly’s name was changed to “Winnie” in honor of Winifred Freeman of the William and Winifred Freedman Foundation. This family-run organization gives generously to animal welfare and human service causes and chose to begin supporting SDF in 2012. Winifred is the foundation’s president and her granddaughter, Allison, who is also the foundation’s junior director, requested to name a canine candidate Winnie in honor of the family’s matriarch.
Winnie was a terrific search and rescue student. She was a quick thinker and her willingness to learn made it easy and fun for SDF trainers to work with her.
Winnie was originally paired with Alexander Van of Orange County Task Force 5 on April 1, 2014. Alex and his family were excited to welcome Winnie into their daily lives! The team trained daily for their FEMA Certification, which they achieved in February 2015. Certification is required for US&R teams to be eligible to deploy within the United States with their task force when a disaster occurs.
For this team, the call to help their community came on January 23, 2017, after a series of powerful storms hit Southern California, creating flooding and mudslides throughout the region. Alex and Winnie responded to a vehicle found washed up in the Trabuco Canyon riverbed, as rescue crews were unsure where the vehicle had come from or if there had been any occupants.
Alex and Winnie searched through dense foliage and flood waters with crews from Orange County Fire Authority, making sure that there was no one washed away with the vehicle in need of help. Alex shared how rewarding it was to see Winnie doing such a great job while completing their search: “Winnie did great. She loved the water. Took her 3 minutes to clear the whole area. Searched the riverbank in the wilderness foliage. It was great to get her out. I’m glad to have a dog that loves to be outdoors and loves the water. There was no one to be found, so I had teammates hide so Winnie had someone to ‘find’ and would end the search on a happy note for her. It was nice to learn that it doesn’t matter the weather conditions – Winnie did phenomenal. Weather, water, nothing mattered to her, she just did the job. I wasn’t surprised but the chiefs were very impressed with how fast she was. Winnie returned to the station covered in mud from head to toe, which I’m sure she loved.”
Unfortunately, several months later, Winnie was returned to SDF in August of 2017, when Alex could not continue in the canine program. She spent a couple weeks with us until she could be paired with a new handler. Luckily, we did not have to wait long for the right person to come along!
On September 1, Winnie was paired with Engineer Brandon Andersen of the Sacramento Metro Fire Department. Brandon had already been a firefighter for 12 years and this is the only career he has ever had, having begun an EMT course immediately out of high school. Brandon became interested in becoming a canine handler in 2008, after seeing a demo by SDF Search Team Tim Robertson & Speaker in a class in which he was participating. Nearly a decade later, Brandon achieved his goal.
Brandon and Winnie achieved certification with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on January 20, 2018, which made them eligible to deploy with their teammates on California Task Force 7.
Brandon and Winnie deployed together on September 3, 2019, when Hurricane Dorian made landfall in Florida and the Carolinas. The team staged nearby as Hurricane Dorian made its way up the coast in order to help with rescue efforts once the storm had passed.
Winnie remained athletic and spritely into 2023, and re-certified once again in March in Menlo Park, CA. At 12 years of age, she still enjoyed searching a rubble pile and playing tug.
Sadly, Winnie’s health began to decline in the summer of that year and she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. On August 22, 2023, Winnie peacefully crossed the Rainbow Bridge.
After she passed Brandon shared, “We traveled the country and wherever we went, she was the star. Having Winnie has been the most fun and rewarding part of my fire career. Having a furry partner with you 24/7, who listens to everything you say and rarely talks back makes for easy days in the firehouse. She left her mark… with everyone she met at Metro Fire and CA-TF7. Thank you to everyone [that] supported her and her mission… Take it easy Winnie. You’re the best partner I could have asked for.”