The WOOF Program

The WOOF program not only changed my life in prison by giving me purpose, skills and smiles, but continues to have a positive impact on my life years after my release. When you see a dog you helped train, bond with a veteran and change their lives it gives you such a feeling of success and pride. 

One of the most meaningful parts of the program has been the relationships built with the veterans who receive these dogs. As an inmate, you often carry the weight of judgment and the feeling that society only sees your mistakes. Meeting veterans who genuinely appreciate the work you have done and respect you for the role you played in helping them is incredibly powerful. Many of them have faced their own battles and understand what it means to fight through difficult circumstances. When a veteran thanks you for helping train a dog that will change their life, it reminds you that your past does not define your value. Instead, you are seen as someone who contributed to something meaningful. That respect and connection creates a sense of dignity and purpose that stays with you long after the program ends.

My main goal upon release was to get an apartment so I could work with a dog. It took me 3 months but once I got my apartment I got to work with Molly. Molly was scared of the world, and even though I was too, I couldn’t let her feel that. She taught me how to be confident, how to talk to people, how to live alone, structure, responsibility, and unconditional love. All of this was new to me and opened so many doors. Some of the best friends I have now are people I met because they wanted to ask me about a dog that I was training. 

The program goes far beyond just the dogs, you really have a family, a support group, people that believe in you, care about you, and appreciate you. After years of not contributing to society it showed me that I can learn new skills and be successful in life. The book reports and talking in front of people in the program set me up for success far more than I imagined at the moment. 

When you are released after spending so many years of your life on the wrong road it's really hard to feel like a respectable part of society and rekindle relationships but having a service dog beside you honestly gives you a sense of pride that moves you through life. I still volunteer and will continue to because now I am part of the family. I own a successful business and I am 10 years sober. There is no doubt in my mind that the skills I learned in PSD and the support they still continue to show helped me to get to where I am in life today.

Nothing changes in life until nothing changes”. That is one of my favorite quotes that seems to constantly resonate in different aspects. My name is Brandi and that was the mindset I had when I decided to enter the W.O.O.F. program.

I was sentenced to 10 years and I knew that nothing was going to change in my life until I made a change. That is where the dogs came in. I thought I was going to simply play with, brush and walk dogs all day. Nothing to lose and an easy way to do my time. That’s where it ended. I probably have never been so wrong in my life and I know I’ve never made a better choice.

What started out as a way to do time, turned into a completely new life, mindset, system of values and outlook. It wasn’t something that changed overnight, but gradually I would have moments of clarity. Moments of understanding and moments of seeing what life was really about. The big moment, the pivotal moment that really got me thinking, was the first time I trained a veteran.

I met a man that was 2 1/2 times my size, covered in tattoos, full beard, and did not care that he was inside of a prison. Did not care that I was in blues and did not care what I had done. All he cared about was that he was receiving a dog. A dog that I’ve trained. I have never met someone more grateful in all my life. When he broke down in tears about what he had been through, what he has seen, the desperation he has felt and the hope he now had due to a service I had done. Then I realized, that this stranger’s, selfless behavior, the selfless act that displayed when he risked his life in combat so I had the freedom to throw mine away… It was a huge pivotal moment in the changing of my life.

We all have moments in life that make us think, make us ponder and make us consider what is really happening. This was the one that put everything in perspective for me. I knew prison was teaching me without a doubt, and I knew that prison was forcing me to face reality in ways that I never would have. But I also know that without this meeting of a stranger… a Hero will be a better word, mine wouldn’t have been impacted through the way it has. He has no idea, but he has changed me. Woof has changed me. The dogs…. Oh, the dogs….. They have given me a purpose.

I am no longer in prison. I am in the free world. I am learning my way. To function in society once again like a positive human being, that does the right thing and I’m only able to do that because of everything I learned from woof. From the dogs, the people, the veterans and the program in its entirety.

 I now currently work at a breakfast restaurant, doing right by all standards. And it’s beautiful and I am very grateful. With the one thing in my life that has stayed a priority to me. That is, I still continue to work with the woof program. Not because I have to. Not because I’m trying to pass the time. Not because I’m trying to find an easy way to do time… But because this program has changed my life in the most beautiful way and knowing that I still play a part in these veterans lives… Fulfillment is what I now have instead of survival. 

My name is Cindi. I was born and raised on Florida’s Nature Coast. I am a daughter, a small business owner, a volunteer, an active member of my community, an experienced dog trainer, and a woman with a criminal record.

I served four years and two months of a five-year sentence to state prison for drug trafficking, and while I am not proud of my crime, I am proud of the way I spent my time inside Lowell Correctional Facility. Between 2017 and 2019, I served my time in the WOOF Prison Program with Patriot Service Dogs. During those years, I helped raise and train several service dogs for veterans—Maverick, Radar, Commander, Cutter, and Wiley all graduated from my care in the WOOF Program and became professional service dogs with military veterans.

After my release, I worked hard to reenter society and reestablish my life, but I did not want to leave behind the work I did with Patriot Service Dogs. So, I continued to volunteer with Patriot Service Dogs as a volunteer trainer. I have assisted with advanced training between veterans and their new service dogs, volunteered at Patriot Service Dog events, and continued to work with service dogs in training—but this time from the outside. I hope this continued involvement also provides a positive example to the women who are now in the WOOF Program and wondering how they will begin again after they leave prison.

Skills I learned and perfected in the WOOF Program continue to be an important part of my life, not just as a Patriot Service Dogs volunteer, but as a businesswoman. Today, I run a small business called “Train Quick” where I provide boarding, basic and advanced training, and socialization training for pet dogs. If I hadn’t been incarcerated, I don’t know if I would have found my calling in the pet industry and Train Quick would likely not exist.

Many people who have been incarcerated try to hide from their past, but I’m proud of my story, my whole story, because I am proud of the woman I am now. And, if my story can help one woman see how they can restart their lives after a terrible mistake or help one person see that people deserve a second chance, then I want to share my story.

I made a lot of selfish decisions before I went to prison, the WOOF program taught me how to give back.