Simon was adopted into the Martineit family on March 15, 2010 from Homeward Bound in Middlebury. He was initially rescued in Delaware and later transferred to Homeward Bound. It was obvious after being with us for only a few days he had been badly mistreated but he grew into the freedoms he now had and enjoyed the yard that he now had to run and play in. Over time whether he knew it or not he adopted us as “his” pack.

‏I am not writing this obituary to tell you how great Simon was but simply that he was an excellent family pet. He freely gave his unconditional love to his adopted family and asked for nothing except to be let out when he had to go. Simon (as all pets) was not judgmental and he did not care about our faults. Simon accepted all of us in this crazy family and did not care that I was circumferentially challenged, that my wife has Alzheimer’s, that our oldest son has severe brain trauma and is confined to a wheelchair, or that our youngest son was also adopted (but from Chile) and marches to the beat of his own drummer.

‏Simply Simon was truly part of our family and I want to believe all pet adoptees feel this way about their pet. For many elderly, their pet is their family. The best part about these relationships is there are never any family arguments and there is always a wet nose and a wagging tail ready to ease tensions.

‏Please enjoy your time with your pet(s), we all hope they will be around for many years but sometimes we don’t get what we want. Also, may I suggest that once a year to honor your pet(s) by making a contribution to Homeward Bound in their name?