On the 10-year anniversary of Tyler’s tragic climbing accident we honor her memory. We love you sweet Tyler and are happy you finally have your faithful companion Milly there with you.

Thank you all for the kind words and support over the last 24 hours. It really means a lot and has helped.  

I’ve had strange feelings this morning. I feel like I need to get up and tend to Milly, to take her out and to feed her and to give her the  morning meds. I look at all the little spots where she used to lay and she’s not there.  

I’m a very routine person which of course can be both good and bad.   I gave Tyler the routine machine gene and she shared it with Milly.  That’s why Milly and I got along so well too.  It will take some effort to break the old routines and start new ones.

I recently read the book “A Dog’s Purpose” and the biggest takeaway for me was what the dog’s purpose in life was.  And that purpose was to love his owner, be with his owner and to make his owner happy.  That’s pretty simple.  Milly you did that gloriously and made my life better along the way.   

God bless you sweet doggie.  

Milly’s Eulogy: 15 wonderful years 3/21/2010 – 8/06/2025

In 2010 Tyler rescued this sweet dog but in fact it turned out that Milly rescued Tyler.  The relationship was unbelievable and unlike no other master dog relationship any of her friends and family had ever known. They were inseparable and did EVERYTHING together.  Ten mile runs, hiking up the back country in Jackson WY and skiing down in waist deep powder with Milly following in Tyler’s tracks.    Upon Tyler’s passing in 2015 Milly became a part of my life and rescued me in my grief for the loss of Tyler.  This sweet little loving dog provided immeasurable joy to Tyler for their 5 years together and for the last 10 years to me and Teresa in our lives.

Milly quickly adapted from a mountain dog to a beach dog and she loved the beach and life on the outer banks.    She enjoyed fetching tennis balls in the ocean, digging up ghost crabs on the beach for hours, chasing rabbits in the neighborhood and especially boat rides.  Milly loved to sit on the bow of the boat at 30 MPH with the wind blowing in her face.  On one of our last boat rides we were fortunately blessed with a warm day and calm winds and as fate would have it, we happened upon a school of dolphins.   Dolphins were Tyler’s favorites too.  And both Tyler and Milly have been known to jump from the boat in their pursuit of “swimming with the dolphins”.   We have the video.

I had hoped and prayed that this day would never come but that’s simply not possible.   A little piece of the Gardner, Hackney, Desmond, Tomlinson and Strandberg families passed today as Milly left this earth to go to that doggie heaven in the sky.

To Milly:  I will miss you so much. I will miss sleeping and cuddling, in earlier years our morning and evening walks, I will miss giving you that last bite of whatever was on my plate.  You were always there to greet me with that tail just a wagging away and a lick on the face. No matter how bad my day may have been, you were always there to brighten it. You were my little black shadow and although that shadow is no longer there, I know you’ll be with me in other ways.

God bless you Milly, my heart is broken.   You were and will always be the best dog ever. We love and miss you.  You go be with Tyler.  She’s been patiently waiting and calling for you.

The memories will live on forever until it is my time to come and be with you again.