A political palate cleanser. After the dark, dank, and fact-devoid DNC, some of us really need it. This week's Feel-Good Friday is going to the dogs once again, with a story about a retired couple who wanted to spend their remaining days helping out dogs.

When retired United Airlines Captain Paul Howard asked his wife Colleen about buying an airplane six years ago, it took her a bit to come around to the idea.

Ultimately, she did... with a caveat.

“If you help animals with it, I’m all for it,” she said.

Now, less than two months after her passing, he plans to fly – at least partially - in her honor to continue their shared mission of flying rescue animals to their new homes.

After Howard got the plane, with Colleen’s blessing, he found Pilots N Paws.

Pilots N Paws is a 501c3 organization that connects pilots with rescue organizations. It was started by Debi Boies in 2008. Boies was a retired nurse who sought to rescue a Doberman that had been used to train fight dogs. However, the dog was several states away. So, a pilot friend volunteered to retrieve the dog and fly him back to Boies. The Dobie Brock was safely transported to his furever home, and thus Pilots N Paws was born:

Willy's smile brightens everyone's day! He, Walker & Bruno are so thankful to Pilot David for flying them from GA to Rescue Dogs Dream in FL✈️Thank you Pilot David, shelter staff, rescuer Gina & Deana, & coordinator Cathy for giving these happy dogs a chance at a beautiful life💕 pic.twitter.com/VHr8qjGAvQ

— Pilots N Paws (@PilotsNPaws) June 18, 2024

Fifteen years later, the organization has over 6,000 volunteer pilots, who have flown 215,000 animals from kill shelters and abusive situations to safe rescues and homes across the country. Pilots N Paws provides an environment where volunteers can come together to arrange or schedule rescue flights, find overnight foster care or shelter, and other related rescue activities.

Their volunteer pilots aren't just retirees. The Pilots N Paws Facebook page beautifully spotlights their volunteers. One pilot is a New York doctor who flew rescued dogs from North Carolina back to Buffalo. Another from Tallahassee, Florida, enjoys making a difference in the lives of animals and owners. Shelters are woefully overcrowded, and it has gotten worse in these tough economic times. So, organizations like Pilots N Paws are a tremendous resource to rescues that desire to save as many dogs as they can. 

Since Howard became a volunteer pilot with Pilots N Paws, he has flown all over the South and much of the Midwest, from the mighty Mississippi to the Great Lakes of Illinois.

“They’ve been abused or abandoned, maybe you’re bringing rescues or fosters to a new home,” he said. “Maybe their owner died, anything you can think of. 

“I go all over and pick ‘em up. It’s just a passion I have, a way of giving back,” Howard said.

Howard has a Piper Cherokee 6 which can handle up to 1,000 pounds of freight. He chose that model specifically so he could haul large loads without worry.

“I can carry a lot of dogs or a lot of freight,” he said, adding he’s taken up to six or seven dogs at a time.

Howard also transports other loads, like supplies for God's Warehouse, a disaster relief organization.

Howard flies out of the Morristown Regional Airport and keeps his plane hangered there.

He says he likes being part of a community that gives back.“

There’s a lot of people in this area that have a real passion for other people,” he said. “This is just one small way we can do that have the ability to move stuff quickly.”

To further honor his wife Colleen's memory, Howard plans to increase his volunteer time with Pilots N Paws and do more flights.

“She’s a huge animal supporter, all her life,” he said. “In memory of her, I’m going to try to do more.”

It does the heart good, and puppies' lives are being saved. If you would like to see the ways you can support Pilots N Paws, visit their website.