Together Again - Woman regains friend feared lost during hurricane

By Murray Bozeman
News Editor
Laurel Leader

A New Orleans woman who thought she had lost everything to Hurricane Katrina now has had a part of her former life returned  - thanks to a veterinarian in California.

Rosemary Simmons, who now lives in Heidelberg with relatives, was reunited with her dog, Brownie, a 3-year-old  mixed breed, Tuesday night. And Simmons said she has thanked God every day since she learned that Brownie was safe.

Rosemary Simmons, who evacuated to Heidelberg from New Orleans on Aug. 28, spends time with Brownie, her dog with whom she was reunited Tuesday night.

Simmons left New Orleans Aug. 28, the day before Katrina hit land. She had the clothes she was wearing, a few other articles of clothing and some personal papers. Since she had no transportation, Simmons was unable to take Brownie (who is blind in one eye) and her 11 cats.

Simmons was born in Laurel, but moved to New Orleans when she was 3. She was always returning to this area to visit relatives. So when she was forced to evacuate, she headed to Heidelberg, along with a few other relatives. (Others headed to Texas and Alabama.)

Simmons returned to her home, which was gutted, around the beginning of October. She found Brownie, but tearfully, she told him she could not take him back with her. She promised she would return, and a few weeks later, she did. But Brownie was no longer there.  “I didn’t think I would ever see him again!” Simmons said. “I thought he had died of starvation.”

Simmons got Brownie when he was around a month old, and she said that he and her cats were like her children.

Vet to the rescue

Dr. Amy Allen, a veterinarian in San Rafael, Calif., volunteered her services ...  immediately following the Aug. 29 hurricane, and, at the end of October, traveled to New Orleans as part of Rural Area Veterinary Services (RAVS).

Allen was involved with several rescues, one of which involved Brownie. It was a long ordeal that finally reached its end Tuesday night, when Brownie was flown into Meridian.

“We rescued him from a house,” Allen said, “but we later found out he had been loose during the storm. He was very thin and terrified, and it appeared his tail had been injured.”

Allen said she later discovered that Simmons returned to New Orleans and found Brownie, but she could not bring him back to Mississippi.

Several shelters opened in New Orleans after Katrina, according to Allen. Allen turned to Amanda St. John, the founder of Muttshack.

Brownie was eventually placed in a shelter that was housed in a damaged New Orleans school and spent six weeks there.

“But his aggression nearly cost him his life,” said Allen, who soon realized that she had to get Brownie out of New Orleans. She was determined to take him to California.

Brownie had other plans, however. He snapped at the handler prior to his flight out of New Orleans, so he missed that trip. Eventually, though, Brownie did make the trip west, and because his aggression prohibited his placement in certain shelters, he moved in with Allen and her family.

Finding Brownie’s owner

Since she had the address of the home where Brownie was found, Allen began her quest to contact his human. She mailed a letter, and, last Friday, Simmons got it.

“I got the letter that had photos of my Brownie,” Simmons said. “I called Amy as soon as I read it, but she wasn’t there, so I left a message and she called me back.

“There is love in her heart,” said Simmons. “She is beautiful as far as I’m concerned.”

After communicating with Simmons, Allen contacted a local veterinarian to try and coordinate a reunion. She was given the name and number for Pegg Glaser of Soso, one of the five founders of the Cats in Need Society, a local animal welfare group.

Allen contacted Glaser and the two women discussed the options for reuniting Brownie and Simmons.

Tuesday night, Glaser drove Simmons to the Meridian airport, where Brownie arrived from his temporary California home.

“When you listen to this story, you are just so taken aback by what transpired during the whole thing,” Glaser said. “She (Simmons) thought she had lost everything, but she found a treasure.

“I feel blessed because I got to play a part in a Katrina experience that was positive, when so much of it was negative,” said Glaser.

But Simmons realizes how extraordinarily fortunate she is.

“I realize how blessed I am, and I thank God every day,” said Simmons. “I prayed every night for God to take care of my babies, whether they were living or dead. And the Lord let Brownie live for a reason. Brownie knew he was loved, and he knew I was coming back for him.”

Simmons said she is not going back to New Orleans. She thinks she and Brownie will stay in Heidelberg.

Simmons has no reminders or possessions from her life in New Orleans. But she has the two most important things in the world to her - her life and her Brownie.

Photo/Murray Bozeman Laurel Leader