Islander mourns loss of beloved pet

To the editor:
I didn’t have to happen!
I adopted Dicky, my 8-year-old rescue dachshund/chihuahua mix on Feb. 17 of this year. He was overfilled with love and life. Dicky was the perfect “kid” His only fault separation anxiety. He was spending the evening with my sister’s dog while we were all at a friend’s for dinner. We received a call that Dicky had slipped out the front door and couldn’t be found. It was pitch black Tuesday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m. Within minutes, eight of us were frantically searching for him. My one friend and I got in a car and headed towards my house, thinking maybe that’s what Dicky had on his mind. At the corner of 7th and Oleander I spotted him. He was standing in the southbound lane looking north. My heart jumped for joy. I had found him!! The driver of the white van heading north was NOT looking. As I jumped out of the car running towards my dog, yelling NO, the white van drifted into the southbound lane and – thump – hit my little boy dog. As I ran to my dog, the van slowed, almost to a stop, then consciously hit the gas pedal and drove away. It was quite obvious with our car in the middle of Oleander, flashers on, and two women screaming, that we had a problem.
Why didn’t you stop and help? Were you on your phone? Were you impaired? It keeps me wondering why you weren’t driving in the proper lane – why did you hit my dog?
Dicky knew I was there – he responded by looking into my eyes, giving me that special little “I love you momma” whimper, and then died in my arms.
Yes, time will heal my heart, and for all of those who knew and were attached to this amazing dog – “Dicky Do.”
In closing, I hope that you “Mr. or Ms. In the white van” are more careful in driving our quiet streets of SJC. We will be on the lookout for you.
To all of our friends who share in our grief and have been so supportive, thank you. He wasn’t just a dog – he was Dicky.
Linda Reddish
St. James City
On a side note – I finally had the strength to drive that stretch at night – with headlights on – it was as clear as day – the van obviously was NOT looking at the road. Shame on you.