The Rescue at Dead Dog Beach (28 page)

T
o Pamela, my loving and dedicated wife of eighteen years, I love you. You have stood by me through tough times when anyone else would have bailed. You've always supported and encouraged me to pursue my heart's dreams. I know I was tough to live with while living in Puerto Rico and then again while writing this book. It was an emotional and painful journey at times having to relive the memories in order to write the book the way it needed to be written. Through it all, you've remained my constant and helped me to stay the course. Thank you, hon.

To my two beautiful daughters Freyja and Ella, since your arrival in this world, you've managed to provide a piece of my life that I didn't know I was missing. You've breathed a breath of fresh air and new life into me. You've helped me see the little joys in day-to-day living again. Your love and compassion toward animals is inspirational and drives me to be a better person. I love you, my sweeties.

To my oldest daughter Bethany and my only son Curtis. Through all the ups and downs life has thrown our way, my love for you has remained constant. Your compassion and soft-hearted approach to life has always touched me. I love you, kiddos.

To Mum, thank you for always believing in me and helping me to believe in myself. Your encouraging words over the years have allowed me to dream bigger and push myself harder than I thought possible. I love you.

To Barry and Ian, thank you for always being there for me. You've been the best older brothers a rebel like me could have ever asked for. The McGarva brothers forever.

To my closest friend, Yann, thank you, bro!

Nan, Grandpa, Dad, and Blair . . . I love and miss you.

Without the aforementioned, I could never have written this book or done what I did for the dogs at the beach. You took my desperate calls, helped talk me off the ledge of desperation, and kept me from walking away from it all. I'm eternally grateful to each of you for your love and support and for always having my back.

Author Photo by Beth Perkins

STEPHEN McGARVA
is the founder of the Achates Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works to end the abuse of strays and build animal-friendly communities in Mexico and Puerto Rico. Stephen first came to prominence as the Dog-Rescuer for his work saving hundreds of dogs in Puerto Rico. He lives in Boston, Massachusetts, with his wife and daughters, and is currently pursuing a teaching degree from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University.

Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at
hc.com
.

Cover design by Laurie Griffin

Photograph following the preface courtesy of Beth Perkins; all other photographs courtesy of the author.

THE RESCUE AT DEAD DOG BEACH
. Copyright © 2014 by Stephen McGarva. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

FIRST EDITION

ISBN 978-0-06-201408-5

EPub Edition August 2014 ISBN 9780062351715

14  15  16  17  18    
OV
/
RRD
    10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3  2  1

Australia

HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.

Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street

Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia

http://www.harpercollins.com.au

Canada

HarperCollins Canada

2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor

Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada

http://www.harpercollins.ca

New Zealand

HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand

Unit D, 63 Apollo Drive

Rosedale 0632

Auckland, New Zealand

http://www.harpercollins.co.nz

United Kingdom

HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

77-85 Fulham Palace Road

London, W6 8JB, UK

http://www.harpercollins.co.uk

United States

HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

195 Broadway

New York, NY 10007

http://www.harpercollins.com