James Dickerson's military history
James Dickerson was a military police officer for the United States Army for about six years.
"I grew up in a military family. All my heroes growing up were combat veterans and there was no doubt whether I was ever gonna go to the military or not. It was really just which branch." he explained. "I served during the time period that they took the military police that were always combat arms. We had a great need in this country and they put us with the U.S. infantry. So I did different deployments overseas. My last one one Bosnia and Kosovo."
Injuries were frequent for James. He said he was involved in a rollover crash which fractured his neck and back. He also said he is 100 percent disabled and has nerve damage on his hands and legs. He was also diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a mental health condition that develops following a traumatic event characterized by intrusive thoughts about the incident, recurrent distress/anxiety, flashback, and avoidance of similar situations.
According to the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, veterans are more likely to develop PTSD than civilians. A report from the VA shows, that of the 6,000,000 veterans the VA served in 2023, 10 out of every 100 men were diagnosed with PTSD. 19 out of every 100 women were diagnosed.
The Relationship Between PTSD and Suicide - PTSD: National Center for PTSD (va.gov)
"I feel bad for these guys coming home. It's necessary how we train these people and the things we create protecting this country. The problem is, is we don't know how to disarm them. You know, they come home and they have these issues, and as much as it's gotten better for veterans — really, it's, they're so lost in this world," said James. "A lot of these stories end in suicide, child abuse, drug addiction, alcohol, and throughout my time coming out of the service. I've taken a lot of those turns myself, you know, you look for a place to hide, you really do," said James.
Man's best friend, a saving grace
James said he was able to cope with struggles because of a four-legged companion.
"I really crumbled when I came home, and like a lot of guys, alcohol was huge in my life at the time. But I saw guys like me and that's what they were doing. They were climbing in a bottle." he said. "At some point, I was very blessed. I didn't jump into a bottle, I jumped into a dog named Whiskey and he was really there for me. And eventually, that led me to Rudy, my first ever service animal."
Dickerson's love for dogs and his compassion for veterans is what inspired him to start training young dogs to become service animals. He started an organization called Angel's Mission. A pit bull he named Crowley Dickerson, was his first attempt at training a dog for the job.
Read about Angel's Mission and its origin here.
The two got off to a rough start but they ended up creating a bond and James kept the now six-year-old dog. James said Crowley teaches him lessons about life almost every day and shows him the brighter side of life.
"For me, it's not a comfort thing with Crowley, Crowley is not here to protect me. He's not. He's not here as my emotional support animal." James explained. "I have huge anger issues. And there are times when I take people's actions the wrong way. It's really easy for the lines to get blurry with me. In those stressful moments, Crowley, helps me to find that line. And reminds me they're not the enemy. Right? They're not trying to hurt you. No need to be protective."
James has been sharing stories of their life and adventures on Facebook with a page called Crowley Dickerson Through the Eyes of a Service Dog.He originally started sharing stories on a page named Crowley Dickerson.As the title first title indicates, most posts are written from Crowley's perspective.
"The first story I ever wrote started off, and I can read it to you. It says, "Hi I'm Crowley and I'm not a girl." And then it starts to compare veterans to pit bulls. And you know Crowley likes to tease me of course and talk about how he picked the Veteran Breed," James laughed.
The page has many uplifting and lighthearted content authored by James. However, on the page, they also address subjects that are difficult to talk about like loneliness, loss and pain. Writing has been an outlet for Dickerson. Although he didn't expect it, his work has also touched many lives all over the world.
"I was very secretive about my writing. It wasn't something I'd ever shown anyone. I kept it in notebooks, and I would burn them when I was done. It wasn't for anybody else. It was just for me. Matter of fact, if you'd called me a writer, I'd have laughed at you. To this day. I'm not even sure where our commas are supposed to go, but thank God for Grammarly," he chuckled. "I didn't understand the internet like I understand it now. It was actually my oldest daughter who brought it to my attention one day and she's like, 'Do you realize you have a following?'"
James said has received thousands of messages with positive responses about his page. However, his platform has also opened his eyes to a sad reality.
"There's those stories of, you know, I was going to end my life last night but I read your posts," he said solemnly.
James wants to continue writing and grow his social media presence to help prevent suicide. He also plans on continuing efforts to help veterans.
This is his message for people going through tough times:
"You're not alone. Everybody thinks their problems are so unique and they think that their worlds ending and nobody will understand and they can't go on. I personally think from my experience, we all get there sometimes. And it's not just people with trauma. It's it's even just everyday people. You're not alone and it will go away and there will be another day. You know, but it's okay to reach out and talk about it. It's okay to be open about it. You know, it doesn't make you weaker. In fact, some of the strongest men I know, and women that I know, you know, they've they've had to come to grips with opening up. And that's what I want people to know we're here for you. You know, we see you we hear you. You know, we just need to know who you are. You know, and that's what I hope, I hope our message spreads. I hope more people reach out to us so we can put them in touch with who they need to be with. That's what I really want."
As for his journey to healing?
"With my PTSD, you know, what you really need to understand is we're never going to be healed, never going to be healed. I don't know if I'm any better or worse than when I began. I just have more understanding of it. And I've learned to make a life for myself. But I think that my broken pieces came beautifully together. And if I stay around my brothers and sisters, and I surround myself with the community that gets me even on my bad days because I'm not always the nicest person — then I think I'll be okay. I really do," said James.
The National Suicide Hotline Designation Act (Public Law # 116-172) designates 9-8-8 as the national number for suicide prevention and mental health crises. The creation of 9-8-8 includes a 24/7, 3-digit crisis hotline.
More Veterans In Focus stories are available here, along with resources for local veterans.
Contact Veterans In Focus reporter Michelle Lorenzo at michelle.lorenzo@kristv.com
