In Conversation With… US Marine Corps Dog Handler, Al Brenner
As US Marine Corps Sergeant (Ret.) Al Brenner marks his 13th Alive Day, we speak to him about how he adjusted to life as a Purple Heart recipient and how he has channeled his life-altering experiences into a self-penned memoir that details the trials and tribulations of life as a dog handler during Operation Enduring Freedom – including the devastating loss of his best friend: His military working dog.
MWD Grief in Afghanistan
Pen to Paper
Writing a book was never part of Al Brenner’s plan. But when his mom bought him a journal to jot down his life oversees as he was readying for deployment, Al committed to fill its pages with stories. “I wasn’t religious about it, but I would pick up the journal every couple of weeks and record a few experiences in there. It gave me my first taste for putting pen to paper.”
A year later, those journaling skills came to be a vital tool as Brenner returned to the US after the IED blast that almost killed him. “The crazy thing is that I could remember every single detail of the moments before, during and after the blast. My therapist said that I should try and write down what I recalled, so I bought a new journal and wrote my story. It didn’t feel like it at the time, but my crystal-clear memory of those events turned out to be a blessing.”
As Brenner’s therapist sat and read the account of the day of the blast, she was moved to tears. “She suggested I wrote a book about what happened to me. So, over the course of the last ten years, I devoted more and more time to doing just that.”
As well as detailing Al’s brush with death and coming to terms with the loss of his beloved MWD, the book details how Brenner carved out his own unique place within the K-9 community.
First in 1MEF
As a newly qualified dog handler – fresh out of Lackland AFB, Al was the first dog handler to receive orders under the newly formed first Marine Expeditionary Force (1MEF) – an historic mantle that paved the way for hundreds of handlers who would pass through Camp Pendleton, CA, to deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan.
The significance of being part of the Marine Corps’ three expeditionary forces would soon sync in, as Brenner was paired with his dog and given orders to ready for deployment. “The whole point of the MEFs was to keep a rotation of operationally ready K-9 handlers to combat the ever-present threats of IEDs in Iraq and Afghanistan. I was fresh out of K-9 school and hungry to get the job done, but first, I needed a dog.”
Brenner was introduced to a black and tan German Shepherd whose reputation and name went hand in glove: Grief. “I quickly learned that he was so-called because grief is all he gave out. We had a rocky start, and you could say that we had some trust issues. Grief made me earn his trust, which took me what felt like an eternity, but once we found our groove, we really bonded.”
Brenner and Grief were paired together while stationed out of Camp Pendleton, CA
Grief kept Brenner on his toes constantly. “While we were training at Yuma Proving Ground, AZ, doing a long-distance roadway search before we deployed, Grief came back with a bit of det chord in his mouth. I wanted the ground to swallow me up at the time but after some more training and a long talk with the trainers about what to do with him, I felt more confident he wasn’t going to drop an IED in my lap.”
Brenner described Grief as a hard head. “He really made me work for it all but when it came to deploying, I trusted him and felt safer with him by my side.”
Dragon Strike
Brenner and Grief deployed to Afghanistan in 2010, when some of the fiercest and most deadly of the conflict’s battles took place. They were tasked with supporting Operation Dragon Strike – a large scale coalition operation to seize back control of the birth of the Taliban in Kandahar Province.
The dog team supported Operation Dragon Strike in Kandahar Province
A few weeks into Operation Dragon Strike, Brenner and his team were in the thick of the action. “We’d had some intense experiences in the days that preceded my injury – the kinds of experiences you couldn’t fathom or imagine. The chaos and destruction we witnessed during that operation was something I will never forget.
“Of course, that operation brought with it two huge life events – the explosion that killed Grief and maimed me.”
Al’s wife Megan, stayed by his side while he underwent treatment in the US
Grief and Brenner had been hit by an IED that caused pure devastation in the area. Brenner was MEDEVAC’d to a nearby hospital and given lifesaving treatment in country, to save his arm and legs. It was here that Brenner learned what had happened to Grief.
“A journey started for me right there. It was not only a road of obstacles, surgeries and healing, but a journey of profound loss that would lead me to where I am today: Sharing my story of survival, while living with the loss of my boy.
“The irony of his name while he was being a hard head and a pain when we first met, had now taken on a chilling and heartbreaking new timbre.”
Reporting For Duty
Brenner returned to the US where he underwent months of painful surgeries and rehab that would test him mental resilience and fortitude. But as his time in hospital was coming to an end, Brenner and his wife, Megan, were given the option of where they wanted to go next. Would it be a move back home to their native New Jersey? Or a return to California to continue life at Camp Pendleton? Brenner’s answer was resounding.
“I wasn’t ready to leave the Marine Corps yet. I felt like my head was brimming with experiences and advice for these young dog handlers who were waiting on their rotation to deploy. I owed it to them to teach them what I’d seen, so I asked to return to the kennels to complete my enlistment as a trainer.”
Brenner’s urge to impart his hard-fought wisdom on the battlefield saw him toil tirelessly during his remaining time at Camp Pendleton, but in the years after he completed his service and retired from the Corps, Brenner’s wish to continue to serve the K-9 community by sharing his story has been of paramount importance to him.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to give talks, speak to the press and tell my story, but this book is the first time that people will really get a deep understanding of what happened out there and what drives me forward now. It’s been a cathartic process but also one that I hope will play a worthy tribute to Grief and to the brothers we lost out there.
“The K-9 community is a tight-knit brotherhood that I am honored to be a part of. If this book can help to fly the flag for what K-9 does and how we make a difference, I know I’ll have done ok.”
To order your copy of “Surviving With Grief”, click the link Surviving with Grief: The Story of How a Marine and His Dog Survived The Everyday Battles of War
