VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Ashley and Daniel McCaffrey are both U.S. Air Force veterans who not only share the bond of marriage, but the understanding of the trauma that can sometimes come with defending our country.

Ashley served for three years working with unmanned aircraft and Daniel served for 25 years holding several job titles from heavy equipment mechanic to being on the Air Force parachute team – having jumped around 4,000 times, according to his own estimate.

Daniel said he joined the Air Force after high school, like many who join, unsure what to do next in life.

Ashley enlisted after graduating college. Her plan was to become an officer, but she missed the officer qualifying test by two points, she said.

Here’s Ashley and Daniel’s story in their own words:

Daniel survived a bombing at the Khobar Tower housing complex on the night of June 25, 1996, in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The attack killed 19 Airmen and injured more than 400 U.S. and international military members and civilians.

In his own words, Daniel said “he came home after that, damaged in a lot of ways” and left the Air Force.

Two years later, after realizing that he didn’t want to hold a grudge, he joined the Air Force Reserves before joining active duty once more, where he finished out his career. He saw deployments to Guantánamo Bay in Cuba, Afghanistan and a year-long deployment to Iraq.

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Ashley’s one deployment was in Iraq where she was the only woman in her unit.

The couple met when she was on her way out of the service and while he was stationed in Florida during their time playing softball together.

“We sparked a friendship and six years ago we got our first date, and that was the same day you retired,” Ashely said.

Now married and part of their own unit together, the couple has a unique ability to understand what each other is going through.

Ashley said what made her realize that she needed to address her mental health was when the nightmares and irritability became an issue.

“It just got to the point where I was a walking corpse,” Ashley said. “When I’d go to work, I’d put on a face that everything was fine.”

Being in a environment where they are being bombed every day and being the only woman in the unit took its toll, she said.

Daniel’s trauma was carefully tucked away over the years, like a finely packed parachute. He said that if you had to seek out any type of help, it was usually frowned upon.

“There was a stereotype that came with that,” Daniel said. “You know, a stigma.”

He said you had to always be deployment ready and seeking help for trauma, mental health or even things in your personal life wasn’t really an option.

Seeking help may hurt the readiness of the unit – camouflaging any symptoms you may have makes it seem like you are fine.

“So, I just stepped up to the plate and that’s where a lot of the trauma came from, was a lot of my deployments,” Daniel said. “I didn’t acknowledge any of my concerns until Ashley was like, ‘Hey, I think you need to look a this and maybe you need to look at your skeletons and deal with them.’”

She had his back.

K9s For Warriors

Medication after medication had Ashley concerned that she may become an “overly medicated homeless veteran” or “an overly medicated veteran with no life whatsoever and no quality of life.”

She needed another option, she said.

He had her back. They’re a unit.

Daniel, being the researcher in the family, found K9s For Warriors, a nonprofit that is country’s largest provider of service dogs for veterans.

Skeptical at first, Ashley applied and went through the multi-step approval process that she said took about six months before she was approved.

She arrived on the nonprofit’s campus in July 2020 “knowing there’s a small sliver of hope, because you’re going to have a new battle buddy.”

Ashley arrived not knowing what breed of dog she would be matched with. On day two or “Dog Day,” veterans had the chance to meet their dogs. She was the last one to receive her dog that day.

“Finally, I walk out and they have Hope. This beautiful little black lab who is the social butterfly of campus, and they said, ‘Here’s Hope.’ And I was like, you and I are going to have some awesome adventures together. And you have given me hope.”

“She’s done so much,” Ashley said about Hope. “She’s given me back my confidence, she’s given me the ability to be a little more hopeful when it comes to things and optimistic. She’s definitely saved my life, she’s definitely saved my marriage.”

During our News 6 interview, Ashley was sporting a pair of custom-painted shoes with a portrait of Hope on them that was painted by a woman that she went through training with.

Carl Cricco, CEO of K9s For Warriors, said the organization is funded by donations and they rely on rescue shelters for the majority of their dogs.

“Once those dogs are brought into our program, we train them for anywhere from about five to eight months,” Cricco said. “Some dogs are quicker, some dogs learn slower. It’s just like human beings.”

Cricco said about 50-60% of the animals that enter into training don’t end up being service dogs, but K9s For Warriors always finds forever homes for them so they don’t end up back at the shelter.

The organization has campuses in Texas and Florida. When a veteran comes arrives on property, they will spend three weeks on campus with their service dog, learning how to utilize the animal.

“The the three week program is all about bonding and allowing that veteran to truly understand how to leverage this dog and utilize this dog to help with their PTSD symptoms,” Cricco said. “After they graduate, they get that dog, that’s their service dog, their battle buddy for life. And there’s no fee to the veteran whatsoever.”

“The data is there. I mean, it’s clear as day that these dogs have a tremendous impact on the mental wellbeing of our of our veterans struggling. So reach out, look into us, definitely ask for help if you need it,” Cricco said. “This is scientifically backed.”

Seeing how much Hope helped Ashley, Daniel decided to apply for a service dog with K9s For Warriors about two years later and was paired with Jude, a golden retriever.

“He likes to do his own things sometimes, but I knew that eventually him and I were going to be like the best of buds,” Daniel said.

Jude even sports a patch on his service vest that reads ”Goodest Boy Of The Quarter” that was provided by Daniel’s coworkers.