Angell’s Hikers: Tom and Atticus Finch

By Brian Henderson

What if I told you there was a man named Tom that is attempting to hike each one of New Hampshire 4000-foot mountains this winter. You probably would think “not a big deal” or “been done before” or worse “hope we don’t see that guy on the news…”

But what if I told there were 48 of those peaks? And what if I told you Tom’s partner is a Miniature Schnauzer named Atticus Maxwell Finch? And that they are attempting to summit each of the 48 4000-footers twice – 96 peaks in 90 days – and are being sponsored by ordinary people who love dogs and other animals, and giving 100% of the money they raise to Angell Memorial Hospital – the same hospital that treated Atticus when he had a cancer scare this past spring.

I think it’s a nice story – too long to try and summarize here – but when you read the details and between the lines, I believe it’s about more than just the dog itself. It’s about Tom who left the town of Newburyport, struggling with his own weight control issues and direction, who found himself up North.

To learn of the Tom and Atticus story is to learn a bit about the kindness and compassion of others and about the trait that so few of us have these days: raw determination. I will stop talking about their story and instead point you to two specific blog posts that were really memorable to me:

1. Why Angell Memorial Hospital (placed below)
2. Thinking About Bears http://tomandatticus.blogspot.com/2007/12/i-woke-up-thinking-about-bears.html

Why Angell?

Atticus and I will be attempting to hike each of New Hampshire‘s 48 4,000-foot mountains twice in winter. That’s 96 peaks in 90 days, starting on December 22, 2007. This is not just an endurance event for us but also a fundraiser for a very special place, Angell Animal Medical Center.

It’s about hope. When we had none this past spring, when Atticus was rapidly going blind and two blood tests showed hyperthyroidism and I feared I may lose him to thyroid cancer, the most wondrous thing happened. People of all shapes and sizes, of all ages, of all economic backgrounds came to the aide of this little dog who loves his eyes and these mountains.

Because of the generosity of a couple of hundred people, Atticus received the best care possible: from Dr. John Grillo at Newbury Animal Hospital; to Dr. Ruth Marrion of Bulger Animal Hospital, the Ophthalmologist who operated on his cataracts and saved his eyes; to Dr. Maureen Carroll at Angell Animal Medical Center who was wonderful to deal with and restored our hope; to Angell’s Dr. Gregg Rapoport, a Cardiologist, who was equally great to work with; to Dawn Price at the Natural Dog in Newburyport, an animal nutritionist who has seen that Atticus eats healthy to stay healthy.

In the end, modern medical science had a lot to do with saving this little dog’s eyes, but to me there seemed to be something more—perhaps the power of prayer or of faith or maybe even more importantly…the power of friendship—that helped to raise the money, showered a dog and a man with love, and mysteriously took his hyperthyroidism away as if it never existed.

So many people helped us I feel the least we could do would be to return the favor this winter by raising money for Angell Animal Medical Center. Angell was great to deal with. And it wasn’t just Dr. Carroll and Dr. Rapoport, it was everyone we encountered from the techs to the receptionists. The people at Angell may be great at what they do with medicine and therapy and surgery, but I think the key thing about this wonderful place is that they give hope. So, this winter, perhaps we could bring a little help to those who bring hope where it is often most needed.

As far as just how important Atticus’s eyes are, see for yourself by clicking on the bold letters in the last sentence. This is for those who helped save his sight and his life…his numerous friends. Thank you all for touching this little dog’s life. This is for you.

Please take the time to visit the blog at http://tomandatticus.blogspot.com/ and for only $50 Tom and Atticus will hike a mountain for you, and send you a 4”x6” photo with Atticus atop the summit. Check the Mountain Dedication page to see which mountains are available and then email them with your dedication.