Life was not going well for Clifford James Herbert. Due to illness, he lost his job and home. Doctors described his condition as hopeless and gave him only a few weeks to live. He no longer expected a miracle for himself, but he dreamed of a miracle for his dog, his only friend. And a miracle happened – in the form of a kind woman who fulfilled his last wish to find a loving home for the dog.
On a cold December afternoon, Jenine Lacett DeShaizer from Fresno, California, saw a sad homeless man on the street with a curled up dog in his arms. They looked so touching that Jenine decided to approach them and talk to them lovingly. It turned out that the man’s name was Clifford James Herbert and his dog was Baby. Clifford James Herbert used to work on a farm and had a small workshop.
But in 2006, he lost both his business and his job because he became disabled due to complications after heart surgery and a tracheotomy. Soon after, he was homeless and now suffering from cancer: doctors gave him only a few weeks to live. He no longer thought about himself, but he cared deeply about his dog. His last wish was for her. Herbert asked Jenin DiShaizer to find a new home for his faithful dog, where she would be loved and live forever.
The dying man claimed to have taken the dog away from a man who had beaten him in front of him. “She is my whole life,” Herbert told DiShaizer. “She is my best friend. She protects me.” DiShaizer contacted GoFundMe, a community crowdfunding platform, to help Herbert and his dog find a roof over their heads. People responded to their request – Herbert got a room paid for in a motel, and Baby found new owners who wanted to take the dog into their homes. Baby now has a loving home and a little friend as a playmate.
