Stopping by: A man and his dog
Scrumpy’s companionship makes all the difference in Michael Pollock’s clean life
Michael Pollock thought he was a happy man.
He had kicked a debilitating, 35-year drug and alcohol habit, found a rewarding job and was pleased to be helping others get their lives back on track.
Although he didn’t know it, something was missing.
Scrumpy.
The small brown dog, found at Homeward Bound Pets, is a buddy who’s made all the difference in his life.
“Now I have somebody to come home to,” Pollock said. “I get companionship from her, and she gets the same from me.”
Pollock is the Yamhill County director for Helping Hands ReEntry Outreach Centers, a Seaside-based program that assists former addicts get back on their feet. Founded by Alan Evans, who once homeless himself, the program has numerous shelters where men or women can stay for a night or a year.
“It’s a clean and sober structure,” said Pollock, who has been clean and sober himself for 10 years.
He came to Helping Hands as a client and, after successfully completing the program, progressed to the director position.
“Our goal is to help them remain clean and help with their homeless issues,” he said.
The nonprofit Helping Hands has five homes in Yamhill County, including one for women in McMinnville and four for men. The program has room for more than 60 people per night. The exact number depends on how many children are staying with their mothers in the women’s facility.
In addition to operating more shelters in Seaside and other parts of northwest Oregon, Helping Hands is turning the Wapato Jail building in Portland into a homeless center.
The shelters are not just a place to sleep. Clients take part in a yearlong course designed to support their sobriety and prepare them for living on their own.
Some people stay in a Helping Hands facility all year while working on the course. Others remain a month or six months. And some, of course, leave before finishing.
“Some graduate; some are in and out by their choice or mine,” Pollock said.
Pollock, 58, stuck with it. “I doubt I’d be sober today if I hadn’t,” he said.
He had been abusing alcohol and drugs since his teens. Finally, though, “I decided I was not going to die this way,” he said.
He approached Helping Hands to save his life. “But I never thought I’d end up with a job like I have now,” he said.
Helping others has become his passion, “especially with kids — that’s what I call those who are under 30,” he said. “I don’t want them to go through what I went through.”
As the county director, Pollock lives on-site at one of the Helping Hands facilities for men in Newberg. He has his own separate quarters, while clients bunk together in another building.
“I’m wrapped around recovering addicts in my work all day,” he said. “I have to get away to my own place.”
Helping Hands has a rule in its shelters: No animals, except for service dogs.
But since Pollock lives alone, he requested permission to get a pet. He asked several times.
Then, near the end of 2018, his boss called him into a meeting. She praised his work, announced he was getting a raise, and told him he could look for a pet.
“I was more excited about the dog than the money,” he said.
Just after he was approved for a pet, Pollock ran into his friend Ronnie Vostinak at a grocery store in Newberg.
Vostinak is the executive director of Homeward Bound, the 45-year-old no-kill shelter and adoption program in McMinnville. She was thrilled to hear his news.
And she thought she had the exact match for him: A small dog had recently arrived at the shelter after her owners had to give her up.
The chihuahua mix wasn’t ready for adoption yet; she had to have her veterinary checkup and undergo processing. But Pollock could visit the pup and see what he thought.
“As soon as she came into the office, she peed on the floor,” he recalled, saying it was a sign she needed him. “So I said, ‘I need that dog.’”
The dog was named “’Scrumpilicious’ or something like that,” he said. “That didn’t roll off the tongue, so I changed it to Scrumpy.”
Like her owner-to-be, Scrumpy was a survivor who’d endured some hard times. She was very timid, hesitant and withdrawn when they met in January 2019, Pollock said.
“It took us awhile to bond,” he said, “but the love I showed her made her trust me.”
Soon, they became nearly inseparable. He leaves her at home, though, when he goes to the store. “I won’t let her sit in the pickup alone while I’m inside,” he said.
He always tells her when he’s about to leave the house, though, and explains where he’s going and when he’ll be back. She seems to understand.
And she’s always ready with a greeting when he returns. She jumps for joy.
A year ago, Pollock had surgery on his ankle; then, a few months later, another surgery to insert a steel rod. Since he’s in a cast, he moved his bed into the living room for convenience. “Scrumpy is always right by my feet when I’m in bed,” he said.
They go for slow walks, sometimes, or she gets exercise running around outside while he or a friend watches. Inside, she chases after spiders or the light from his cellphone, or jumps nimbly from the bed to the couch to the chair.
Inside or out, it’s clear to everyone who’s the boss: Scrumpy. “She lets me know it’s 5 o’clock, time for dinner, and if she wants something, she stares at me,” Pollock said.
No piece of furniture is off limits. She has plenty of treats — maybe too many, he said. She likes lying on his shirts, so he puts out a fresh one each day for her to settle on.
He doesn’t mind. Because of Scrumpy, he’s less stressed, happier and “just all around better” these days.
“Something was missing before I got her,” Pollock said. “But I didn’t know it.
“I never knew I was lonely or depressed, or that I could be happier, until I got my dog.”
Homeward Bound seeking donations in online campaign
Homeward Bound Pets is seeking donations through a virtual fundraiser, “Paws for a Celebration.”
A link can be found on the animal shelter and adoption service’s website, hbpets.org, or its Facebook page.
Through October, the local Subaru dealership is donating matching funds. In November and December, Subaru is giving to charities for every new car purchased. Buyers can choose a national charity or a local one, such as Homeward Bound.
Homeward Bound also is funded by sales from its thrift shop at 1120 N.E. Lafayette Ave. in McMinnville. The store is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
The shelter for dogs and cats is at 10601 S.E. Loop Road. Adoption is by appointment only on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. To arrange an appointment or for more information, call 503-472-0341.
Starla Pointer, who believes everyone has an interesting story to tell, has been writing the weekly “Stopping By” column since 1996. She’s always looking for suggestions. Contact her at 503-687-1263 or spointer@newsregister.com.
Comments
Hibb
My service dog Duchess also helped me in more ways than I can readily count. While I did not get her from Homeward Bound, I nevertheless support their efforts in our community! They really do make a difference.
Thanks Starla for yet another great article showcasing the great people that make up Yamhill County!