SGT. Alfred J. Brenner IV

After graduating from St. Rose High School in the summer of 2007, Alfred completed Marine Corps Boot Camp at Paris Island. Throughout the next year, he attended Military Police School and was selected to become a K9 Handler, sending him to Military Working Dog School in Lackland AFB San Antonio Texas. Brenner spent the next few years at Camp Pendleton California training for a 2010 deployment with his new partner Grief. 

During the historic deployment in 2010, Sgt. Brenner was severely injured by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) and was sent home for numerous surgeries and months of recovery. Despite being injured, and suffering a traumatic event, it never amounted to the pain of losing his K9 partner Grief, who was killed by the explosion. It was throughout the next few years of recovery where he realized what the future would bring.

Before leaving the military, Brenner returned to the kennels one last time to assist and aid in the training for the next deployment rotation. Once the torched had been passed, Alfred opted to medically retire from the Marines and hang up his leash. Today, his new mission consists of sharing the stories of his time as a handler and more importantly, how to push forward and “Survive with Grief”.