Magnum is the latest addition to the Xavier High School faculty and staff. Since he arrived, many people have wondered where Magnum came from, what his story is, and how did he get to Xavier. This article aims to fill in any gaps and to record Magnum’s story. To help achieve this, I have interviewed both Mr. Braychak and Magnum himself.
ETHAN: So, Magnum, tell us all about you. What breed are you? How old are you? That kind of stuff?
MAGNUM: Well, my name is Magnum. I am a purebred English Chocolate Labrador Retriever. I just turned 2 years old. My birthday was January 5th.
ETHAN: And how do you spend your free time, Magnum? Say, while you are not working?
MAGNUM: Even though I am a service dog, I’m a normal dog when I am not working at Xavier. Without my vest on, I like to take walks and squeak my toy gopher or lamb, and I enjoy licking peanut butter out of my Kong toy. I also like playing fetch and, sometimes, when I’m worn out, I just like sitting around the yard, you know, dog stuff.
ETHAN: What sort of things will Magnum help with at Xavier, and how long does he plan to stay?
BRAYCHAK: Magnum will greet visitors, like potential students, parents, and alumni. He will help students with anxiety, those experiencing grief (like those who have had deaths in their family), or just those who have a difficult day. Being able to just sit with a dog, he has already had an impact on students. He boosts the morale of everyone at Xavier.
MAGNUM: Yeah, I feel that way too, like when I walk down a hallway and people say my name and pet me. I really hope they let me do things after school too, like attend games, field days, and open houses. While I am not an actual falcon, people around here see me as a living mascot. I want to stay at Xavier for the rest of my life.
ETHAN: What is Magnum’s story?
BRAYCHAK: Magnum was introduced to Xavier through the “Forever in My Heart Foundation.” The foundation was started by a woman named Mira Alicki, who also owns Mira Jewelry Design on the North End of Main Street. They started out by saving dogs and training them to be service dogs for veteran amputees with mobility needs and/or suffering from PTSD. Their dogs have also gone to regular people.
ETHAN: So, was Magnum saved from somewhere around Connecticut?
BRAYCHAK: No, Magnum was actually rescued from Ukraine with a bunch of other Labrador puppies. When the war in Ukraine broke out, Ms. Alicki heard through her social media contacts there were Ukrainian breeders whose puppies were in danger. So, she brought the idea of saving them to the foundation’s Board of Directors and received approval (and funding) to save some. The first two puppies were saved from Kyiv only a couple of months after the Russian bombings started.
Magnum and his littermates were brought to the United States the second time the foundation rescued dogs from Ukraine. They were saved from a breeder near the city of Chernivtsi in Southwestern Ukraine. As it would turn out, that breeder in Chernivtsi breeds dogs for European organizations who do the same work as the Forever in My Heart Foundation, training service dogs for veterans. So, Magnum, and his siblings, are purebred Chocolate Labrador Retrievers, of great temperament, and proven to be very trainable.
Anyway, with the help of some dedicated and courageous volunteers, they were transported over the Ukrainian/Polish border and then fostered by willing Polish families. Magnum’s foster family was in Warsaw. From Poland, more volunteers went with them on commercial planes to Connecticut.
When I spoke to Ms. Alicki, a couple of weeks ago with junior Declan Lewis, she expressed a ton of gratitude for all the Ukrainian and Polish volunteers who helped the foundation. They sacrificed their own money and lots of time to get these dogs into the United States. A Polish veterinarian worked for free to get Magnum and his siblings Polish Canine Passports.
ETHAN: That is awesome! How did Magnum get from the foundation to us here at Xavier?
BRAYCHAK: After Brother Ryan’s wake and funeral, his body needed to be brought up to Danvers, Massachusetts onto the campus of St. John’s Prep for burial. The Xaverian Brothers have a cemetery there. So, Mr. Cerreta, Br. John, Mr. Lyons, and I brought the Peer Ministers and other student volunteers to go there and lay Brother to rest. When arrived there, St. John’s had nice lunch laid out for us. And, while we were eating, a guidance counselor brought their school service dog, Dusty, out. While we were petting him, Mr. Cerreta and I started asking Dusty’s handler questions. And, we learned Dusty has been a member of the Saint John’s Prep staff for about a year and his position has been very well received.
Once the ceremonies for Br. Ryan were done and we started home, Mr. Cerreta and I started joking around about getting a service dog for Xavier. To further the joke, I messaged Mrs. Braychak about Dusty and told her Mr. Cerreta said, “We could get a service dog!” Now, I was only joking with her, but to be completely honest, I wanted to see how she would respond because I wanted us to get a new dog. And she enthusiastically answered “Really, when?” Then Mr. Cerreta got involved in messaging Mrs. Braychak and the joke began to take on a more serious tone.
For a time, we didn’t speak about the idea at all. Then, after about a week or so, the topic came up again between the three of us. Mr. Cerreta was like “I’ve been thinking. I really think we should look in to getting a facility service dog.” So, Mr. Cerreta asked Mrs. Marselli (who is also a dog lover and who was interested in co-parenting one) to do some research and, initially, it wasn’t easy because not many group train service dogs for facilities, like schools.
Then the first Parent-Teacher Night happened and the mom and dad of one of my Sociology students came to see me and, instead of talking about their son’s academic record (which was excellent), we started talking about an idea for a student service opportunity. They needed some Xavier students to help at a fundraiser for a non-profit foundation that trains service-dogs, Forever in My Heart Foundation. I progressed to tell the mom and dad about our interest in getting a service dog for Xavier and, before I knew it, the student’s grandmother (who was on the foundation’s Board of Directors) emailed me. She said, the foundation could facilitate Xavier getting a service dog. So, I forwarded the email to Mr. Cerreta. Mr. Cerreta forwarded the email to Mrs. Marselli. And, on the first Thursday of December, Magnum walked through Xavier’s front door for the first time. The week after Christmas Break, we all had a meeting with Forever in My Heart Board of Directors to begin the process of Magnum’s adoption. A week after that, Mr. Cerreta, Mrs. Marselli, Mrs. Braychak and I started training to become Magnum’s co-parents and handlers. And three weeks after that, the foundation felt comfortable with us, and they asked Mrs. Braychak and I to foster Magnum while we continued training. He stayed at our house for about a week to get used to us. And, by mid-March, he started coming to school full- time.
ETHAN: So, when Mr. Cerreta first told the student body about Magnum, he said we had to raise $15,000. Why so much?
MAGNUM: Oh, oh, can I answer?
BRAYCHAK: Sure Mags. You tell him.
MAGNUM: So, it adds up because of three things; my adoption cost from the foundation, medical bills (you know, checkups, vaccines, and stuff like that), and then, the cost of training. Before I was even introduced to you all, I had over 1500 hours of training. And, while the foundation is non-profit, the trainers do not work for free.
ETHAN: Mr. Braychak, why do you think it is important for Magnum to be at Xavier?
BRAYCHAK: Everything Magnum has been doing so far is important for Xavier. He cheers people up. He calms people down. Those are precious things. They are needed. He is not just Mrs. Marselli’s or Mrs. Braychak’s or my dog, Magnum is Xavier’s dog. And the thing that is of the greatest value is all of us taking part in taking care of and protecting one of God’s creations.
ETHAN: What is the most rewarding thing about working with Magnum?
BRAYCHAK: Working with Magnum has been wonderful. I see how he makes people smile, shadow students, their parents, or alumni. People think it is a cool idea. Mrs. Marselli, Mrs. Braychak, and I have gotten to know students better because of Magnum. Magnum has created a stronger sense of community at Xavier. It is nice to have a dog at home again, but bringing Magnum to work every day, to this place we all care about, has been even more rewarding.
ETHAN: Where can someone find Magnum around Xavier High School?
BRAYCHAK: If someone really needs to see him, they could just go to guidance and ask their counselor to have Magnum come up. Otherwise, Magnum’s not hard to find on one’s own. He could be with Mrs. Braychak in the Main Office, Mrs. Marselli in the Media Center, or can be with me in the Campus Ministry.
ETHAN: Glad Magnum is easily findable for those who need him. Thank you, Mr. Braychak, and thank you, Magnum, for sharing this information with Kestrel!