Something to be Grateful For
Beyond the usual gratitude for things like health and family, this Thanksgiving Hugh and Judy Cox of Chester will be giving thanks to the number of people, including several State Police officers and Chester and Killingworth firefighters who diligently searched through the wilderness late into the night to find Hugh when he got lost on Oct. 25 going for one of his daily walks.
The couple, which recently moved to Chester from Middletown, is grateful for everyone’s involvement in Hugh Cox’s safe return home, but especially one dog, who literally saved the day. German shepherd police dog Ugo, who works beside Officer Pieter Groot out of the Troop K State Police barracks in Colchester, was the one who actually followed his nose through the woods to find Cox, an 87 year-old retired mechanical engineer.
“I am not one who likes publicity, but I felt it was my obligation and the least I could do to publicly thank all the people and especially Ugo for coming to my aid and finding me and keeping me safe in my hour of need,” said Cox. “A tremendous effort was put forth by everyone, and especially the State Police, to make sure I was found. I feel that needs a real thank you!”
Cox takes a daily walk because he enjoys the fresh air, exercise, and the time to think. On the day in late October when he got lost, he left his home roughly around 4 or 4:30 p.m. and he said before he knew it, it was dark out and he got turned around.
“I made a couple of bad mistakes and ended up getting lost, then I fell a couple times and I just didn’t know where I was,” explained Hugh, still shaken a bit by the entire experience.
His wife called for help as soon as she realized Cox wasn’t back on time.
“It was horrible, I just kept thinking something horrible had happened to him, like he was hurt and couldn’t move,” said Judy Cox.
Ugo found Hugh Cox at approximately 3 a.m. about a half mile from his home on West Main Street. He was okay, but very cold. From his former involvement with the Boy Scouts when his sons where younger, he knew to use the leaves to help keep him warm. His blood pressure was very low, so he was taken immediately to the hospital, but was fine after warming up.
“That dog saved my life, and when he found me was not about to let me go, he kept circling around me until the officer got to where we were,” said Cox.
Ugo was given one of Cox’s hats for scent. From that one piece of clothing he was able to track Cox down in the woods.
“It really is remarkable and we are so grateful,” said Judy Cox.
“When I really needed a friend, the State Police where there for me and my family and we will be forever grateful,” said Hugh Cox with a smile.
Agreeing, Judy Cox added, “Everyone was so nice and so comforting. The group of men and that dog who came to our aid, are just tremendous, I can’t say enough good things about them.”
State Police Sgt. Robert Derry, Jr., who part of the search the night of the event, explained that whenever there is a missing person, the police employ the K-9 units for aid.
“In this particular case, there were five K-9 units I believe and about 30 people scouring a radius of about a three mile area looking for Hugh,” Derry said. “Thankfully everything worked out okay. We are fortunate Hugh was found before anything happened.”
He added, “Our State Police K-9 units are very well trained and are known nationwide. They do a great job and we rely on them for their tracking expertise in cases such as this. These dogs are reward driven and when they do their job well and find who we are looking for, their usual reward is a tennis ball on a string.”
Judy Cox has offered to buy Ugo a whole case of tennis balls to thank him for his outstanding service.
“It’s nice to know that when we need help there are people there to rely on. We are very thankful,” she said.
Hugh Cox still goes on his daily walks, but now he wears a whistle his son sent him from Colorado and Judy Cox makes sure she knows when he leaves and where he is going.
“As soon as I saw him, when they found him, I bent over him, kissed him, then told him I would kill him if he ever did that again,” she said with a smile.
The Coxes will celebrate their 64th wedding anniversary this January.