When 21-year-old Gary Shields saw something move as he and other soldiers in Vietnam were crossing a stream, he immediately became alert. The dangers in the Asian jungle were real and ever-present. What emerged was a dog – an uncommon sight in the war-torn country. The dog swam to him, he put it on his shoulder, and they crossed to the other side together.
“It was so hot and that wet dog was so cool on my neck and shoulders,” said Shields. “So, I named him Kool.”
That was 57 years ago. Since that time in Vietnam, Shields has served 37 years in education, with 29 spent with the Macon County School System – 21 of which were as principal at Franklin High School.
He also spent those decades in numerous capacities as a public servant for the town and Macon County, including 11 years as a Macon County Commissioner and four years on the Board of Education.
Yet, despite his full plate of career and volunteer accomplishments, Shields still remembers the dog clearly and fondly.
“It turned out to be a God-send because it was an Australian Basenji and they can’t bark,” he said.
In fact, because of the shape of their larynxes, these dogs are considered “barkless.” Shields and the other soldiers deduced that the dog must have been left behind by Australian soldiers who had previously been in the area.
Kool ended up staying with Shields and regularly alerting him and the other soldiers during OPs (Observation Patrols during the day) and LPs (Listening Patrols at night) simply by bristling the hair on its neck when danger was afoot.
Claire Suminski, a local author and publisher of Suminski Family Books, got wind of Shields’s unique Vietnam dog companion story and decided to include it in the upcoming “Animal Stories” series, sixth edition.
“We hope to have Gary’s story featured on the cover,” said Suminski.
Kool a bright spot in a dark place
“When you have buddies killed, you stop connecting,” Shields shared. “Kool made things more bearable. He was a special piece of my experience there [in Vietnam].”
Shields enlisted in the Army in the fall of 1966, after graduating high school and receiving his draft notice.
“I knew I needed to be in for three years to get the GI bill to pay for four years of college – the only way I was going to college.”
He had been enamored with the Airborne division of the Army ever since the 82nd Airborne out of Fort Bragg used the dairy farm field (now the site of the Macon County Airport) as a drop zone for paratroopers, which Shields observed when he was in the 9th grade.
“I had never ridden in a plane, but I wanted to be in the Airborne,” said Shields.
He finished basic training at Fort Bragg, N.C., communications school at Fort Gordon, Ga., and then attended jump school at Fort Benning, Ga. From there he cross-trained with special forces to become a well-rounded soldier. His training equipped him as a radio operator, for combat weaponry, as well as for handling mortars and conducting reconnaissance.
“I cross-trained with the 10th Special Forces in Germany,” he said.
Then he was assigned combat duty with the 173rd Airborne Brigade in the Vietnam War. He served 18 months total, with a month break back in the United States. Kool was with him 15 out of those 18 months.
“He was with me everywhere I went, and he protected our group several times. He provided comfort. Animals have that effect on us.”
Shields was wounded three times and was awarded three Purple Hearts as well as other distinctions. When Shields visited home and when he was recovering from injuries, Kool stayed with a fellow soldier friend he called “Red.”
“I accepted the fact that Kool would not be able to go home [to the United States] with me,” said Shields. “Animals could not be taken out of the country.”
He said his final good-bye to Kool in May 1969. He was in college in September of that same year when he received word that Kool had been killed in a cross-fire exchange at a camp. Apparently, the enemy had tripped the containment wire around the camp and the noise had caused Kool to run out into the open to investigate.
“It was sad to hear, but I tried to put it out of my mind, which you have to do when you’ve served in a war,” said Shields.
Even pulling out photographs of his time in Vietnam was a tenuous exercise, he admitted.
However, sharing positive stories is a balm for veterans, and Shields hopes children and young people will be inspired and encouraged.
“I’m very involved with veterans on a regular basis,” he said. “We also have to be supportive of today’s soldiers and students and encourage them whether they are in the workforce or the military.”
He added that stories like this will hopefully teach younger generations about history, but also provide a glimpse of what life was like for soldiers in Vietnam.
From painting to book
Before becoming featured in the upcoming “Animal Stories 6” book, Shields and Kool were first the subject of a painting by Shelia Moffitt created a few years ago. Annually, Macon County Art Association has hosted a Veterans Portrait Project Program that honors selected war veterans with a portrait, painted by a local artist, based on a photograph. Moffitt (now deceased) used a black and white photograph of Shields with Kool to achieve a color painting of the two. The painting hangs in Shields’s home.
Suminski learned about the portrait and the story surrounding it.
“I asked if I could interview him for one of our ‘Animal Stories’ book, and he enthusiastically said ‘Yes.’”
Books.
She added, “I think that Gary’s time serving during Vietnam really shaped him as a leader. And throughout my 34 years of living in Franklin, he has been a champion in the protection and guidance of children, young adults, and families. This is just a great story.”
“Animal Stories 6” should be out by Christmas 2025, according to Suminski. When each book is published, a portion of the proceeds of the initial sales is donated to a local nonprofit.
“We have sold over $60,000 worth of books and generated over $10,000 in the support of nonprofits. This has grown to be a very important arm of giving for our family in this community,” said Suminski.
All of the published “Animal Stories” books and other Suminski Family Books, including the Cowee Sam series, can be found at www.suminskifamilybooks.com.