By Barchelle (Chelly) Bolger Wathen
A transplant from San Diego (and originally from Ukraine!), Shayla is happy to be a Prescott dog now. People often say what a pretty dog she is, but they are amazed at her from-rags-to-riches life story.
Shayla grew up as a shunned and abandoned, scared and lonely Shepherd stray puppy on the streets of Ukraine.
One day she befriended a young orphan and went to live at Father’s House, a Christian orphanage near Kiev. Together with her new friends, she found her inner courage and learned to trust and love people, especially kids. But like the orphans, she yearned for her own loving family and home.
One day her life changed forever when the orphanage leaders and supporters in San Diego brought her, and some other dogs, to America to be adopted by their own families. Alone again, how did Shayla adapt to an entirely new life?
We were the lucky couple blessed to become Shayla’s forever family. We lived in San Diego at the time, with our older dog Juneau, who needed a companion. From the moment we met, it was a great match for all of us.
When I retired in 2021, we moved to Prescott and LOVE it here! My husband George started Wathen Custom Woodcrafts, I started working again for two great Prescott attorneys (short-lived retirement), and volunteered with local dog rescue groups.
Shayla is now trained as a CGC certified dog and was a hit at the Prescott Ukrainian Festival. One day, she will hopefully get to spend time helping kids again. Until then, she is my hiking partner throughout Prescott, Juneau’s best friend, and the star of two recently published books. She enjoys meeting new friends and making people smile. And yes, she still remembers a couple of Ukrainian training words!
The first book is Shayla’s Adventure: What’s Across the Ocean?—a children’s adventure tale of Shayla and young orphan Ashok pretending to be pirates as they share invaluable life lessons.
The book for adult readers, Shayla and Friends, tells the true story of Shayla’s life, Father’s House and its faithful leaders, and the wartime exodus of the orphanage from Ukraine to Germany, celebrating the courage of the Ukrainian people.
You can find my books on Amazon under Barchelle Bolger Wathen, and follow Shayla on Instagram at wjuneaushayla.
