Maui Humane Society rescued this dog from the Honolua Bay area, and Lahaina News Columnist George Gordon adopted her.

HONOLUA – Remember the man they called the Pali Walker, who walked along the highway from Lahaina to Maalaea for almost five years? Lahaina News published a heartwarming story of how the community helped him to reunite with his family on the Mainland.

A similar miracle happened just recently, when the female dog that lived along the road up top of Honolua Bay was finally rescued by the Maui Humane Society.

She had spent five lonely years trying to survive the abuse of hunger, cars trying to run her over, bottles thrown at her and unprotected cold and wet from all the rainstorms.

MHS picked her up three weeks ago and examined her condition. They found her to have a swollen spleen and an infected tooth.

Maui Humane Society felt that being a feral dog, she could never be tamed.

My name is George Gordon – the “Computer Guru” columnist at Lahaina News – and for almost four years, I drove up to where she sat on the side of the road, fed her bowls of Purina every other day and made sure she had plenty of water.

When I found out that Maui Humane Society trapped her, and a Facebook page later said that she was going to be put down, I called them up and made arrangements to adopt her.

She meant so much to me – seeing her along the side of the road looking so hungry and sad – that I couldn’t let that happen.

MHS helped me with the adoption papers, and I was able to pick her up in my arms and carry her to my jeep for the long ride back to Kahana.

At home I introduced her to my family of eight dogs – mostly rescued like her. She was scared at first, slowly touching noses with my 16-year-old Irish Setter.

That first night, she ate her first home-cooked meal and slept on top of a soft dog pillow. The next day, we introduced her to my backyard, which is all fenced in, and I watched her touch grass for the first time in three weeks. She was free again, and you could see it in her eyes.

Now I face the good or bad news from the next vet examination, where they have to deal with her swollen spleen and the removal of one of her molars. If anyone out there feels compelled to help out with the medical expenses, I would so much appreciate it.

She now has a new life and is so precious to us. She is a real sweetheart and a real Christmas miracle present to us (and to many of you traveling the road to Honolua Bay, who remember seeing her laying next to the highway waiting for any scrap of food). My address is 17 Puamana Place, Lahaina, HI 96761. God bless you all and Maui Christmas.