NY Red Bulls give service dog to LI veteran
The New York Red Bulls helped a Long Island veteran dealing with battle injuries. Todd Riley, of Amityville, is a Marine Corp veteran who served in Iraq and Afganistan. Five years ago while on patrol,
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May 31, 2016, 2:07 AM
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Updated 3,126 days ago
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The New York Red Bulls helped a Long Island veteran dealing with battle injuries.
Todd Riley, of Amityville, is a Marine Corp veteran who served in Iraq and Afganistan.
Five years ago while on patrol, a rocket-propelled grenade exploded 10 yards from where Riley was standing. He suffered a traumatic brain injury, which causes seizures and cluster headaches.
"Sometimes they are called 'suicide headaches' because people who have them sometimes commit suicide because of the pain," Riley says.
The Red Bulls invited Todd to their game Saturday and gave him something to help his pain, a service dog named Liberty.
"That means something to me," Riley says. "She was made to be my dog."
The Red Bulls found Liberty through "Paws of War," an organization based in Smithtown that trains and partners dogs with veterans.
Liberty will be trained to catch Todd's seizures before they happen.
"She will be my warning system and I'm looking forward to having that," he says.
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