Stranger helps rescue Cedar Rapids woman’s dog

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) - A Cedar Rapids woman wanted to publicly thank a complete stranger who helped rescue her dog Sunday at the Palisades-Kepler State Park.

Jennifer Hutchinson said she was on a walk with her boyfriend and two dogs. That’s when she said her Australian Shepard, Charlie found something interesting and took off.

“The trail was kind of wet, and he lunged forward, pulling the leash out of my hand,” she said. “He tried to jump on the retaining wall and didn’t stop.”

It was several minutes before they were able to see where Charlie landed. She said her boyfriend, Carl walked all the way around, and after a few moments, was able to spot him. Hutchinson climbed the retaining wall to try and rescue Charlie.

“When I got down to within 7 feet of him, I was just questioning what I would do next,” she said. “That’s when I heard the voice from the heavens ‘hey, do you need help down there’ and that’s when I started to cry.

This stranger introduced himself as Rob. Rob scaled the side of the ledge first to Jennifer, and then even further to meet Charlie.

“I fully expected him to say he would call DNR,” said Hutchinson. “I never thought he’d say he scaled rocks. I was flabbergasted.”

Hutchinson said Rob helped push Charlie back up to safety while she helped pull Charlie up the ledge. She posted her experience on social media to publicly thank the man she knew as ‘Rob’.

“I didn’t think more than 50 people would like the post let alone this many,” she said.

Hundreds of people reacted to the story, and eventually, a connection was made.

“I asked him, are you Rob, the one who was hiking at the Palisades Sunday,” said Hutchinson. “He said yes and that he saw Charlie was OK.”

Jennifer offered to buy Rob lunch, to which Rob said she didn’t owe him anything for helping. Now, she wants others to see this story of a stranger helping in her time of need and feel inspired to help others.

“I really believe in karma, and whatever divine thing is out there, you put out good and you get good in return. He’s got a lot of good coming his way.”

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