Molly Blue

Sometime in the fall of 1993 Emily and Gene were looking to add a dog to their household. Emily
had always wanted a Border Collie and they began to ask around to see if anyone knew of a litter.


One weekend in December, they found a litter of pups at Mt. Victory, Kentucky. The folks who were renting the property which had belonged to Emily's parents pointed to this cute little girl and said that her sire was a Border Collie. Just a look can let you know why they fell in love with her!

By early 1994 Molly was weaned and ready to come home to Middlesboro, Kentucky to live with Emily and Gene. She quickly became a real pet. When Emily and Gene's children were growing up, it was very clear that the house was for people and that animals lived outside. They had nicely constructed places to get out of the wet and the cold, and might get to come in if the temperature dipped really low (or if Lynn sneaked one into her bedroom). Imagine everyone's surprise to see that Molly sometimes got to come in the house! She learned very early on to go lie down on her bed when she was in the house.

It also became apparent to some of us that maybe Molly really didn't have much Border Collie heritage. Dad told the story about a store owner back in a little town in the back country of Kentucky. When a customer came in and told him he needed to buy a blue suit, the owner yelled to the back of the store, " T.J., turn on the blue light". So Molly became Molly Blue.

When Molly Blue was about a year old, she was run over by a truck and her hips were shattered. Molly made the trip to the small animal hospital at the University of Tennessee Vet School for a double hip replacement. Emily faithfully did physical therapy with her in a kid's swimming pool on the deck in Middlesboro, and got her back in shape. Of course, every chance she got, Molly would take a walk up Cumberland Avenue to see if she could find any leftovers in the McDonald's parking lot.

Molly was a fixture on her little bed in the family room at Emily and Gene's house in Chattanooga. Gene sat in his recliner or at the table and watched TV or worked on his latest revision of A Name In the Sand, or another one of his remarkable memoirs, and Molly Blue lay on her bed across the room from him.


Family Memories of Molly Blue

Mom and Dad always said they wanted to have a Border Collie and Molly Blue was their Border Collie; she was no bigger than a cat. Dad would say "if you turn the lights down low, she really looks like a Border Collie".

We remember the time Molly was run over. She had steel pins put in her hips and came back home to become more of a house dog than earlier. Molly had house privileges in the winter months and would be invited inside from time to time all through the year. Mom told me one time, "Dad is really fond of that little dog. She has shown a lot of courage." Molly Blue will be remembered by our family as a good dog.
Russ
July 19, 2009

Molly must have been pretty special because all of the regular pet rules didn't apply to her, basically meaning she was allowed in the house. I remember that she was a great travel companion and she was a loved and dear member of the Howard household.
Elizabeth
July 19, 2009


Molly got to visit with us in Chattanooga quite a bit. When Emily and Gene traveled, Molly often stayed with us. She and and our beautiful dog, Hank, bonded and became quite good friends. Who could have known that in a few years she would be living just around the corner from her friend Hank. When Emily and Gene moved to Chattanooga, Molly made the transition with them and settled in quite nicely - as a matter of fact, once in awhile she would escape from the fenced in back yard and make her way up the street and around the corner to end up visiting with whoever happened to be at home at our house.
Lynn
July 19, 2009


When Gene and Emily went out of town, we kept Molly. She never forgot her way HOME!
Alan
July 20,2009


We would see Molly Blue limping around from having her hind quarters crushed by a delivery truck at the Middlesboro Hospital ....until she saw a ground squirrel, and then she could chase it just as if nothing was wrong.

I also remember that she had her special place in the den that she always stayed. And in her older years, the cats had to be put outside when she ate so that they wouldn't get her food.

I remember Mom thinking of doing Physical Therapy (putting Molly in an inflatable kiddy pool, which made her swim and exercise her hind quarters) that I'm sure helped nurse Molly Blue back to health after the accident.
Steve
July 20, 2009

Molly was one special doggie, and so many people fell in love with her over the years. What a loyal companion, and a very smart one too. We will all miss her.
Joyce
July 20, 2009