By Jennifer Colosimo
Piper Hill was injured during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. With her life expectancy dwindling, not fit enough for duty and without resources to get the help she needed, she felt cast aside and hopeless. But her 90-pound American bulldog, Valentine, turned that around. Hill trained Valentine to bring her the things she needed—and she got better. This four-legged companion who never left her side carried her through the toughest time in life, and she knew she wanted to share that miracle with others.
With amazing partners, she launched Healing4Heroes to match veterans with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant service dogs to help them lead better lives. Today, they’re the No. 1 ranked veteran nonprofit in the state of Georgia and fifth in the country, according to GreatNonprofits and military.com.
What are you most proud of with Healing4Heroes?
Piper Hill: Healing4Heroes has helped save so many lives. By providing one service dog to one veteran, we have put entire families back together. My first letter from a 6-year-old child said, in crayon, ‘thank you for giving me my daddy back.’ It’s profound what the use of a trained canine specified to an individual’s need can do to shape and direct their life in a better direction.
What do you love most about living in Peachtree City?
PH: I love that our neighbors, and even our neighbors’ neighbors, look out for each other. During these recent catastrophic events with Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, I have seen people with very little and people with a lot dig down deep to send sustaining items and money to the people hit by these forces and who lost everything. Those acts of kindness make my heart smile.
Where can people find you most in the neighborhood?
PH: One of my favorite restaurants is The BeiRut, because of the beautiful people, Haddi [Rabai] and Fatima [Hojaij], that own it. Having traveled all over the world I have only had Lebanese food as good as The BeiRut in one other place—Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Since I’m not particular to Saudi Arabia, it was overwhelmingly joyful to find out how incredible the food is there. This restaurant is also a huge supporter of Healing4Heroes.
