How One Reporter Changed Our Family Forever

It's time that we officially said "Thank You" to WCCB News anchor/reporter Morgan Fogarty. Her initial report about "Fezco" the gay dog being dumped at the Stanly County Animal Services shelter, quickly spread across the nation, being rebroadcast by the likes of TMZ, and it's where we first saw our new family member, now named Oscar.

I read a print version of her original story one Saturday afternoon, then clicked to see the Morgan's report. My partner John and I talked about the story. We soon realized that the dog had been subjected to some of the same stupidity and bigotry that we've experienced in our lives. We couldn't always do anything about it then, but we could sure as hell do something now. Initially, we just wanted to do something to help. You know, maybe take him a sandwich or some playing cards to occupy time during his unfortunate incarceration (yes, that's a Designing Women reference.)

After speaking with the Greater Charlotte SPCA about him, we initially planned to just foster him until he was adopted. However, neither of us could stop thinking about him. Then, John, in his infinite wisdom, said, "The minute we get that dog in our home we will fall in love with him." A few hours later I was signing the adoption papers. And we should note that we were NOT in the market to get another dog, having lost a very special one to cancer just the year before.

Back to Morgan Fogarty. She and her station were the only TV station in Charlotte with the courage to report that a local dog owner was stupid enough to surrender the animal to a shelter because he thought he was "gay." Her subsequent follow up story about us adopting Oscar became international news. We appeared on national news sites including NBC News. TMZ, the TODAY show, Good Morning America, and USA Today Inside Edition. We were interviewed on international radio stations and multiple TV stations. The story appeared internationally in England, Ireland, Malta, India, and more. The Charlotte Observer did a story that ran in newspapers around the country.

But it was Ms. Fogarty and her associates who brought the story to light. The story change our little family forever, and for that we are eternally grateful.

See her most recent news report on Oscar HERE.

https://www.wccbcharlotte.com/2022/05/27/oscar-update-dog-dumped-for-being-gay-gets-new-lease-on-life/