WAXHAW, N.C. -- A Waxhaw man turned his life’s challenges into a heartwarming tale of courage and generosity.
Hollywood called and asked to turn his story into a movie; it’s now on the big screen.
At first glance you don’t see the scars. Twice, Charlie Petrizzo should have died.
At five-years-old, he was hit by a car and temporarily paralyzed. At 16-years-old he was electrocuted.
“Burned two-thirds of my body,” he says. If he turns, you see that the side of his head is scarred. His hair can’t grow to cover it.
He spent years depressed and angry. He says the age 16 was a really tough time to have such visible scars. He spent a lot of time asking, “why me?”
Slowly, he says his thought process changed. He realized he was lucky to be here and began to see the glass half full.
"It’s a walk of faith now; I was put here to serve, not to be served."
He ditched the six figure salary banking job and decided to breed dogs. They are special dogs for special kids.
Justin is autistic.
“She helps me calm down," he says pointing to the massive black lab at his side.
Justin calls her Totem. It’s a gift from Charlie. She's a special gift that has transformed the ten-year-old.
"She makes me feel happy," he said.
Once plagued by violent meltdowns, Justin is now an in-control fifth grader. His mom says it’s all because of Totem.
“Totem just calms him. It’s incredible to see. Justin is a lot calmer now. He doesn’t get as aggressive as he used to,” Karen Baker said.
Charlie has raised more than 50 dogs as special companions and gives them all away to kids and their families.
Karen had looked into buying a dog for Justin but couldn’t afford the $10,000 price tag.
Charlie’s story is so compelling a documentary crew turned it into an award winning movie.
He says simply, “It makes me happy. That’s what I’ve been called to do."
If you'd like to see the movie, it's called Charlie’s Scars and will be shown at the Epicentre March 13th at 8:45.
Charlie is working to raise enough money to build a special facility not only equipped to train the dogs, but that can also serve as a place for kids with special needs to visit the dogs.
For more information click here.
