PAWS for People Community Newsletter: Early September, 2022

While the families in our area are preparing for back to school, our favorite Barnes & Noble stores see a flutter of activity. Some faces are excited and others are a little nervous. PAWS spent two August weekends visiting with back to school shoppers providing warm greetings and snuggles and creating lots of smiles. 

The weekend of August 19-21 found us at the Barnes & Noble in Exton, PA for a special Back to School Book Fair. PAWS pups eagerly greeted each customer and Barnes & Noble generously donated a percentage of customer purchases to PAWS for People.  

The Christiana Mall Barnes & Noble welcomed us back for a Pet Affection Section August 26-28. It was a tail-wagging good time with PAWS therapy dogs and even a PAWS bunny sharing their love with the Christmas-like crowds that packed the mall to get their school supplies.

A huge thank you to all of the PAWS teams that joined us for the fun and to Barnes & Noble for their support of the programs of PAWS. What an amazing partnership!

The WAG & Walkathon is PAWS for People’s signature event. This year’s month-long cumulative marathon in partnership with the Kennel Club of Philadelphia's National Dog Show will Step Off on Thursday, September 15th at 6 pm. There will be an in-person Step Off gathering at Glasgow Park in Newark, DE which will be broadcast via Facebook Live. It’s not too late to register and take full advantage of all the fun. Join us for a month of mile-tracking & fun challenges that culminates in the Cross the Finish Line Celebration on Saturday, October 15th at Glasgow Park in Newark, DE.

The WAG & Walkathon is a great way to do something healthy for yourself while raising funds for the programs of PAWS for People. The goal is to complete a cumulative marathon (26.2 miles) over the course of the month. Don’t let this scare you – the true goal is to raise funds for PAWS and completing the marathon is fun, but optional. If walking is not your thing, then track your miles biking or swimming – however you choose to get moving.

You can register as an individual or create or join a team. Invite your family, friends, and co-workers to join or support your team. Track your miles and participate in fun contests for people and pets if you wish.

Final 2022 Challenge:

Challenge #3: Walk in 5 different parks by 9/30 and email photos to events@pawsforpeople.org of each for chance to win a $100 Target Gift Card. Explore new trails or stroll through your favorite parks and don’t forget to take that selfie!

All participants who raise at least $100 will receive this year's commemorative long-sleeved dark chocolate WAG & Walkathon t-shirt as our thank you for supporting the programs of PAWS for People.

Important Dates:

Thursday, September 15 - Facebook Live Step-Off

• Watch for more info about multiple in-person events

September 15 - October 15 - Cumulative Marathon

Saturday, October 15 - Cross the Finish Line Event

• Location: Glasgow Park, 227 Pulaski Highway, Newark, DE from 9 AM – 1 PM. 

Lina (Linda Okner) recently spent some time with U.S. Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester at the Attack Addiction Overdose Awareness Event at Delcastle Park.

Tessa (Nancy Brock) is getting ready for the school year at Einstein Academy with her litter of Skye dogs who will be distributed to the children in the reading program.

Are you feeling the loss of a beloved pet? Maybe you are still feeling that empty place a human loved one has left behind: join us to listen, share, and if you feel comfortable, discuss grieving for a special pet or person.

Everyone deals with grief differently. People cry, laugh, busy themselves with work, feel numb … the feelings can be unpredictable. Some recover quickly, others take more time.

It is a natural healing process. There is no manual on how to cope with loss and certainly no right or wrong way to go through the stages of grief. And there is no regular timeline that you should adhere to.

Grief is not an emotion to be avoided, but one to acknowledge and walk through the process. Sometimes it grows into something totally different: depression, anxiety. It is part of loving and engaging with life. It is a journey, often scary and without clear direction. But one thing we know for sure, it’s easier to cope with when you have a circle of support to help you through.

PAWS for People is blessed with great resources: our members and staff. Our own Advisory Council member, Dr. Carol Tavani, is a psychiatrist with years of clinical experience, an animal lover, guardian, and advocate. She is rated as one of “America’s Best Physicians.” She regularly leads “Pet Loss Support Group,” a group formed 15 years ago, which offers support to its grieving members. We are honored to have Dr. Tavani lead a similar group for PAWS' members and friends.

Come join us on September 21st from 7:00- 8:30PM at the PAWS for People office – 703 Dawson Drive, Newark, 19713, as we support each other through our grief.

Deadline is September 7th! We’re going to be able to print a terrific calendar again this year – full of our pets and our successes. It’s going to be a little (not much) different this year, but your PAWS pets will still be there front and center.

Here’s what’s the same

• your pet’s photo will be bright and beautiful
• important dates and funny nationally celebrated dates will be there
• we’ll still have sponsored banners on each month’s date grid

Some things will be changing. Here’s why.

• the size will be 8.25 x 11.75 due to Post Office mailing regulations
• the cost of this year’s calendar is reduced to $10.00 – yippee!
• we have a new graphic designer – Meredith Boas from Grunge Muffin Designs – who is putting together a design that is close to what you’re used to but different enough to give us some surprises.

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Enter Your Therapy Companion(s) by September 7th

Step 1: Enter your current or past Therapy Companion using our online form

Step 2: Email 2-3 head shots per pet to meredith@grungemuffindesigns.com

Pictures may feature multiple therapy companions (multiple entries) but may not include people or non-PAWS pets.

Each Pet = $5.00

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Pre-Order Your Calendars

$10.00 each

We will have a limited number of calendars this year so please PREORDER when you submit your photos.

We hope to have your calendars available for pick-up by October 15th

Pick Up Options (An email will be sent with procedures for pick-up orders):

Saturday, October 15th at the Wag & Walkathon Cross the Finish Line event

OR

Beginning Monday, October 17th at PAWS for People’s office in Newark, DE

Shipping is also available: 

There is a flat rate of $8.00 for shipping. Pre-ordered calendars will be shipped Friday, October 21st.

Please join us for an upcoming session of PAWS: Trading Secrets. This coming session will focus on New Tricks: ways to add fun to your visit routine! But there is always time for someone new to PAWS to ask questions or just enjoy hearing the stories.

These small group sessions (some zoomed, some in person) provide the opportunity to share stories and connect with other current or future volunteer teams. After the last two years of restricted visiting, we are looking to provide more opportunities to build our community and help folks make new connections or re-connect with old friends. This discussion series is loosely focused around a specific topic and we hope to have a mix of new and experienced members to share stories. Personally, I have found these sessions incredibly helpful in rekindling my excitement for pet therapy and a fantastic opportunity outside of formal training. Plus, these chats are super fun, who doesn’t love to talk about their pets and hear all the PAWSitive and wonderful change our companions bring to the world!

This upcoming New Tricks Session is open to all (PAWS Members and Non-PAWS) with a focus toward active PAWS volunteer teams. It will be held in person on September 13th at 10am at Panera Bread on Kirkwood Highway (3650 Kirkwood Highway, Wilmington, DE 19808). If interested in attending, please RSVP to Lauren Quirk at lrquirk@gmail.com for more details. Also, let Lauren know if there’s any topic you’d like to see in upcoming sessions! More sessions, both in-person and on-line (Zoom), are coming soon. 

~Lynne Robinson, Executive Director

Fran & Guinness

Fran Levinson first joined PAWS for People in November of 2019 with her handsome Puli, Guinness.

They jumped right into visiting at Cokesbury Village Healthcare until Covid suspended visits in 2020, but as soon as teams could return to visiting, Fran and Guinness returned to Community Events and DeStress Events, including calming kids getting their Covid shots. They visited with the students at Sean’s House in Newark, DE. This terrific team then passed their Master’s Certification in December 2021 and began visiting children at Nemours Children's Hospital.

Guinness also represented therapy dogs at The Kennel Club of Philadelphia's National Dog Show in November 2021 and is part of PAWS’ National Dog Show Therapy Dog Ambassador Team. Thank you, Fran, for generously sharing your time and your beautiful boy.

Thank you, Guinness, for all the loving and affectionate hugs and kisses you deliver to those who need it along your travels.

Ashley, Shaggydog Stark, & Delphine

If you could ask Shaggydog how many books he has heard, read by all those young voices during his 10-year career volunteering with his owner Ashley Kennedy, this Great Pyrenees Mix would say “Woof!” (His answer: “Plenty!”)

Ashley and Shaggydog have offered over 500 selfless hours since joining PAWS in late 2012. They regularly visit at Richey Elementary 2nd grade, various Libraries (Claymont, Brandywine, New Castle, Bear, Newark, and Kirkwood), Baylor Correctional Institution and attend many community events. And who can forget his world famous wedding to the ever-lovely Frangelica Meloni (Happy 3rd Anniversary, you two!)? As of last week, Shaggydog officially entered into a well-deserved retirement, but Ashley’s other dog, Delphine, a Chow Mix, who has been a PAWS companion herself since 2020, is ready to continue on in his footsteps.

Many thanks to Ashley for sharing both Shaggydog and, now Delphine with others! Here’s to many more tail-wagging PAWS visits to come!

Thanks to our PAWS Partners