Frankie dressed up in her therapy dog collar and bandana… Sharing Smiles and Joy

After I returned from vacation I was eager to catch up and find a few hours to get started with therapy dog work.  So, last Friday at the spur of the moment, Frankie and I jumped in the car and headed for our local hospital.  This was our first official visit as a registered team with Therapy Dogs, Inc.

The minute Frankie rolled into the hospital the smiles, and ooh’s and ahh’s began.  Frankie has this amazing effect on others, just as any dog does when visiting an environment where you don’t typically see an animal.

The hospital has a small pediatric area.  We were hoping to visit with some children.  There was one little girl about one year old, but she was tucked away in her crib.  All the other rooms were empty.  Though we hoped to see some children our first time around, it was a happy thing there weren’t any I suppose.

One very talkative, sweet woman was recovering from knee surgery.  As Frankie rolled into her room she said, “Are you here to motivate me?”  I said, “Yes, I suppose we are!”  We visited for about 15-minutes and I heard about the dogs in her life and her grandchildren.  She asked how I like volunteering and I told her that doing this fulfills something in me that is hard to explain.  I told her it is a dream come true for me to do this with Frankie.  She told me something quite interesting.  She relayed to me that she likes to volunteer also and runs across older people who don’t understand why she would want to give her time away.  It took be by surprise when she said that.  She explained the folks from the depression era had so little that they feel you must work and be paid and save your money.  I can’t imagine what it was like to live through the depression so I don’t have that mind set.  For me, I came to a point in my life where material things don’t mean as much to me anymore.  I told her I felt this strong urge to do something that mattered and help others.  It is interesting the opposite sides one can be on about volunteering. 

On Monday we visited a very new senior assisted living facility a few miles from where we live.  Most of the patients suffer from dementia.  We had gotten there just as they finished up lunch, so those interested in visiting with Frankie started to gather in the living room.  It was a lovely facility and the living room was really like being in someone living room.  One man, who I will call Charlie, came up to Frankie immediately, smiling and petting her.  I was told by the activities director he was a bee keeper and farmer at one time.  He really adored Frankie and was very active with her.  The activity director said, “Just seeing Charlie like this today was so worth your visit.”  Wow.  Another woman who seemed in much more of an advanced stage of dementia seemed apprehensive of Frankie at first.  A few moments later she came right up to Frankie and started massaging her neck.  I could just feel this was a special moment happening.  Just looking at the care takers who work there and the expressions on their faces, I knew Frankie was making a difference.  Frankie and I visited for about a ½ hour and promised we would be back next month…. And I told them I would bring Frankie’s book and read her story to them.  I can hardly wait for the month to go by!

When Cassie Jo (my chocolate lab) was diagnosed with bone cancer in Dec. 2004 I took her to UW-Madison Vet Teaching School to explore the options for treatment.  It was decided what was best for her was an experimental drug to slow down the growth of the tumor.  There was not a cure, but maybe the medication could extend her life and give her what time she did have left, a life of quality.  It did exactly that.  At the time I had taken her to UW-Madison the discussion of a Walk of Honor was just in the beginning stages.

On July 11^th, 2005 we said good-bye to Cassie Jo.  She lived eight more months with the help of the medication.  Even though I was sad to see her go, I was grateful to the Vet teaching school for their compassion and dedication.  It was a few weeks after her passing that I decided to buy a brick in her memory.  I have always felt like she was a pioneer in the research for a cure for cancer, so this seemed most fitting for her to be a part of the Walk of Honor.

September 11^th was 25 years in service for the teaching school and how wonderful to also have the dedication the same day.  I was not going to miss this for anything.  Frankie was six years old when Cassie passed away.  They were best buds.  So she and I made the two hour trip to Madison last Thursday.

When we arrived I felt my throat tighten as we made our way closer to the brick paved walkway.  I began to search the bricks, up and down, left and right.  My eye then caught Cassie Jo’s name and my heart skipped fluttered.  I knelt down by it and felt an emotional rush of missing her, still and always loving her, so proud of her, and grateful for the time I had with her.  Seeing her brick reaffirmed for me all she gave to me and all she taught me about what truly matters in life.

After taking a photo of her brick, I also wanted a photo of Frankie next to Cassie Jo’s brick, so snapped this picture also.  I couldn’t help but think how lucky I am that God continues to gift me with such special dogs in my life.

One of the most touching parts of the ceremony is when they unveiled a sculpture that was commissioned to be done by Sculptor, Alexa King.  Alexa is a strikingly beautiful woman with silver hair and looked very smart in her black suit.  In her listening sessions prior to coming with up the design for the schools sculpture, she heard over and over again that compassion was central to what people feel about the school.  I was fascinated to learn that over 70% of students in Vet medicine are now female.

 When the red silky veil feel to the ground to unveil the sculptor I let out a soft gasp and immediately felt compassion emanate from the majestic bronze statue.  It was simply breath taking.  Tears pooled my eyes and I could not stop staring at the magnificent work of Alexa King.  I feel she captured the essence of compassion of the school to a tee.

Frankie riding on the boat that took us down the river of St. Croix Falls 

It was a perfect day. The trees were just on the cusp of turning color in a few weeks. 

Stillwater, MN and the surrounding area is lush with green and the rolling hills were perfect for a drive… as long as you keep your eyes on the road.  My stomach tends to ‘go for a ride’ if I don’t anticipate a hill we are about to roll down and there were many, many hills.

The main reason for our trip was to visit Home for Life Animal Sanctuary and their event of the Memorial Garden Walk and Blessing of the Animals.  This is a safe haven for animals that most likely would have been euthanized too early if HFL had not taken them in.  Many of the animals are disabled and that is what drew me to them.  Lisa LaVerdiere is the Executive Director for HFL and I applaud her with all my heart for what she does to help the animals.  I can only imagine the amount of time, money and labor that goes into caring for all those animals.

As we made our way down 65N I watched for the sanctuary to come into my sight.  As we rounded a sharp corner I saw the blue canopies and the white buildings… my heart leapt up to my throat and tears misted my eyes.  There is something about an animal sanctuary and what it means to not give up hope on any animal.  It stirred a deep emotion in me.

We entered the black iron gates which were wide open to welcome us.  Atop each post was a statue of a dog with its butt reaching to the sky, as if stretching in a yoga pose.  We found a place to park among the many cars already there.

Lisa knew John, Frankie and I would be coming to the event.  As we walked down the gravel lane towards the sanctuary, Lisa met us.  She introduced herself, holding out her hand to shake mine and apologizing for her callused hands.  She said, “We are only allowing two dogs near the sanctuary and Frankie is one of them, so go on up and look around.”  She told me where Hanz and Franz were, the two dachshunds that are brothers.

As we greeted the animals I felt my heart once again leap to my throat.  To actually see them all there, happy and full of life just made my heart smile.  Hanz and Franz ran to the fence to say hi to Frankie, as only a dachshund can do… bark! bark! bark! bark!… and it goes on and on.  I don’t know if Hanz and Franz had a problem with their “barkers” but they both sounded like they had laryngitis.  I can just imagine, knowing a dachshund and how they bark so much, that they may just have permanent laryngitis from always wanting to rule the roost with their talking. 

Not sure which is which, but none-the-less this is Hanz and Franz 

All the animals at the sanctuary are very special, but I was drawn to the dogs with disabilities and needing a cart to help them walk.  Nike is an Alaskan Husky born with a spinal birth defect.  Her back legs sit under her as she scooted toward us.  I found it interesting that at first I had the emotion of feeling sorry for her, but the moment I looked into her ocean blue eyes and saw she was actually smiling, I felt such joy she has such a happy life.  I got a kick out of seeing the dog carts “parked” in the upward position resting against the fence.  It is exactly how I park Frankie’s cart in the house when she is not in it.

After visiting with everyone, dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, an exotic turtle and a goat without a front leg, we made our way down to the white tent.  There we were served a light lunch of salads, pasta, salsa, chips, vegetable tortilla wraps, key lime pie and chocolate cake.

In front of us was the memorial garden with all the animals who have been buried there after living out their lives at HFL.  The flowering bushes are planted in such a way to create a labyrinth.  It felt so sacred and spiritual to sit among all the animals that had been and currently reside at HFL.

A special bunny from Home for Life and Speedy the cat who cannot use his back legs are among the animals receving a blessing on Sept. 6th.

Linda and Allen Anderson, best selling authors, provided the blessing for the event.  I couldn’t help but think of the animals that have gone before me in my life.  I felt hot tears spring to my eyes in missing them, but also feeling so grateful for the love they brought me.  Linda and Allen spoke of how important it is to remember and honor the life and death of our furry friends.  I know for me this means so much because my animals, especially my dogs, have opened a part of me that may have never been opened.  I felt a soft, warm peace fill my heart as Linda chanted HU (pronounced hue), which is a “sacred love song to God that animals respond to with appreciating.”  Linda ended with saying, “May the blessings be.”

Lisa pointed to a box on the corner edge of the garden.  She said, “The hard part of having a sanctuary is losing animals each year.”  She told us they lose about 20% with each passing year.  All the animals are cremated and kept in a simple white box of their own, then stored in a chest until the Memorial Garden Event.  Herb Sam, a spiritual advisor officiated a Native American service and blessed the animals that had gone on to heaven.

After the ceremony I felt renewed.  I have always felt our animals are here for a special reason and we must pay attention to their teachings.  Being among everyone at HFL I felt a kinship of like minded people and their love for animals.  As John, Frankie and I made our way back to the car, we stopped to pause and glance into the chest of white boxes.  There are no words to describe it, but all those furry hearts made a profound difference in their own unique ways… I honor and bless each of them.

 Frankie relaxing with her papa after a hard day of relaxing… vacation is tough on a dog you know.