Ninety-something-year-old Bill Herr typically needs two people to help him walk – with a walker, but he was cutting up a rug last week during Zumba class – a seated Zumba class – dancing across the room.

Theresa DiVenti and Charles Fox sat next to each other kicking their feet and raising their arms, following the lead of their Zumba instructor.

Earlier, across the room and during lunch, Dennis Forman and Peg Burgard were bantering back and forth about what each likes to do.

“She likes flirting with the boys,” Forman said about Burgard.

“I don’t have to flirt, they flirt with me,” Burgard responded.

It was a typical day at the Family and Children’s Services Medical Adult Day Care on the Harford Community College campus, where clients were participating in their first Zumba lesson.

Read more here.

Everlast’s mop of curly hair and long neck make him the perfect height for looking people in the eye. He is smaller than an average alpaca, but as a therapy animal, he is just right.

Lynn Cherish, the owner and operator of Baggy Britches Farm in Frederick, has turned a rough start in life for a prematurely born alpaca into an opportunity to bring happiness to patients in assisted living centers. On Wednesday, they visited Montevue Assisted Living in Frederick.

“The residents enjoy it,” said Ryan Stanley, Montevue activities director. “They light up and enjoy it.”

Together, Cherish and Everlast visit six assisted living and nursing homes through Pets on Wheels, which takes therapy animals to more than 400 facilities across Maryland, Executive Director Gina Kazimir wrote in an email.

Read more here.

By Harry Bosk

Like most Pets on Wheels (PoW) volunteers, Judith Fishman loves dogs and helping others. She regularly visits FutureCare in Reisterstown or Gilchrest Hospice and brings one of her Golden Retrievers with her.

Initially, Judith didn’t think she would be able to participate at FutureCare or Gilchrest. “I didn’t think I would have the stomach for it. FutureCare can be tough because you develop relationships with people and then they die. But my experience there prepared me for Gilchrest,” she said.

She finds Gilchrest especially rewarding, “Patients receive the best quality of care right up to the end. I’m glad that I can be a part of that care,” she says. In addition, she sees the valuable contribution her pets bring to everyone there. “Sometimes the patients are asleep but I let the family know we are also there for them. ” Judith finds volunteering at Gilchrest gratifying. “I feel like the dogs and I have accomplished something.”

As a longtime Golden Retriever owner, there’s no doubt about the breed Judith prefers. Her love for this breed introduced her to the world of therapy dogs in nursing homes and other facilities. Thirteen years ago, while attending Goldenstock, an annual summer weekend retreat for the owners of Golden Retrievers she learned about Therapy Dogs International. After volunteering for that organization she became a PoW volunteer.

Judith credits Gilchrest for teaching her more about life and death. She recounts an experience with a patient there who related to Chloe because they both had difficulty breathing. She gave Judith a poem The Dash about the meaning of life. This patient accepted death as a part of life and she had no fears about dying.

Judith still misses that woman. She wishes that she and her dogs could have spent more time with her.

It’s experiences like this that make Judith a dedicated volunteer. It’s also her desire to serve others that compels her to visit FutureCare and Gilchrest.

By Philip Hosmer

The first time Steve Lesser volunteered for Pets on Wheels, he was discouraged and thought he was not a good fit for the program. He and his wife Eileen had taken their golden retriever Sandy to Arden Courts, a facility for patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, and he found it to be a difficult experience.

But his wife Eileen encouraged him to give it one more try, and on their second volunteer visit, everything changed. They saw lonely, tired looking faces light up when their dogs walked in the room, and they saw the connection being made between Sandy and the residents. Five years later, Steve and Eileen are among Pets on Wheels most committed volunteers.

“When I saw Sandy communicate with the residents, and how excited they got, it made me feel this is something I’ve got to do,” Steve says. “Many of these folks miss their dogs, they are lonely and depressed. Sandy would put a big smile on their faces even though some can’t speak.”

Each week, the Lessers, who live in Pikesville, visit Arden Courts, as well as Spring House and North Oaks, along with their golden retrievers Kelly and Cody. As soon as they go to the closet to get the dogs’ vests, Kelly and Cody spring into action, knowing that it’s time to visit their many friends. And the Lesser team has made friendships along the way that have enriched their lives.

Eileen recalls attending the funeral service of a man they had visited, but his family not recognizing them until they mentioned they were the volunteers who would bring Cody and Kelly to visit.

“Then their faces brightened and said “Of course you’re the ones with the dogs!,” Eileen said.

Steve remembers a patient who suffered from agoraphobia, the fear of leaving one’s home. The woman had not left her apartment for six months.

“The first time we visited, she crossed the threshold and walked out her door and played with Sandy for 15 minutes in the hallway outside her apartment.” Steve says. “Sandy’s unconditional love brought her out of her apartment.”

A man with Parkinson’s disease suffered from severe tremors, but when the Lesser team would visit, his tremors would quickly dissipate when he petted the dogs.

The Lessers remain dedicated to making their weekly rounds with Kelly and Cody. They’re not sure who gets more out of their visits, the patients or them.

“It gives you a wonderful, uplifting feeling to brighten someone’s day who is not as fortunate,” Eileen says.

Among the many people Pets on Wheels touches are members of our military. We always enjoy our time spent with the men and women who protect our country, and we’re glad to be able to provide a few moments of respite with our visits. This article is a great look at some of what we do:

Liberty Center Sailors ‘Paws to Relax’

By Philip Hosmer

When Steve Pilara and his dog Buster were walking in their neighborhood, they came upon a mother with a young boy that made them pause. The boy had Down’s Syndrome and was staring intently at Buster. The mother was nervous and reticent because of previous negative experiences between her son and dogs.

But the way her son was gazing at Buster, who returned the look with his own eager, playful expression, convinced her to let her son reach out to Buster. The two then became fast friends and played for 20 minutes, and the mother was left in tears—-of joy.

“I was so moved by the experience, that I thought it would be good to try to do this some more,” says Steve Steve, board member and volunteer for Pets on Wheels. I heard about Pets on Wheels from a local pet store, and Buster and I have been involved for three years now.”

Steve and Buster visit Anne Arundel Medical Center and Pikesville Middle School regularly, and they both find it rewarding.

“It’s great to bring so much joy to another person, and Buster has so much fun, when he’s happy, I’m happy,” Steve, a resident of Beverly Beach, Md. says. “Being able to make a difference in the community is very rewarding.

Steve recalls visiting a young girl in a hospital who had trouble sleeping because of all the noises near her room. She laid down with Buster on a sofa near her bed, and within five minutes she was sound asleep and continuing sleeping after they left the room.

In another instance, Steve visited a hospital patient who was in severe pain. After playing with Buster for 15 minutes, a nurse came in to deliver his pain medication. The man told the nurse he felt OK and didn’t need the medication.

After three years, Steve is still amazed by the connections Buster and he make with patients and also with each other.

“As close as you think you are to your dog, doing therapy work brings you even closer,” he says. You create a deeper bond that you don’t even fathom is possible.”

By Harry Bosk

The residents of FutureCare of Dundalk are elated when Pets on Wheels (PoW) volunteer Pat Sinclair and her dog Ellie walk through the door. “They know when Ellie is in the house,” says Pat. “She isn’t their love bucket because buckets overflow. She is their love sponge.” It’s an appropriate metaphor because according to Pat, the residents see Ellie as an old friend who has come to visit. They soak up every minute of the time they spend with her.

In some instances, Pat and Ellie are the only visitors they have. And, as Pat will tell you, Ellie easily makes new friends and eagerly greets new residents. Over time, Ellie becomes their regular visitor.

Pat and Ellie visit on Tuesdays and Fridays. And the residents know when they’re coming: “When I miss a day the residents aren’t shy about asking me why,” Pat says. “They look at Ellie and say ‘where were you?’. Then they look at me and – sometimes pointing their finger – say, “It’s your fault because you drive the van.”’

Pat dutifully prepares Ellie for every visit. She grooms the dog with a brush and puts on her dog therapy vest. “Ellie gets excited because she knows where she is going,” Pat says. “She’s the star. It’s all about her, the fun she has and the joy she brings to everyone else.”

Kelly Flipowicz, director of Admissions at FutureCare of Dundalk remarks, “Pat and Ellie have been visiting six and a half years. They have established a strong bond with so many residents that they have come to see Ellie as their dog. When I give tours of our facility; I always tell visitors about Pat and Ellie.”

Kelly adds that some of the FutureCare of Dundalk’s short-term residents are dog owners. “Pat and Ellie help fill the void they may be feeling while they are here,” she says.

Pat Sinclair explains that her regular visits with Ellie brighten her own day. “I feel so much better. You can’t just not want to do this. On the days we can’t come, my week feels incomplete.”

 

 

Like most Pets on Wheels (PoW) volunteers, Judith Fishman loves dogs and helping others. She regularly visits FutureCare in Reisterstown or Gilchrest Hospice and brings one of her three Golden Retrievers, Barney, Chloe, and Barney with her.

This past year, she and her trio of retrievers and two therapy cats logged more than 250 volunteer hours. In recognition of her time and dedication she will receive the Silver Volunteer Service Award at the POW picnic on July 23rd.

Initially, Judith didn’t think she would be able to participate at FutureCare or Gilchrest. “I didn’t think I would have the stomach for it. FutureCare can be tough because you develop relationships with people and then they die. But my experience there prepared me for Gilchrest,” she said.

She finds Gilchrest especially rewarding, “Patients receive the best quality of care right up to the end. I’m glad that I can be a part of that care,” she says. In addition, she sees the valuable contribution her pets bring to everyone there. “Sometimes the patients are asleep but I let the family know we are also there for them. ” Judith finds volunteering at Gilchrest gratifying. “I feel like the dogs and I have accomplished something.”

As the owner of three Golden Retrievers there’s no doubt about the breed Judith prefers. Her love for this breed introduced her to the world of therapy dogs in nursing homes and other facilities. Thirteen years ago, while attending Goldenstock, an annual summer weekend retreat for the owners of Golden Retrievers she learned about Therapy Dogs International. After volunteering for that organization she became a PoW volunteer.

Judith credits Gilchrest for teaching her more about life and death. She recounts an experience with a patient there who related to Chloe because they both had difficulty breathing. She gave Judith a poem The Dash about the meaning of life. This patient accepted death as a part of life and she had no fears about dying.

Judith still misses that woman. She wishes that she and her dogs could have spent more time with her.

It’s experiences like this that make Judith a dedicated volunteer. It’s also her desire to serve others that compels her to visit FutureCare and Gilchrest.