2021 SUMMER NEWSLETTER
GOLDEN PAWS FOR SOME
A VERY SPECIAL UPDATE FROM HAND IN PAW! Therapy Team refresher courses are happening thanks to YOU!
Programs, and Stacey Roudebush, Hand in Paw Volunteer Coordinator, are committed to preparing our Therapy Teams to serve the community as soon as health guidelines allow: “Our fantastic volunteers have been incredibly patient during our long ‘paws’ from visiting in-person,” says Kiersten. “We are thrilled to invite our teams back to HIP which will give us an opportunity to meet with our teams and review our updated guidelines to return to in-person visiting. Hand in Paw staff will work be working closely with our Program Partners to ensure volunteer, staff, and client safety. As we move forward carefully, we remain dedicated to helping our community heal through the goodness of Animal-Assisted Therapy!” This is such an exciting time at Hand in Paw – a time to reconnect, rebuild and refresh. We are relying on your support to continue the reputation of Hand in Paw’s commitment to professional and safe therapeutic visits.
Onward & Upward With your help, Therapy Teams will soon be able to safely visit in-person again! As we reflect on the past months of the pandemic, we can’t help but think of you – our supporters and volunteers who kept Hand in Paw going. We want to take a moment and say thank you for staying with us and allowing us the chance to see opportunity in the challenges we faced. Your assistance in adapting to virtual programming, participation in fundraising events, and dedication to helping others in need has made all the difference this year. With the support and wisdom of our Board of Directors, Hand in Paw is excited to announce our plans to safely return to in-person visits! You read that right! As COVID vaccines become more readily available and the risk of infection in Alabama continues to decline, we are thrilled to begin a thorough process to train Therapy Teams to visit safely in a postCOVID world. This process will begin slowly as we start by hosting small, socially-distanced Therapy Team refresher courses which introduce new health and safety visit-protocol. Then, we will work toward evaluating and working with Therapy Teams that are due for renewals. Our goal is to make everyone feel comfortable and confident in returning to in-person visits after so many months at home. Kiersten Atkinson, Hand in Paw Director of Volunteers and
To help us during this transition, please consider making a donation using the envelope provided or visit handinpaw.org/donate. The future of Hand in Paw is very bright – and with the talent and generosity of our Volunteers, Board, Staff, and Donors – we are positioned to thrive by serving our community through both in-person AND virtual visits.
A planned gift to Hand in Paw can make an impact on generations to come. Ask your estate planner or email Beth Franklin at beth@handinpaw.org to see how you can create a lasting legacy.
“Look at That Little Dog Go” The story of how one amazing pug is bringing joy to the elderly – all thanks to you!
One of the most impactful ways Hand in Paw Therapy Teams have been able to serve the community this year is by virtually visiting nursing home residents. Due to COVID restrictions, these residents were especially isolated and lonely, unable to see their family members in-person. But with your help, Hand in Paw Therapy Teams rose to the occasion and started bringing comfort and joy to the elderly online! To achieve these visits, Therapy Teams start a video chat online and are then led around the building on a computer or iPad by a program partner so they can talk individually with the residents. Annesley Streets, Activities Assistant Coordinator, helps facilitate these visits at Galleria Woods Senior Living Community and knows how much they mean to the residents: “Both assisted living and skilled nursing have really enjoyed the virtual visits with Hand in Paw. There is definitely a change in demeanor when we do the visits – it is such a bright spot in their day. They go from sleepy and bored to brighter eyes, smirks, and laughter. The visits always end in laughter and smiles and oftentimes a memory about their own dogs.” While there are some constraints to visiting virtually, one benefit of virtual programming is that Therapy Teams can really get creative in the
ways they conduct a visit. MC Stewart and her pug Vivienne Claire are PAWfect examples of just how creative teams can be! To make their visits especially fun, they bust out props and music and put on a whole tricks show! Vivienne makes residents smile with her amazing ability to play the piano, push a shopping cart, dance with her mom, and much more. “MC and Vivienne have been fantastic because they have such an engaging setup and energetic routine. The residents say things like ‘look at that little dog go’ and ‘look she’s giving her treats!’. They love waving back when Vivienne waves at them,” says Annesley.
These beneficial and FUN virtual visits would not happen without the generosity of our donors and volunteers!
These beneficial and FUN virtual visits would not happen without the generosity of our donors and volunteers. Your dedication has raised the level of service Hand in Paw is able to provide to vulnerable and worthy citizens in our community.
To support this program and help us reach even more nursing home residents, please donate using the envelope provided or on our website at handinpaw.org/donate.
handinpaw.org/ showtime
Book It to the HIP Library! During this difficult year, your amazing support made it possible to continue to visit people in need through new and creative outlets. Because of you, one of the ways HIP Therapy Teams were able to help most during this time is by providing virtual literacy support to local schools through the Sit, Stay, Read! (SSR) program. During virtual SSR visits, students and Therapy Teams read a copy of the same book and interact online. These virtual visits have made a huge impact in local schools and organizations such as Girls Inc.
Visit our book wish list at handinpaw.org/wishlist. To learn about library naming opportunities contact Beth Franklin at beth@handinpaw.org
“We saw the girls become more encouraged and motivated to read knowing they would be reading to a cute pup and wanting to get it ‘right’,” says La’Rae Slater, Assistant Center Director at Girls Inc. of Central Alabama. “The girls would consistently ask to read their provided books during class breaks so that they could be ready to go when it was time to read with their HIP Team. HIP has contributed to the girls’ growth in their ability to read, as well as in their confidence to read aloud to others.” With so many beneficial SSR visits happening virtually, Hand in Paw was in desperate need of new books to deliver to schools and Therapy Teams, so we started building a library on our campus! Your donations helped Hand in Paw once again by enabling us to transform our lunch nook into a library and fill the shelves with many new books across several reading levels! This library now houses the books needed for virtual SSR visits as well as the “pawtographed” books that are given to students who achieve their reading milestones. As we start planning to safely return to in-person visits, we are excited for more opportunities to use the HIP Library, including using the space as a field trip prospect for students and Therapy Teams to read together. Hand in Paw is so grateful for your ongoing support which continuously helps us grow, adapt, and accomplish our mission.
Virtual Mutt Strut Was A Success! Our first Virtual Mutt Strut is in the books! Huge thanks to every runner, supporter, sponsor, volunteer and junior board member who made this event possible! In total for 2020/2021 combined, we had nearly 500 runners sign up and raised over $53,000. These funds help Hand in Paw bring comfort and joy to people in need free of charge! Mutt Strut 2021 was presented by Veterinary Eye Care in Memory of Christopher Nelms. Thanks to Our Sponsors: Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Alabama Graphics, Dog U, UAB Medicine, ABC 33/40, Hollywood Feed, Chick-fil-a Wildwood Centre Vestavia Hills, Bham Pets, Dog Days of Birmingham, Long-Lewis Ford Lincoln, Steel City Puppies, Over the Mountain Journal, Adams and Reese LLP, Creative Dog Training