Misty Moonlight Therapy Dog Visit

Thank you to James Schaffner and Misty Moonlight from 4PAWS for being our first Therapy Dog volunteers at the new Nancy and Stephen Grand Family House! James had this to say about their visit:

“With people and even a grassy patio area with bees in the flowers outside of the 2nd floor, there are 45 families already in residence. Julian and Oscar weren't too sure about Misty at first, but she won them over very quickly. It only took a couple Misty cards and some tricks. Shiloh and Misty were best friends instantly. Misty showed Shiloh how to roll over for a treat. Shiloh rolled over like Misty, but declined the treat. I told Shiloh that I wanted to teach Misty how to do a summersault but, since I couldn't do one, I couldn't show Misty how. I asked her if she could show Misty how to do a summersault - she did a couple and then asked Misty to do one. Misty just stared at Shiloh like she was from outer space.  As Yogi Berra once said, ‘You can observe a lot just by watching.’”

4Paws Therapy Dogs at Family House

4Paws Therapy Dogs at Family House by Misty Moonlight

“I’m Misty Moonlight, one of four 4PAWS therapy dogs that visit Family House. The others are Jonny Jusice, Ollie, and Fozzy.

“We dogs meet a wide range of Family House residents, from 4 year olds to young adults, and all seem very upbeat. I don’t know if it’s the result of the atmosphere at Family House, or the presence of us cheerful dogs - probably some of each! During a recent visit, I met a boy about 7 years old and his younger sister. They didn’t have pets at home, so I was a novelty for them. The boy liked me right away, but his little sister was afraid and wouldn’t even touch me! After a while, James (my person) showed the girl how to use the brush so that she could join her brother, without touching me. Soon, she was petting me just like her brother. When we were getting ready to leave, she gave me a hug! James asked her if she would like to have a dog of her own at home. She thought about it, and said, ‘No, a cat.’ Maybe I should learn to purr!

“Another one of my favorite activities is visiting the campers at Enchanted Hills Camp for the Blind. A young lady who was a member of the staff pointed at the Family House patch on my 4PAWS vest and asked about it. She said that she had spent so much time there during treatments that she felt like that’s where she grew up. She is now a ‘Guardian Angel,’ helping the blind campers safely enjoy all of the activities available to them. Another successful alumni with fond memories of Family House.

“Enjoy the sunshine, but pray for rain,

-Misty Moonlight”

Learn more about 4PAWS Therapy Dogs (4pawscenter.org), or about volunteering at Family House (familyhouseinc.org/volunteer.html)

International Assistance Dog Week

In honor of International Assistance Dog Week (August 2-8, 2015), we’d like to give a shout out to all of our fuzzy four-footed friends who bring joy to Family House. All together now - WOOF!

Learn more about volunteering at Family House at http://www.familyhouseinc.org/volunteer.html

Volunteer Spotlight: Cris Cohen & Jonny Justice

Volunteers of all sorts help at Family House, from weekly volunteers, to those that make dinner for families, to those that host arts & crafts and other activities. Particularly special volunteers are our Therapy Dogs & their people. These (human) volunteers bring their certified therapy dogs once a month for a couple of hours to bond with families going through crisis. Therapy dogs offer extremely valuable positive interactions - not only good to relieve stresses of the mind, but also to improve negative health conditions.

One of our favorite therapy dogs-people-combos is Jonny Justice & his person, Cris Cohen. Cris first heard about Family House through 4Paws for Healing about 2 years ago. Since then, Jonny has become quite a celebrity - winning a Gund contest to have a stuffed animal made in his likeness. Cris absolutely adores Family House and even donated the stuffed animals to the families.

When Cris is not volunteering at Family House, he works full time for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and also supports Bad Rap, an organization in Oakland that rehabilitates  and finds homes for homeless Pit Bulls.

Cris, you provide so much joy and laughter to families at Family House through Jonny’s amazing and adorable tricks! We are so lucky to have such a great friend and Family House advocate!

Thank you so much for your support of Family House!

Get involved with Family House! Learn more at http://www.familyhouseinc.org/volunteer.html