Looking Ahead

Happy New Year! 

Now that all the excitement is over and the holiday break has been had, we are back to business we are looking forward to a promising 2012.

Programs

Canines for Service – continues to be based from the Wilmington corporate office.  Demands for services continue and we need foster families (individual, couple, traditional or non-traditional) to step-up to the cause.  We cannot serve people in need unless we have puppies in training coming up the ranks to fill those needs in 2-4 years.   The commitment is great, but the reward is even bigger.  Our goal for 2012 is to bring the foster program to Charleston, SC.    Our second goal for this program is to obtain our U.S. Department of Labor approval for service dog technician training program.  Canines for Service continues on the forefront of service dog training standards and the U.S. Department of Labor approval confirms a level of standards for the trainer.  This apprenticeship program approval will make it possible to offer a vocational curriculum in service dog training. 

Canines for Veterans – continues to serve our wounded and injured service members from 1991 – current.  We know the demands are high and Canines for Veterans is on track to meet the needs with 10 to 15 service dog partnering planned for this year.    Working with the brig to increase the number of prison handlers and then increase the number of dogs in training is a goal for this program.

Canines for Therapy – continues in Wilmington and in Raleigh taught by Teamworks Dog Training.  To meet the continued needs in Wilmington, two staff members are in the process of becoming AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluators so our enrollees will be able to complete this evaluation before enrolling in the therapy class.  Our goal is to bring this program into Charleston within the first quarter of 2012.

Canines for Literacy – continues in the greater Wilmington area in 5 elementary schools.  Request for the program have never been higher, but we need certified Canines for Therapy teams so we can increase the number of children served.

Events

Events already on the calendar:

Canines for Therapy Class (Wilmington), January 17th

Conscience Fair (Wilmington) on Feb 4th

Run for the Roses (Raleigh) on Feb 12th

Southeastern Wildlife Exp (Charleston) on Feb 17^th- 19^th

Coastal Living Show (Wilmington) on March 17^th – 18^th

Walk for Those Who Can’t (Wilmington) on March 24^th

Azalea Festival Parade (Wilmington) on April 14th

Locations

Canines for Service is seeking facility space in Charleston/North Charleston, preferably donated or very low cost, to offer the Canines for Therapy program and begin the service dog training curriculum.  A minimum of 2,000 to 5,000 sq feet of space is needed.  If you know of space or have space you would like to talk with us about, please call, 866-910-3647.

Volunteers

Don’t be shy, we need you!  In Wilmington area, Canines for Therapy teams are needed and Canines for Literacy teams.  Foster families to raise a service dog for someone in need and event volunteers are always needed.  With our 6^th annual Walk for Those Who Can’t on March 24^th we need a team of folks to help gain sponsors and tabletop exhibitors or volunteer for hospitality or event day activities.  And, opportunities are available for Board Members.  

Can’t volunteer?  How about holding a fundraiser?  Check our information on being CFS Supporter.

We've got a lot going, but we need your continued support; financially, and as  corporate sponsors or volunteers. Help us make 2012 a great year.  We can’t do it without you!

Carolina Canines for Service Offers Pet Therapy Program in Charleston

Photo by Mike Spencer, StarNewsMedi

CHARLESTON, N.C.- Carolina Canines, the organization that conducts the Carolina Canines for Veterans program at the Naval Consolidated Brig Charleston, will begin offering their Carolina Canines for Therapy program in Charleston in April.

There is nothing like the unconditional love and affection from a friendly dog to help you temporarily forget your troubles.  In fact, studies show that human-animal interaction can help lower blood pressure and heart rate and significantly reduce anxiety and stress.

Carolina Canines for Therapy offers owners and their dogs the chance to become certified pet therapy teams to provide animal-assisted visitations in hospitals, nursing homes, schools, group homes and treatment facilities.  Handlers and their dogs complete a comprehensive six-week course, equipping them with the skills necessary for successful therapy visitations within the community.  The dog must be well behaved, well socialized, in good health, able to handle new situations well and enjoys being patted by strangers.  They also know basic commands like sit, down, stay and come, like people and have gentle temperaments.

The Carolina Canines for Therapy program was established in 2002 and has provided training to over 600 teams and certified close to 400.  The program is currently being conducted in Wilmington and Raleigh, North Carolina where certified therapy teams visit over 50 facilities making a difference in people’s lives every day.

Carolina Canines for Service brought the Carolina Canines for Veterans program to Charleston last September and since then has provided over $500,000 in services to service members and veterans who have experienced injuries while serving our country.  “Offering our therapy training program in the Charleston community is a natural expansion and growth of our programs in this community”, says Rick Hairston, President of Carolina Canines.  “The Carolina Canines for Therapy program offers the opportunity for more people to be involved in our organization and give back in the community they live and work in.  The Unitarian Church has graciously opened their doors for us to offer the course in the community.”

The program will begin on April 12, 2011 at the Unitarian Church in Charleston, Gage Hall, 4 Archdale Street and run for six consecutive weeks.  Interested individuals should review the course prerequisites and policy at http://www.carolinacanines.org/Therapy.html.  The course fee is $145 and pre-registration is required.

            Carolina Canines for Service, with the corporate office located in Wilmington, North Carolina, is a non-profit corporation dedicated to empowering people with disabilities to achieve greater independence. The group trains and places certified service dogs with the help of volunteer foster families and military prisoners training service dogs for veterans, provides pet therapy certification classes and helps children in our community improve their reading skills. Since its inception in 1996, the value of all the programs exceeds $4.0 million in services to our communities. For more information, call (866) 910-3647 or visit www.carolinacanines.org.

Witnessing the American Spirit in Our Volunteers



The Engles,
CCT Team of the Year



During one of the most severe economic crises of our lifetime, while many Americans are facing extreme hardship, losing jobs, homes and businesses, the American spirit is alive and well.  Americans have responded to this crisis by serving.  Approximately 1.6 million more volunteers served in 2009 than in 2008, making this the largest single-year increase in the number of volunteers since 2003.  This number is taken directly from the 2010 Volunteering in America report  published  by the Corporation for National and Community Service.   View the full report here.    Volunteerism lives in the heart of Americans.  It is what unites us as a nation and demonstrates America's strong sense of community.  Our desire to work together and help others is the very foundation of our country and one of the main reasons our country is the greatest nation on earth.  We are so proud of our volunteers and the work they do to serve the mission of Carolina Canines.  Simply put, we could not function without you.  Thank you for your selfless giving , endless dedication and faith in our organization. 

The Stoners,
CCT Team of the Year

Sponsored by the Board of Directors, on September 18th we gathered together for the annual Volunteer Appreciation Picnic. Sharing our success, because of the commitment of our Volunteers, we celebrated the people who give an average of 2500 hours each month as foster puppy parents raising service dogs to give someone greater independence, office and event volunteers, Carolina Canines for Therapy (CCT) teams in Wilmington and Raleigh and our corporate sponsors that come together to make each piece a part of the whole.  Today was a day to share in friendships new and old, human and canine and to celebrate the service of others.  A special thanks to the Board of Directors for arranging, organizing and serving the food catered by Angie's of Chris's Restaurant. 



Laura Kranchalk presenting
Caroline O'Brien
Overall Volunteer of the Year



Acknowledging our Volunteers is always a special time.  Each year, we look back on the work of our volunteers and we recognize just a few who have stood above the crowd and served above and beyond.  This year, we had the privilege of honoring some special people.    A few of the volunteers recognized were Katherine and Walter Engle and therapy dog Simeon and Nanc and Joe Stoner with Sarah and Hannah as Carolina Canines for Therapy Volunteers of the Year and Caroline O'Brien as Overall Volunteer of the Year.  It is a pleasure to share the blessings these folks are in our community and to our organization. 

Today, it was our honor to serve you.  Thank you.

(Photos by Glenn Blackwood)

2009 A Year in Review

Looking back at 2009, it has been a busy year filled with challenges and blessings.

In January, we launched Carolina Canines for Therapy as our own program after spending months developing the course material, registration and assessment. The program includes an affiliate through Teamwork’s Dog Training, Raleigh, NC and for the first time, the therapy program spans multiple locations in North Carolina. The third wounded veteran received his service dog from the Carolina Canines from Veterans (CCV) program in mid-January.

In February we were in full swing preparing for the 3rd annual Walk for Those WhoCan’t having pre-registered close to 30 teams stepping out to support the mission of Carolina Canines.
March found us saying good-bye to the first service dog placed, Saint. Joshua, the service dog placed in January was named the Booker Willoughby Service Dog of the Year by Chapter of Mega Tau Sima (OTS) at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in Blackburg, VA. And, the Walk for Those Who Can’t was held raising $20,000 thanks to the many volunteers, supporters, teams and individual walkers.

April brought us to the Coastal Living Show and the Azalea Festival Parade with preparation underway for PawJam in early May. We had to say good-bye to another friend, Service Dog Samson as he crossed the Rainbow Bridge. We also welcomed a new compliment of Board Members that are truly dedicated to Carolina Canines mission and services and share the passion to continue to service our community.

May events included PawJam and Vets Helping Vets, a fundraiser sponsored by North College Road Animal Hospital providing wellness checks for dogs and cats for a donation to the Carolina Canines for Veterans Program. And, the Ms. Atkinson’s 6th grade class of Shallotte Middle School raised over $500 in a fundraiser for Carolina Canines for Veterans.

June was busy serving two more wounded veterans with their service dogs from the CCV program, adding new dogs into the CCV program one coming from Tails U Win and Adopt-An-Angel, a new puppy in the civilian service dog program and Carolina Canines for Veterans was named the SPCA Shelter of the Week for our work with rescue dogs.

July celebrated a new pup into the CCV program donated by Carolina Animal Protection as a training exercise for the prisoners to learn how to train a young dog and we fully engaged in the world of social media managing a FaceBook page for Carolina Canines. August kicked off a fundraiser, Power of Ten, in which 10 people donate $10 each and ask 10 friends to do the same.

September we recognized our Volunteers for all their service in the annual Volunteer Appreciation Picnic, welcomed two new puppies donated by Georgette and Jim Lynn, Serendipity Dry Pond Kennels, into the civilian training program, worked with our 6th wounded veteran as she received her service dog Isaac, and celebrated national recognition as a recipient of a Newman’s Own Award through Fisher House Foundation to reward ingenuity and innovation for programs that benefit service men and women and their families.

Service Dog Titus finished up his advanced training with a training mission to Disney in October. Our very own volunteer, Donna Sweetman was awarded the New Hanover County Volunteer of the Year and was one of 20 recipients of the North Carolina Volunteer Service Award Governors Medallion of Honor. October also found advanced trainers, Stephen LeQuire and Caroline O’Brien working with clients Kathy and Diane as they received their service dogs. Ms. Atkinson’s 6th grade class at Shallotte Middle School was at it again, this time over $600 was raised for the CCV program. The first annual VolleyPaws tournament was held at Captain Bill’s, Shallotte Rotary sponsored the first annual Coastal Hounds Walk the Town and at the end of October we were excited to launch a newly designed website for Carolina Canines thanks to our corporate sponsor and their creative design team, Talk Inc. and Home Health Testing provided an incredible look at the work done by Carolina Canines in a new video titled Triple Win.

We welcomed November with the 7th wounded veteran receiving his service dog, Titus and a new relationship with Air Compassion for Veterans making transportation possible for our wounded veterans to attend team training in Wilmington, NC. A new puppy for the civilian program donated by Richard and Carolyn Burton joined the family and a team of dynamic volunteers came together to plan the 2010 Walk for Those Who Can’t with a new location at Hugh MacRae Park

And in December the President/CEO reflected upon how he began his passion for service dog training and commitment to continue to service those in need. Christmas week found us celebrating the arrival of Stella, a 9-week old Anatolian Shepherd donated by Nancy and Ken Wargas of Full Circle Farms.

As we look back on 2009, we were faced with many challenges that we managed to deal with. Special thanks to our funders, volunteers and supporters for their unwavering commitment to support our mission. Without your support, we could not have accomplished all that we did. Carolina Canines for Service provided $280,000 in services to people with disabilities. Our volunteers logged an average of 2500 hours each month with their time valued at just over $600,000. We registered 79 Carolina Canines for Therapy teams who continue to touch the lives of thousands of people in their communities with pet therapy visitations. The total value of services provided by Carolina Canines for Service exceeded just over $800,000 for 2009.

We look forward to continuing to serve our communities. Wishing you and yours a Happy 2010!

Heel 2 Heal - New Pet Therapy Program

Carolina Canines for Service, a Wilmington, N.C.-based non-profit that provides quality-trained service dogs to people with disabilities, at no cost, launched a new animal therapy training program developed by President/CEO Rick Hairston.

The new Carolina Canines for Therapy training program’s mission is to improve the quality of life for people though animal visitation. People and their pets, which have graduated from basic obedience courses, and completed Canine Good Citizens certification can enroll in Carolina Canines’ six-week preparation class that trains the team for volunteering at hospitals, public schools and special-care facilities.

Hairston began animal therapy training in 2002 using the Delta Society’s training curriculum. In January, he realized the need for a new curriculum that included more hands-on preparation prior to visitation, which no similar programs offered. Also unlike other programs, the completion of training includes a 20-point assessment of the animal and a criminal background check of the handler. Hairston developed Carolina Canines for Therapy along with Michele Godlevski, the owner of Teamworks Dog Training, Raleigh, N.C., whose organization became the first affiliate program.

Currently, Carolina Canines animal therapy program volunteers 1000 hours of time in the community each year for approximately 30 local facilities, including New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Lower Cape Fear Hospice Life Care Center and Hermitage House, as well as New Hanover County Schools.

“A dog has the ability to bring joy and happiness to a sick patient, shorten a hospital stay, assist with therapeutic interventions and comfort a child, as long as the animal receives proper training to prepare for these interactions,” said Hairston. “Our comprehensive, hands-on approach is really what sets us apart from other programs.”

Enrollment in the training program costs $135 with additional fees at the completion of the course. Anyone interested in registering with their dog for the next class, scheduled to begin February 24, can contact Carolina Canines at (910) 362-8181 or info@carolinacanines.org.