Therapy Dogs International brings smiles to Summer Games attendants
Twenty-two licensed therapy dogs greeted participants and spectators walking outside the Student Activity Center at the 2017 Special Olympics Michigan Summer Games this weekend.
24 members of Chapter 280 of Therapy Dogs International brought their dogs to campus to entertain participants of the games. Margy Reimer, director of Chapter 280, hosted the tent outside the SAC both days, bringing her own Golden Retrievers, Viper and Kindle.
A member of the organization for 15 years, Riemer said the summer games are without a doubt her favorite event to take part in with the therapy dogs.
"Special Olympics is the most amazing event ever," Riemer said. "If everybody saw the joy that we see, and the smiles on these kids' faces, they would agree. Their smiles are contagious.
"They live for this, and to play a part in all this is always incredibly rewarding. The kids will come, sit down, and never want to leave."
The Chapter 280 therapy dog unit also visits the campus of Central Michigan University during finals week, setting up in Park Library for four hours a day, for 11 days in a row, for students dealing with the stress of finals.
Founded in 1977, Therapy Dogs International is a nonprofit organization with over 25,000 members within the United States. According to their mission statement, the organization is dedicated to training dogs to behave well enough to visit nursing homes, childcare centers, hospitals and other institutions were their presence is needed.
The dogs and their owners are certified as teams, meaning that only the owners are allowed to handle the dogs when they're out on the field. The dogs and handlers go through intensive training to ensure that the dogs are absolutely safe to be around.
