Coach
Joy and Coach
One day I popped into a local shelter "just to look around" and walked out with a big dog that chose me because I offered him endless children and cafeteria food. Five hundred corn dogs later, Coach has become the most amazing therapy dog ever. He has worked with me for 5 years at an elementary school where he has cheered and "coached" children and staff alike. I am a children's mental health counselor and working with Coach has been the most therapeutic activity I've used in my career. Seeing how quickly children were comfortable to share feelings and to recover trauma with the use of a therapy dog, I started a non-profit called Coach Dog, Inc. that provides volunteers and their certified therapy dogs to school children in Martin and Palm Beach Counties in Florida. We have 18 dogs in the schools so far in our second year! Coach changed my life, but more importantly he continues to inspire and change so many lives and he continues to eat those cafeteria corn dogs with gusto! Coach was diagnosed with canine cancer in early November and given a very short time to live. Four months later, now in March, he continues to work with children and inspires us all to live every day to the fullest; loving lunch and recess most of all! Thanks for allowing us to share our story and for this site. It's great. Joy Willison, LMHC Check out our website at coachdog.org if you'd like to .