IN THE COMMUNITY
As a nonprofit, our community and supporters are the reason we are able to fulfill our mission in helping Warriors. In the last year we have seen immense growth at PPH, including 2 new sites opening, celebrating our 11 year anniversary, and a graduation! Without our community, none of this would have been possible. We’d like to thank all of our supporters for making what we do possible. We would love to share with you just a fraction of the things Paws for Purple Hearts has been up to in recent months!
San Antonio, Texas
Cavendar and Eaton at Fido, Family, and Friends!
Cavendar and Eaton at Fido, Family, and Friends!
Fido, Family, and Friends event at the San Antonio Botanical Garden (October 9th)
PPH San Antonio had the pleasure of taking part in the Fido, Family, and Friends event at the San Antonio Botanical Garden. Our San Antonio team had a unique opportunity to expose a handful of their Service Dogs-In-Training to other dogs and community members while sharing PPH’s mission.
7th Annual Wellness Expo (October 15th)
PPH San Antonio participated in the 7th Annual Wellness Expo hosted by Wellness 4 Warriors. They were able to network with other Veteran-oriented organizations and share our mission with other community members and Veterans in need.
Bay Area, California
Schatzie and Lofty with Quakes Mascot, Tremor!
Quakes Salute to Military Game (September 24th)
Schatzie and Lofty with Quakes Mascot, Tremor!
Our Bay Area crew was grateful to be able to table and attend the Quakes Salute to Military game with Ambassador Dog Schatzie and Service Dog-in-training, Lofty. In tabling, alongside other important Military-related organizations, they were able to connect with community members and spread information about our programs directly to Warriors. This tabling event and game were an amazing celebration of our Nation’s Warriors!
American Legion Presentation (October 19th)
The Redwood City American Legion graciously invited PPH to their lodge to present about their mission and programs. The presentation also involved a Service Dog demo as well as a meet and greet with Ambassador Dog, Schatzie and Service Dog-in-training, Oakley.
In their support of spreading our mission, the Redwood City American Legion invited a variety of groups to attend the presentation. The groups who attended included, the American Legion Unit 105, Redwood City, American Legion Rider, Chapter 105, San Mateo County Service Officer, Alex Ayag, Outreach Coordinator, Marine Corps League, General J. C. Breckinridge San Francisco Detachment 10, and the American Legion Charitable Foundation to join the presentation. We would like to extend a warm thank you to all groups listed as they got together and gave us a donation of $1,000! Their support of our mission is greatly appreciated and allows us to continue to serve Veterans in the Bay Area.
San Diego, California
San Diego trainer, Tamara, teaching Open House attendees about our programs
Open House (September 7th)
San Diego trainer, Tamara, teaching Open House attendees about our programs
Our San Diego team held an Open House in September to connect with community members! The Open House taught attendees about our training process, how Canine-Assisted Warrior Therapy® works, as well as taking them through the history of Service Dogs placed by PPH. The Open House also included a Service Dog demonstration exhibiting commands they use to assist Veterans and Active-Duty Service Members.
It couldn’t have been done without the numerous volunteers from the Female Athletic Volunteers, National Charity League, and Boys Team Charity. They helped clean our facility, set-up beforehand, and put away everything afterwards.
Rancho San Bernardo Safety Fair (October 2nd)
LeMay with trainer Tamara and Advancement Associate, Greg at the Safety Fair
Senior Program Instructor, Tamara Bell, and Advancement Associate, Greg DeSantis, attended the 12th Annual Rancho Bernardo Safety Fair with their new service dog-in-training, LeMay. With LeMay by their side, they spent the day engaging with the community and bringing awareness to the Paws for Purple Hearts mission.
We would like to extend a huge thank you to Troop 680 of Rancho Bernardo, San Diego. During the Safety Fair, they helped move our equipment to our location for the event and set our booth up. They also helped with cleaning up afterwards and taking our booth down at the end of the event.
Ruther Glen, Virginia
Thank you, MANARC!
Puppy Shower (October 6th)
Thank you, MANARC!
Our Ruther Glen site had a puppy shower at MANARC for their new puppies, Nova and Nemo. MANARC graciously donated $1,000, Purina dog food, and supplies for our dogs-in-training, like slow-feed bowls and other helpful items. In addition, their friends and business partners hosted a dinner to celebrate the arrival of the new puppies! We are extremely grateful for their generosity.
Graduation (October 22nd)
Following a two week client training and team pairing, our Ruther Glen team hosted a graduation! Three dogs graduated, Arrillaga and Hicks as Service Dogs and Antje as a Facility Dog. After about two and a half years of training, it was so special to witness these dogs graduate, knowing they are going to change lives.
Thank you to everyone who made this graduation possible! We’d like to say a special thank you to our Warrior Supporters: The WaWa Foundation, Names Foundation, Tru by Hilton, and Best Western Plus. Our Silent Auction Sponsors: Advance Auto, Nylabone, UpCountry, J and J Dog Supplies, Dominos, Mission BBQ, Welburn Wealth Management,as well as to all our volunteers, trainers, staff, and everyone along the way who made this possible!
Anchorage, Alaska
Service dog-in-training, Luana, attending the Out of Darkness Walk
Service dog-in-training, Luana, attending the Out of Darkness Walk
Out of Darkness Walk (September 10th)
Our Alaska team attended the Out of Darkness walk, an annual walk is all about remembrance, hope, support and acknowledgement of the ways that suicide and mental health conditions have impacted our lives and the lives of those we care about. The team joined the walk around Cuddy Park, including PPH graduate Regan, and Service dog-in-training, Luana. We were honored to be able to take part in such an important event for our community.
Eagle Academy Charter School (September 23rd)
Service dog-in-training, Luana, during the presentation to students
The team visited Eagle Academy Charter School in Eagle River, Alaska to teach students about working with dogs and what becoming a Service Dog means for our Warrior community. PPH graduate Regan and Service dog-in-training, Luana, showed off their stills for 4th, 5th and 6th graders. This visit was a great opportunity to connect with young students and teach them the importance of Service Dogs!
Anchorage Senior Center Presentation (October 5th)
Luana and Elaine during the visit
In October the Alaska team visited the Anchorage Senior Center to introduce the residents to Paws for Purple Hearts and show what our dogs do for Warriors. Two of the site’s Service dogs-in-training, Luana and Elaine, worked with Program Instructor, Debbie, to show off some of the tasks that they have learned such as jump on, light, and go say hi.
Detroit, Michigan
Lois and Nelson enjoying the game with trainers Emma and Holly
Detroit Tigers Baseball Game (September 1st)
Lois and Nelson enjoying the game with trainers Emma and Holly
Lois and Nelson put their skills to work and practiced several polite greetings at a Detroit Tigers baseball game!
Even at such a young age, our puppies in training make a huge impact on the community and to help spread our mission within Detroit and the entire region. Baseball season might be over now, but we’re already looking forward to attending more games with our dogs next year!
Veterans Resource Fair (September 8th)
Our Detroit team recently had the privilege to attend one of Detroit’s Veteran Resource Fairs. This event offered Veterans and their families from surrounding communities many resources including dental care, haircuts, groceries, info on the Veteran transportation program, and housing counseling. Lois and Nelson were a great addition to this event to offer Veterans and their families some social therapy, as well as share what Paws for Purple Hearts does for our Warriors!
Detroit Red Wings Hockey Game (October 3rd)
Senior Program Instructor Emma took Lois to her first Detroit Red Wings hockey game! Busy events like these are great opportunities to practice polite greetings, and the fans sure loved meeting Lois. Our team looks forward to attending Military Appreciation Night in November to watch the Red Wings play and honor our Veterans!
Tacoma, Washington
Ericson and trainer Cassidy at the Capitol of Washington
New Facility!
And we’re off – our Tacoma site officially has a building! Our Tacoma team has been hard at work renovating the building in preparation for opening. We have new flooring, new coats of paint throughout the building, and volunteers already coming through to help with the renovation. Our first round of volunteers were all active duty service members who helped to paint, clean up different parts of the facility, and get it closer to being ready for opening day! Next, we have a local artist coming to volunteer their time painting a small mural for the building.
Music Works 4 Veterans (October 19th)
Our Tacoma team has been participating in a local veterans nonprofit group called Music Works 4 Veterans. With this organization, our team brings Ericson and meets with some local Veteran community members who practice music therapy alongside them.
These outings are great noise exposure for Ericson and allow great networking opportunities with local members of the community, while also participating in something extremely beneficial to Veterans in the area.
From all of Paw for Purple Hearts, we would like to extend a warm thank you to everyone who has made our mission possible. We receive support in so many unique ways that allow us to continue to serve Warriors. If you are interested in your local site participating in an event, please reach out! Your local PPH team would love to find a way to participate in events in your community. We are so grateful for the amazing communities we reside in and their continued support of everything we do.
Looking to help our cause? We couldn’t do what we do without our supporters! Please consider helping us spread the word about our mission to your community. Your support allows us to continue to fulfill our mission in helping Veterans and Active Duty Service Members. By simply helping us get the word out there, you are helping us to continue to fulfill our mission. Please also consider a monetary donation or donating from our Amazon Wishlist to help our cause.
