In what its CEO believes is a one-of-a-kind program in North America, Therapy Tails Ontario has established a partnership with a St. Catharines funeral home for a bereavement support program.
Called Paws for Comfort, the program brings therapy dogs to funeral or memorial services at George Darte Funeral Home. It’s something Therapy Tails Ontario CEO Stewart Hill said has been in the works for some time but there were challenges that kept what was an idea from becoming a reality, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
“For three years, we didn't do anything with this program,” Hill said.
In fact, the pandemic was devastating for the group. Membership declined and its finances were hit hard.
“We had gone from 250 teams down to 35 teams,” Hill said. “We were almost bankrupt.”
That’s when Susan Kalchman, a bereavement counsellor at George Darte Funeral Home’s Darte Wellness Centre and former Therapy Tails team member came calling with the idea of a bereavement program.
But at the time, Hill had only been CEO for a couple of months and wanted to get Therapy Tails on more solid footing.
Things changed when the Order of the Evening Star – members are wives of members of the Masonic Lodge – which had already decided to sponsor Therapy Tails got on board with the program.
“They gave us a very generous donation and said, ‘Hey, here you go, take this and build on this idea that you have.’”
So, Hill met with Kalchman to work out the details on how such a program would work and how they would find teams willing to help.
“It's not everybody's cup of tea,” Hill said. “To be in that environment requires you to have a certain mindset of why you're going to be there.”
Like Hill, Kalchman had been mulling over the idea. One of the owners of the funeral home had a dog who came to work with him at one time but that was no longer the case, as the co-owner was no longer there. She noticed then the effect the dog’s presence had on employees and visitors alike.
“I kept thinking, I need to get dogs into this funeral home somehow, because I know the power of a pet,” Kalchman said. “My dog, Gunner, and I had done some therapy work, and I thought, what can I do to bring this into this environment?”
“It’s magic to watch. We have people coming in for visitations, and they say, ‘There’s dogs here!’”
Visitations can be nerve wracking for the families and visitors alike, Kalchman said, and the dogs help ease that.
Hill said there were trials for program prior to its official launch on Monday, Oct. 7.
“We did about four or five pilot funerals where the people that we were doing it with were advised that it was a pilot project. Overall, humongous success.”
Kalchman agreed and said the program has been appreciated by the families.
“They’re saying, ‘You took a very difficult day, you gave us a break, and you made it beautiful,’” she said. “The dogs provided our family comfort on our hardest day.”
The organization is also on a more secure footing. There are now more than 200 teams as Therapy Tails Ontario is back close to pre-pandemic levels.
That being said, the group is always looking for more dog owners interested in joining the organization. In addition to the new bereavement program, Therapy Tails also works in a variety of settings for its numerous programs, including schools, libraries, nursing homes and more. The group also provides therapy dog support to the Canada Border Services Agency, airports, and correctional facilities among others. Anyone interested can contact the organization via email at [email protected]
