It’s been my pleasure to meet some of the very best people
in my own backyard. Jaimie Miller is one
of them. She is an amazing young woman
who refuses to allow chronic pain or any of life’s cruel surprises break her
momentum. Jaimie is a wife, mother, Vice
President of the Ethel Fund, motivated fundraiser, dedicated volunteer, and my
friend.
Her sons - whom I refer to affectionately as Boy 1 and Boy 2
(though their names are Cash and Tristan) – are learning through her example
how to be good. Not just well behaved,
but truly good. They greet friends by
name, always rush to lend a hand, and cheerfully share their mother’s attention
with others. Even their dog, Shaylee,
serves the community.
Shaylee is a therapy dog.
She and Jaimie began their work together visiting hospice patients,
providing love and quiet affection to those near the end of their lives. Though important and immensely satisfying,
these visits can be difficult. To
balance the scale, Jaimie began to look for therapy work with children –
something upbeat and fun.
As a TDI (Therapy Dog International) certified team, she
searched for a Tail Waggin’ Tutors program, but found none closer than
Pittsburgh. Jaimie is of the belief
that, if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Her solution: she and Shaylee founded the
successful and exponentially growing program Tales with Tails.
Shaylee can be found at area libraries and schools, along
with other dog-handler teams, hanging out with kids and books. The premise of the program is to help
children who have a little trouble reading gain confidence by reading to
nonjudgmental dogs. Daisy and I have
recently joined Jaimie’s group and we’ve found that it’s about much more than just
books.
At Windber Elementary School recently, we met scores of
children, faculty, and support staff, all with smiles upon their faces. From the tiny preschoolers who gleefully showed
Daisy their favorite picture books to young Grace in fourth grade (whom I fully
expect to become President) who read a full chapter from a novel, we enjoyed
every encounter.
The day passed all too quickly, but there was time in some
of the classrooms to answer questions and even show off a few tricks. Students and teachers alike learned new
things about how to politely approach a new dog (always ask before petting, touch
first on the side of the face, not the top of a dog’s head), why Daisy has
curly hair (recessive genes), and that not all Rottweilers (or pit bulls, or
poodles, or dachshunds) are mean.
Daisy is rather young – just two years old – to be a therapy
dog and she learned that she could earn a treat by looking at the pages of the
book her student friend was reading. At
first, she’d sneak a quick peak and look for a treat; by the end of the day,
she stared with rapt attention until each page was turned.
Of course, I learned new things that day, too. I learned that my student has become my
teacher. Jaimie has opened my mind to a
new and exciting avenue to share some of my greatest loves: dogs, books, and
children. If you, like Daisy and myself,
would like to become a certified therapy dog team, check out TDI at ww.tdi-dog.org
for further information. To join Tales
with Tails, you may contact Jaimie at jacey78@hotmail.com.
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