PAAWS
People and Animals
Who Serve
Home PAAWS News PAAWS Products PAAWS Teams Great Links
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PAAWS
People and Animals
Who Serve
Home PAAWS News PAAWS Products PAAWS Teams Great Links |
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Meet PAAWS Founders:
-Cindy Ehlers & Tikva- Professional and Personal Summary: Over 15 years of broad-based professional experience with pet dog training and animal behavior including 6 years as a Delta Society Pet Partner. Founded HOPE Crisis Response after assisting NOVA in providing animal assisted therapy with her Delta Society Pet Partner, Bear, in response to the tragic high school shooting May of 1998 in Springfield, OR. Bear was recognized for her exemplary service and awarded regional therapy dog of the year at the Delta Society Service and Therapy dog Awards Banquet October 2000 in Boston, MA. Cindy Ehlers has experience with curriculum development, training and evaluation of animal behavior and animal assisted crisis response teams and team leaders. She teaches on-going 6 week AAT courses and has taught Animal Assisted Crisis Response courses throughout the United States. She has worked professionally since 1998 developing programs that specialize in providing animal assisted emotional support to children, teenagers and adults whose lives have been affected due to life changing events, crisis and disaster. Cindy Ehlers, her Keeshond Tikva and three other HOPE Crisis Response Teams traveled to New York City in a request from the American Red Cross after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. She has received national recognition for assisting Red Cross mental health in bringing emotional support and comfort to firefighters, police officers and other responders at Ground Zero. Training and Certifications: Lead Instructor: Animal Assisted Crisis Response Team Training; Founder and first President, HOPE Crisis Response; President and founding board member of PAAWS; Animal Assisted Crisis/Trauma/Stress Management Responder; Delta Society Pet Partner, Team Evaluator, Licensed Instructor and Speaker Representative; Certified Pet Dog Trainer. Cindy can be reached at: pawspet@comcast.net Ground Zero photo courtesy of Josiah Whitaker
-Diane Nichols &
Pepper-
Professional
and Personal Summary:
Pepper was the first dog certified (Nov. 03) in the
nationally recognized No-One-Dies-Alone program at Sacred Heart Medical Center,
Eugene, OR.
Pepper & Diane sit at the bedside of comatose patients who are near death (within 48 hours) and are
without family support.
Training and Certifications: Currently, Diane is founding Board Member, Recording Secretary and Webmaster of PAAWS, Eugene, OR; a Delta Society Pet Partner experienced Assistant Tester; and is trained with Pepper in Animal Assisted Crisis Response (AACR) for availability to work in settings of natural/human destruction (certification Sept. 04). Diane has been American Red Cross trained in cardiac care and water safety. She was a psychology major at the University of Oregon, and Head Teacher at Southwest Missouri State Univ., teaching 4 - 5 year olds in a University pre-school setting. Prior to that she spent four years as YMCA camp counselor and water safety instructor. In the 90's Diane was a deacon at NorthMinister Church; and a volunteer for the United Way and for Chicken Soup Brigade in Seattle, WA. She has many years of professional business experience in research, process development and computer applications in many fields including animals. Photo of Sandra Clarke (No-One-Dies-Alone founder) & Diane Nichols courtesy of Barry West Pepper photo courtesy of D. Nichols
-Elaine Pray & Zorr-
Personal and Professional Summary: Elaine and Zorr have been a registered Delta Society Pet Partner team since 2001. Elaine is a founding board member, and the Vice President of PAAWS. Active in the R.E.A.D. program, Elaine trained through Inter-mountain Therapy Animals. The R.E.A.D. program aims to improve children's literacy skills through reading aloud to animals. Zorr serves as a non-critical listener. Elaine serves as a way for Zorr to communicate by asking vocabulary and comprehension questions. Each child spends time with Zorr getting acquainted, 15-30 minutes reading, updating his/her reading bookmark, and sharing a treat. Elaine and Zorr volunteer at the City of Eugene Summer Camp Program and After School program. Elaine has been a presenter at the Oregon Peacemakers Conference, as well as a volunteer assistant for Delta Society animal assisted therapy testing. They are an active therapy team visiting Willamette Oaks Retirement Center and Sheldon Park Assisted Living, and have been holiday "carolers" for McKenzie Willamette Hospice. Zorr is a 9 year old lab / sharpei adopted from Greenhill Humane Society. He is 85 pounds -- twice as much in heart. Elaine has been a K-12 and Community College Educator for 25 years. She has a Bachelor's and Master's in Psychology and Education, is First Aid/CPR trained. Elaine can be reached at: praye@lanecc.edu photo courtesy of Cindy Ehlers It is with sadness that we write that Zorr Pray passed away on July 18, 2006. As recently as the day before his death, Zorr participated in a R.E.A.D. event at Morse Ranch Summer Camp in Eugene, reading with 6 children. He and his reading buddies enjoyed those quiet, special reading times that he was so good at providing. We will all miss his sensitive, sweet way of loving humans and animals alike.
-Ina Dunlap& Lucy, Ricky & Gidget- Personal and Professional Summary: Ina has lived in Oregon all her life, growing up in Klamath Falls, moving to the Willamette Valley in 1977. She has worked for Oregon Medical Laboratories since 1984 in the billing department. Ina is a founding board member of PAAWS, a local affiliate of Delta Society. She is currently serving as treasurer. Ina has three pugs, Gidget born in 1996, Lucy, born in 1997 and Ricky, born in 2000. All three are Delta Registered Pet Partners, Lucy and Gidget since 2000, and Ricky since 2003. Gidget is great with all ages, very interactive, but wants something going on. She currently visits an Assisted Living Center once a month. Lucy has her Companion Dog obedience title with the AKC. She is the calmest of the three, and does very well visiting a hospital and an Alzheimer’s facility once a month. Ricky also has his Companion Dog obedience title with the AKC. He is very exuberant, and loves to visit the younger crowd. He visits a troubled teen center once a month. Training and Certifications: Delta Society Pet Partner-Spring 2000; AKC CD with Lucy- September 2001; AKC CD with Ricky- November 2003. Ina can be reached at: inapugmom@aol.com photo courtesy of Tom Overly
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