Something spectacular is happening daily in my daughter’s school. Since December, therapy dogs have been in the halls and classrooms. Brought in for comfort after December 14th, these furry, four-legged souls have brought so much more.
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Debbie Bosworth
is a certified farmgirl at heart. She’s happily married to her beach bum Yankee husband of 20 years. She went from career gal to being a creative homeschooling mom for two of her biggest blessings and hasn’t looked back since. Debbie left her lifelong home in the high desert of Northern Nevada 10 years ago and washed up on the shore of America’s hometown, Plymouth, MA, where she and her family are now firmly planted. They spend part of each summer in a tiny, off–grid beach cottage named “The Sea Horse.”
“I found a piece of my farmgirl heart when I discovered MaryJanesFarm. Suddenly, everything I loved just made more sense! I enjoy unwinding at the beach, writing, gardening, and turning yard-sale furniture into ‘Painted Ladies’ I’m passionate about living a creative life and encouraging others to ‘make each day their masterpiece.’”
Rebekah Teal
is a “MaryJane Farmgirl” who lives in a large metropolitan area. She is a lawyer who has worked in both criminal defense and prosecution. She has been a judge, a business woman and a stay-at-home mom. In addition to her law degree, she has a Masters of Theological Studies.
“Mustering up the courage to do the things you dream about,” she says, “is the essence of being a MaryJane Farmgirl.” Learning to live more organically and closer to nature is Rebekah’s current pursuit. She finds strength and encouragement through MaryJane’s writings, life, and products. And MaryJane’s Farmgirl Connection provides her a wealth of knowledge from true-blue farmgirls.
Cathi Belcher
an old-fashioned farmgirl with a pioneer spirit, lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a “lifelong learner” in the “Live-Free-or-Die” state, she fiercely values self-reliance, independence, freedom, and fresh mountain air. Married to her childhood sweetheart of 40+ years (a few of them “uphill climbs”), she’s had plenty of time to reinvent herself. From museum curator, restaurant owner, homeschool mom/conference speaker, to post-and-beam house builder and entrepreneur, she’s also a multi-media artist, with an obsession for off-grid living and alternative housing. Cathi owns and operates a 32-room mountain lodge. Her specialty has evolved to include “hermit hospitality” at her rustic cabin in the mountains, where she offers weekend workshops of special interest to women.
“Mountains speak to my soul, and farming is an important part of my heritage. I want to pass on my love of these things to others through my writing. Living in the mountains has its own particular challenges, but I delight in turning them into opportunities from which we can all learn and grow.”
Dori Troutman
Dori Troutman is the daughter of second generation cattle ranchers in New Mexico. She grew up working and playing on the ranch that her grandparents homesteaded in 1928. That ranch, with the old adobe home, is still in the family today. Dori and her husband always yearned for a ranch of their own. That dream came true when they retired to the beautiful green rolling hills of Tennessee. Truly a cattleman’s paradise!
Dori loves all things farmgirl and actually has known no other life but that. She loves to cook, craft, garden, and help with any and all things on their cattle farm.
Mary Murray
describes herself as a goat charmer, chicken whisperer, bee maven, and farmers’ market baker renovating an 1864 farmhouse on an Ohio farm. With a degree in Design, Mary says small-town auctions and country road barn sales "always make my heart skip a beat thinking about what I could create or design out of what I’ve seen.”
Rooted in the countryside, she likes simple things and old ways … gardening, preserving the harvest, cooking, baking, and all things home. While you might find her selling baked goods from the farm’s milkhouse, teaching herself to play the fiddle, or sprucing up a vintage camper named Maizy, you will always find her in an apron!
Mary says, “I’m happiest with the simple country pleasures … an old farmhouse, too many animals, a crackling fire, books to read, and the sound of laughter … these make life just perfect.”
Alexandra Wilson
is a budding rural farmgirl living in Palmer, the agricultural seat of Alaska. Alex is a graduate student at Alaska Pacific University pursuing an M.S. in Outdoor and Environmental Education. She lives and works on the university’s 700 acre environmental education center, Spring Creek Farm. When Alex has time outside of school, she loves to rock climb, repurpose found objects, cross-country ski on the hay fields, travel, practice yoga, and cook with new-fangled ingredients.
Alex grew up near the Twin Cities and went to college in Madison, Wisconsin—both places where perfectly painted barns and rolling green farmland are just a short drive away. After college, she taught at a rural middle school in South Korea where she biked past verdant rice paddies and old women selling home-grown produce from sidewalk stoops. She was introduced to MaryJanesFarm after returning, and found in it what she’d been searching for—a group of incredible women living their lives in ways that benefit their families, their communities, and the greater environment. What an amazing group of farmgirls to be a part of!
Nicole Christensen
Suburban Farmgirl Nicole Christensen calls herself a “vintage enthusiast”. Born and raised in Texas, she has lived most of her life in the picturesque New England suburbs of Connecticut, just a stone’s throw from New York State. An Advanced Master Gardener, she has gardened since childhood, in several states and across numerous planting zones. In addition, she teaches knitting classes, loves to preserve, and raises backyard chickens.
Married over thirty years to her Danish-born sweetheart, Nicole has worked in various fields, been a world-traveler, an entrepreneur and a homemaker, but considers being mom to her now-adult daughter her greatest accomplishment. Loving all things creative, Nicole considers her life’s motto to be “Bloom where you are planted”.
I am sitting here with tears in my eyes. Your blog was beautiful. It is wonderful to know that something so perfect is filling the children’s lives now, when something so horrible touched you all such a short time ago. My husband and I share our life with two dogs and every day they show us the wonder and goodness of a simple life. We laugh because of them, sometimes our patience is tried because of them, but always they show us their love and are there for us whenever we need a little pick up from daily life.
Judy, thank you! You are so right, there’s so much we can learn from our dogs. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
I have no experience with Therapy Dogs, but know that our local library has a program where beginning readers read to dogs. Most of the dogs involved seem to belong with/to older adults. It appears that kids flourish with a non-critical audience, that dogs like being snuggled and adults who don’t live with children like being involved. It’s a win, win, win. How could the people, who first domesticated dogs known it was worth doing? Think of all the people and pets who have benefited over all those years. Thank you for reminding us.
Kristy, Wow! What a great program. Kudos to your library and those involved for setting that up. Thank you for sharing! -Nicole
My dad was diagnosed with congestive heart problems and he went into a depression, sitting in his recliner, basically waiting to die. He was convinced he couldn’t do anything. I had recently been surprised with being pregnant and knew my dachshund, Crystal, would not be happy about there being a baby around. Solution? I gave my dog to my mother for her birthday. (Dad didn’t want a dog, he said.) Sure enough, Crystal became my dad’s shadow and I soon received letters about how dad had to walk around to find the dog and then fix the fence. Crystal made him get up and do things and he was soon back to normal. Except, now he had a little friend who adored him! That was one of the best gifts I have ever given anyone.
Becka, how beautiful! It’s me with tears in my eyes now. Thank you so much for sharing your story. -Nicole
I’ve had several dogs at one time: Beaubeaux, a male poodle; Topaz, a female cockapoo; and their two puppies: Bogart, a male and Toffee, a female. They were a handful to walk but oh the love and comfort they gave! When I felt bad, Beaubeaux would sit next to me and put his head on my lap as if to say "Pet me." Topaz would put a paw on my shoulder and look deeply into my eyes as if she could take the pain away. Bogart was a jester, always smiling and reminding me I would be happy again. And Toffee was named because she was so sweet. She would climb into my lap, put her head on my neck and let me cry into her fur. Dogs are very absorbent. I can’t thank them enough.
I’ll meet them at the Rainbow Bridge and it will be a very happy reunion.
Oh Adrienne, how sweet and insightful they all sound. I agree, Heaven won’t be Heaven without my fur-babies meeting me there someday! We only have one dog right now, but at one time had four. We used to call them our "herd" instead of a pack, because they also included the cats. Our living room used to look like Noah’s Ark after dinner when they would all calmly lay down together. Thank you for your comment! Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
How wonderful!
So encouraging. Dogs are really so special and deserve such good treatment from us. Thank you for sharing this story. So wonderful to see how God is using the dogs to help these kids.
What a great idea!! I recently spend some time at the veterans’ hospital and had my dogs with me. Everybody wanted to pet them. The older gentlemen wanted to hold the small one on their laps. Dogs can be very soothing. Maybe having a dog in the schools would be something that should be looked into.
I agree! I saw first-hand what an amazing effect they have at our school. It was really miraculous. I am so glad they will be staying until the end of school, but it would be great to have them all the time. – Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
What a beautiful story!
Thank you for sharing it with us.
I wish you could post it to Facebook or Pinterest where even more people can
see it…..
Dorothy
Hi Dorothy, Thank you! The link to the blog is shared on MaryJanesFarm’s facebook page, and if you would like to share it, please pass the link on. This story meant so much to me to write. Farmgirl Hugs, Nicole
Nicole, what a wonderful article. I agree that it is an amazing addition to the classroom for children. I also wonder if it would be beneficial with ADD and ADHD children. How great it would be if having dogs could help reduce or eliminate the use of drugs in these kids!
Nicole, Thank you for your kind words. I am sure that Dad & I can speak for all the dog teams by saying we are happy to be there. We are thrilled to hear your insights. Makes our day 🙂 Hope to see you soon.
Spartacus & Brad
Dear Spartacus, I’m so glad you and your dad got to see this. You and your dog team colleagues are absolutely the best!! –Nicole
Hi sweet Nicole!
What a wonderful post. Without a doubt, our furry friends offer so much to us all on a daily basis, never asking for anything in return.
Our library has the same program one of the other readers mentioned- At our library it is called Book Time with a Dog-where young readers are given 30 minutes to read to a dog. Because the dog does not "judge" the child’s reading skills, the child builds confidence and strength. Its is wonderful, and my own children participated when they were younger.
The power of therapy dogs is nothing short of a miracle, and I am so happy that Newtown is being blessed with their presence! How wonderful for everyone!
Hugs,
Laurie
Hi Laurie, I love hearing about this program! What a great experience for all involved.
The dogs at our school are truly a blessing. I also want to say that I saw how hard the handlers work, and I hope they know how we all really appreciate their efforts.
Thanks for commenting! Farmgirl, Nicole
Thank you for your heart felt story. My dog and I are one of the teams you speak of. We immediately jumped to action when the tragic event happened, putting my dog to the ultimate test of stamina working her 10-12 hours a day at the crisis center where we met " Dr. Jay " After ten days the emotional stress began to take its toll on my pup, even though her breed has a higher tolerance than most dogs. She needed a break ( she slept for three days ) and work needed me, but we promised Jay we would be there for the kids when his school opened back up. We are now there two days a week and I swear my dog knows every student and teacher. And the only emotion my dog feels now is happiness. As a resident of Sandy Hook we are committed to continue visiting "our" kids at the school and wherever else we can help. Will the dogs be in the schools next year ?? We do not know at this time. But if allowed back we will surely be there. All the dog/handler teams are ready to be there.
Thanks again and I will remind my dog tonight how special she is to the kids of Newtown.
Steve, thank you. You are a blessing! -Nicole
I am a therapy dog owner/handler and have seen first hand what a dog can do for children ,the elderly, and men in prison but most of all those of us who take the dogs to visit. It is a wonderful way to give back!!. I’m sure the handlers received as much if not more from being with the children. I too have tears thinking of your children.
Thank you for your note, Nancy. -Nicole
Being the human part of a team Nicole visited with in the Newtown school, I can attest to the magic and positive energy a dog brings to the school environment. There is always a smile when we appear, followed by many hugs and pats. But there is a quiet respect, as well, when we silently pass through a classroom whose students are at work, or when we sit in the reading circle with the students to enjoy a book. It is a magic that defies explanation. It just IS! And it is magic not only for the students, but for the adults and handlers, as well! We ALL smile. Thanks to Nicole for spending time with us and sharing the story. We all hope we can return next year to spread even more magic, but that will be a decision made by others and which we will have to respect.
Peggy, thank you so much for allowing me to visit with you, and for all you do each week. You all truly are a blessing. And your dog is one of the sweetest little souls I’ve ever met! Much love, Nicole
My neighbor’s dogs, Siena and Drago, are two of the therapy dogs that have traveled to Newtown to be a comfort to those children and adults. These dogs are so loving and adorable and have been a wonderful playmate for my own dog. Siena and Drago have also been "listeners" to beginning readers at my school and brought me joy every time they entered the school. Working in a K-2 school in the area we all grieved for the loss Newtown has suffered and thinking about that horrible day still makes me cry. Knowing two of the therapy dogs, I appreciate the kind words you spoke of these loving creatures. Thank you for acknowledging these furry heroes!
Karen, I know all about Drago and Siena! I have not personally met them, but my daughter comes home and tells me all about them! Please give them both a big hug from my family! Thank you so much for your kind words. -Nicole
I am touched to read all of these kind words about the dogs and their handlers. These dogs and their owners can work magic and truly help comfort those who have been through a difficult time. My mother-in-law and her dog, Noel, are a part of this special program. I love to hear the happiness and enthusiasm in her voice as she tells me the stories of her visits. I feel honored and blessed to know that my mother-in-law, and one of her dogs, is making a difference. She is truly an amazing woman! Thank you again!
Janice, thank you for commenting! It is my wish that all the handlers would get to read this blog entry, so they can know how much we all love them! -Nicole
thank you so much for your story! i understand how you feel and those kids are so special. i have two rescue dogs and when my husband died unexpectantly 3 yrs ago, they ended up rescuing me. they have brought such comfort and joy to me and i don’t think i could have made it without them.
Janie, I am so sorry to hear you suffered such a loss, but it is heartwarming to hear that you and your dogs "rescued" each other. I’ve heard that some of the dogs that were in our town are on their way to comfort Boston.
Thank you for reading and commenting. Hugs, Nicole
Thank you for your wonderful blog. As one of the Therapy Dog volunteers, it makes my heart glad to know that we are making a difference & touching lives. Arwen the Therapy Dog says hello!! to her friends at Reed!
Pat, thank you so much for your comment. You and Arwen have made such a difference to the Reed kids. Thank you all so much! Hugs from my daughter and I to your pup! -Nicole
Thank you Nicole for that wonderful story. My dog Kona and I are one of the teams that visit weekly. It is truly amazing to see the unconditional love between the dogs and children. It is the best hours of the week for us. We will be there as long as the schools want us.
Hi Sandy! I have heard lots about Kona from Audrey! Thank you for all your time and effort. We will never forget what all of you have done for our kids. Hugs to Kona from us! -Nicole
What a lovely blog post. May I share /put in a link to my Facebook page as I know many of my fellow teaching colleagues would love to read it.
Thank you, Ruta. -Nicole
Awesome Website, Continue the good job. Thank you!