Angel on a Leash by David Frei Page A

initiating and maintaining the relaxation response, pets take a person’s focus off of their pain and elevate their mood; and
    WHEREAS, children who spend time with pets develop higher levels of empathy and learn responsibility; and
    WHEREAS, therapy dog programs such as Angel On A Leash are deserving of recognition for their contributions to the health and well-being of New Yorkers; therefore be it
    RESOLVED, that I, State Senator Liz Krueger declare that October 2nd, 2010, is hereby recognized as New York State Therapy Dog Day.

    Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital is a great hospital and a great partner for Angel On A Leash. It is where the program was born with Westminster back in 2004, and today it is ranked among the top children’s hospitals in the nation. NewYork-Presbyterian is among the top ten hospitals in the country and is the top-ranked hospital in the metropolitan New York area.
    In the early days, when proceeds from the sale of the Westminster poster were earmarked for Angel On A Leash, the hospital hosted a great event each year for the unveiling of the poster. The previous year’s Best in Show dog would make an appearance and help with the celebration and photo opps. Josh (Newfoundland, 2004), Carlee (German Shorthaired Pointer, 2005), Rufus (Colored Bull Terrier, 2006), and Uno (Beagle, 2008) got a lot of attention and flashes for Westminster, the hospital, and the therapy dog program through the years. The Angel On A Leash teams who volunteered regularly at the hospital would also attend, making it a canine-rich day at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital.
    The highlight of each year’s event was the gathering of the children in the hospital’s Winter Garden in the ground-floor lobby. To see them react to the dogs was a treat for all, from the media to the parents to the hospital staff and medical professionals. This was a great illustration of the principles that make therapy dogs effective at their jobs—and what a bonus for Angel On A Leash to have some of the world’s top pediatricians on hand to talk to the media about what they saw every day with the dogs and the children. We can talk about the intuitive feelings and the feel-good stuff all day long, and while it makes sense and it works, it’s nice to hear the medical professionals talk about it in their terms, too.
    The event in the Winter Garden was often broadcast via closed-circuit television to the children in the hospital who could not attend in person. Then, afterward, the dogs would head up to the patients’ floors to visit them. The attention to detail, with Toni Millar, the hospital’s director of child life, leading the way, was amazing and made the event not only fun but also beneficial for the children and families.
    NY1, the New York television news channel, selected Angel On A Leash as its New Yorker of the Week in February 2009 and shot teams visiting at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital. The New York Daily News did a feature about the program, Animal Planet shot on location a couple of times, and George Michael’s nationally syndicated Sports Machine traveled up to the hospital to shoot a feature. Our Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital volunteer teams were visible in the community at street fairs, block parties, events in Central Park, and other media opportunities all over town. Delta Society shot a public-relations video at the hospital and even held a board meeting on site.
    A number of our volunteers were honored for their work at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital. Greer Griffith, Angel On A Leash program director, was honored at the United Hospital Fund’s 16th Annual Hospital Auxilian and Volunteer Achievement Awards ceremony in 2009, joining honorees who had been chosen from among New York City’s more than 50,000 health care volunteers from hospitals throughout the five boroughs.
    I am very proud of Greer, and we are lucky to have her with Angel. She