Newtown Comfort Dog Support Project

In February of 2018, my grandfather had a major stroke. Because of this, he was in the Lutheran Home in Southbury, CT for about 3 weeks during his recovery. During the 3 week recovery period, my family and I would periodically go visit him.  Because we knew how much my grandfather loved our dog, Misha, we sometimes took him with us to the Lutheran Home. Not only did our dog Misha put a huge smile on my grandfather’s face, but the faces of the other people near him just lit up when they saw Misha. I know that a lot of seniors or badly injured people that are in homes like this do not have family members to visit them regularly, or a pet to come and cheer them up. I would like to bring this joy and comfort to more people out there like my grandfather.

Through all of the connections we have made throughout this project, we were led to Maggie and the Comfort Dog Ministry in Newtown, CT. Maggie is a nationally known comfort dog. She travels all around the country to meet people in situations where she is needed. In addition to emergencies like shootings or natural disasters, she makes lots of local visits to schools, churches, and nursing homes like the one my grandfather was in. Of course, all of Maggie’s trips come with various expenses. This is why I have created this fundraising effort, to help offset the costs of her trips and to help bring Maggie’s services to more people around the state and around the country.

I have created a GoFundMe campaign to help support Maggie and the wonderful work she and her handlers do. My goal is to raise a minimum of $2,000 and more if I can to support Maggie’s program, Newtown Comfort, which is an affiliate of the Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry. The amazing services that Newtown Comfort and Maggie bring to the community were born from the terrible tragedy of the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012. This inspired Christ The King Lutheran Church to adopt Maggie from the Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry and create Newtown Comfort as a ministry of their church. Throughout the past half a decade, Newtown Comfort and Maggie have touched so many lives in our community and around the country. Please support our cause and help them continue the incredible work they are doing.

You can learn more about Maggie at www.facebook.com/MaggieComfortDog and on Instagram @lcck9maggie.