The Chicago-area is trying to help people in Orlando deal with the tragedy by sending teams of comfort dogs.
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About a dozen dogs from seven states were headed to Orlando yesterday to provide comfort and encouragement to the relatives of the dead, surviving victims, their families, first responders and a stunned community.
Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Comfort Dogs comforting survivors in Orlando, Florida.
Gunman Omar Mateen killed 49 people in a gay nightclub in Orlando and left more than 50 injured in what has been described as both a gay hate crime and an act of terrorism. The dogs and their 18 handlers are from Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin.
In recent years, the dogs have been dispatched to OR after the Umpqua Community College shooting, after the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, and Boston following the marathon bombing.
She and other dogs, Marsh-Johnson said, were invited to Orlando by a local branch of the Lutheran Church.
People can donate to fund the dogs’ travel expense fund online.
The dogs go through 12 to 18 months of training for this kind of work, ready to comfort people in times of need.
“The dogs are great listeners, they’re confidential, they’re non-judgmental and they’re here just to love on people and help people process what they’ve gone through”, Trinity Lutheran Church said on its Facebook page.
Tim Hetzner and his team of caring canines are part of the Comfort Dog Ministry.
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“The dogs do more for those suffering than human beings can do”.
