Comfort Dogs

K-9 Comfort Dogs Return from Successful Visit to East Coast - Others Invited

K-9 Comfort Dogs Ladel, Chloe and Barnabas have returned safely home from their visit to the East Coast along with handlers Deb Kinne, Pastor Phil Ressler and Pastor Tim Engel. They visited several locations throughout last week. One of their visits took them to Holy Cross Nursery School in Mahwah, New Jersey. Everyone loved the Comfort Dogs and sent out an announcement to their church community about the visit and the work of LCC.

LCC would like to deploy additional teams of K-9 Comfort Dogs and handlers to New York and New Jersey. If you are a K-9 handler for your church's K-9 Comfort Dog, consider planning a trip and register with us. We are collecting names and available dates at this time.

Click here to volunteer for a K-9 Comfort Dog trip to the East coast
Click here to donate to Superstorm Sandy Recovery

Last Updated on Wednesday, 14 November 2012 16:47

K-9's Add Comfort to The Clinic at Trinity Roselle

LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs came together to give comfort to the hundreds of people that showed up for the 6th Annual Clinic at Trinity Roselle. K-9's Olympia, Ruthie, Tara, Wave, JoJo, Adeena, Star, Kye, and Addie with their handlers, provided comfort to young and old alike at this wonderful community outreach event. A warm meal, clothing, medical assistance and spiritual care were just some of the services provided to families in need.

Last Updated on Tuesday, 13 November 2012 13:16

K-9 Comfort Dogs Arrive in Queens, New York and Help Bring the Compassion of Christ to New York and New Jersey

On Monday, November 5, Deb Kinne from St. Matthew Hawthorn Woods, Pastor Phil Ressler from Lord of Life LaFox, and Pastor Tim Engel from Holy Cross, Portage, Indiana traveled with K-9 Comfort Dogs Ladel, Chloe and Barnabas to Queens, New York. From there they will be visiting storm victims in New York and New Jersey this week, returning home on Friday.

They visited Pastor Dennis Rockett at Holy Cross Lutheran Church and Nursery School in Mahwah, New Jersey on Tuesday. There are plans to visit area shelters and bring comfort to those displaced by Sandy. Please keep this team in your prayers for safety and open doors to share the Gospel.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 November 2012 15:32

Comfort Dogs Attend Thanksgiving Outreach Event at St. John, Island Lake

St. John Lutheran Church in Island Lake held their 2nd Annual Thanksgiving community outreach dinner on Sunday November 4th. LCC staff Marie Payes and Rich Martin with Comfort Dogs Tara and Ruthie were joined by handlers Tranetta Mc Comb with Star and John Fisher with Butter to greet the congregation members and their guests. The traditional Thanksgiving meal was cooked to perfection.
Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 November 2012 15:30

Teacher with Autistic Children Thanks Comfort Dog Shami for Changing Lives

LCC recently received the following note from Kim Rothstein, the teacher who works with autistic children in the classroom where Comfort Dog Shami regularly visits.

Ephesians 3:20 "Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think."

"This verse sums up what Shami has been able to do with my students, and how God works his miracles every day. If we trust and follow him we will sure accomplish many things. Shami has come to visit my classroom twice now. I have six students in a self-contained Autism classroom. Out of the six, four of them are considered non-verbal. In the two times that Shami has come, we have seen small miracles. We have seen students who do not interact with adults or peers, interact with Shami. We have seen spontaneous language from students who do not speak regularly. There are no words to describe the impact that Shami has had on our students. Her calm, gentle, and loving manner enlightens our students and reaches them where we cannot. Shami has brought out the very best my students have to offer and more. God continues to work through Shami, and it brings such love and joy to my heart. We are so grateful for this opportunity God has provided for us."

Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 November 2012 15:31

Butter Report

Last Thursday Christine took me to the fifth session of Healing 101. Debbie and I visited Crystal Pines on Saturday. Sunday morning I was at church. In the afternoon, Anna and I greeted families coming to the Confirmation Service. I spent time with Mary Jane on Monday. Thank you to Debbie, Cliff, and my special friend Otis for a fun weekend while Liz was out of town.
Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 November 2012 15:30

Comfort Dogs Star, Barnabas and Prince Attend Fundraiser in Portage Indiana

On Saturday, November 3rd, Comfort Dogs Barnabas, Prince and Star were all on hand with their handlers for the Hot Dog and Chili Fundraiser Dinner put on to raise funds for an additional Comfort Dog for Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Portage. Prince, who works primarily at Portage High School, will be semi-retiring at the end of this school year. The new dog will work full time at Portage High School with the counselors starting the 2013-2014 school year.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 November 2012 15:31

LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs and Staff Attend Beautiful Feet Conference

Last week LCC staff members Tim Kurth and Dona Martin, along with volunteer Lynn Buhrke, traveled to Concordia University Wisconsin in Mequon for the annual Beautiful Feet Missions Conference. K-9 Comfort Dogs Luther and Chewie, along with Comfort Dog in training Ruthie, went along. Over 200 students from Concordia Universities and Colleges around the country came for the three day conference to learn about mission opportunities all around the world. The Comfort Dogs were very popular with all the students who also enjoyed learning about the ministry of LCC.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 November 2012 15:32

Shami Makes the Rounds of Shelters, Hospitals and Classrooms

Shami visited the Women and Children's Shelter October 23rd. Many of the children were getting ready for Halloween and loved showing Shami their costumes. Shami sat with a young girl and her brother while they were working on their homework. They read Shami a book all about reptiles, which she really enjoyed, especially the cool pictures!

Shami visited Hinsdale Hospital last Wednesday night. The nurses were so thrilled to see her and she received numerous requests to visit with patients throughout the hospital. The five year-old daughter of one of the patients was so thrilled to meet "Luther's friend". She spent a good deal of time with her new friend and is hoping for another visit! Shami also found time to visit with several of the hospital staff members.

K9 Shami Hospital Shelter School

Jolene Bazon accompanied Shami to visit with the autistic children again on Thursday, October 25th. The children spent time petting Shami and then had an opportunity to play ball with her. The children were thrilled that Shami brought the ball back to them repeatedly. Looks like they wore Shami out! Shami will continue to visit with the children, as they have responded in such a positive manner to her visits.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 November 2012 15:32

New K-9 Comfort Dogs Arrive from Training in Dwight

The newest dogs soon to join the K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry arrived yesterday from the Dwight Correctional Facility. Rich and Dona Martin traveled to Dwight where they dropped off three puppies (Delilah, Phoebe and Susannah) that will be trained over the next nine months. They brought home Addison (Addie), Maggie and Zipporah (Zippy) who will now enter the final phase of preparation before they are ready to be placed in congregations. If you church is interested in getting a K-9 Comfort Dog for your ministry please contact Tim Hetzner at (866) 455-6466 or by emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Click here to schedule a K-9 Comfort Dog visit
Click here to support the K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry

Last Updated on Wednesday, 31 October 2012 11:00

Alex Brooks Leads Advanced Handler Training

On Saturday, October 20, trainer Alex Brooks took nine K-9 Comfort Dogs and their handlers through advanced training at his facility in Des Plaines, Illinois. LCC has arranged with Alex and trainer Patti Milazzo to provide monthly advanced handler trainings for all Affiliate Members in the Chicago area. The next trainings are set for November 11 and December 8.
Last Updated on Thursday, 01 November 2012 07:56

K-9 Butter of St. John Algonquin Checks in for the Week

Last Thursday I attended the third session of Healing 101 and stopped in at the Ladies of St. John's meeting to check for crumbs. I found women still milling around the tables of Narimon jewelry. Liz and I went to Crystal Pines on Saturday. We greeted quite a few people--a man recovering from a leg amputation, patients waiting to play their horse racing game, and a woman hoping to go home to her apartment in Chicago. I greeted at Saturday evening church and the Ministry Fair with John. Sunday morning I was there again after the early service and at the Fair. Cheryl took me to the 10:30 service and the Fair. I spent time with Mary Jane on Monday.

Last Updated on Thursday, 01 November 2012 07:57

K-9 Comfort Dog Shami Touches the Lives of Autistic Children

Last week K-9 Comfort Dog Shami from St. John Darien, along with handler Toni Bazon, visited a classroom with autistic children. The response of the children was so remarkable the teacher wrote to explain what happened.

Shami came to visit our classroom last week. I have five students that have Autism. Out of the five four of them are considered "nonverbal". When Shami came into the room, one child in particular stated more spontaneous language than he has all school year, as he kissed, hugged, and lay next to her. To watch a child unfold before your eyes, there are no words to describe that moment. God worked with Shami so that we could see another side to this little boy that we haven't seen before. It was incredible. I look forward to seeing the work Shami continues to do in our class!

We praise God for the ways in which He touches the lives of children and adults through the K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry. Toni reports that Shami will return to this classroom on October 25. Click here to "Like" Shami on Facebook

Last Updated on Thursday, 01 November 2012 08:02

LCC President Tim Hetzner Speaks at Lord of Life Darien

Tim Hetzner was invited to speak to the Senior Group at Lord of Life in Darien. They were interested in supporting the Disaster Response work LCC has been doing in the Gulf region ever since Hurricane Katrina. One member of the group has already gone down as a LCC volunteer following Hurricane Isaac. The group was also interested in learning more about the K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry. LCC staff member Rich Martin, along with K-9 Comfort Dogs Howe and Olympia, attended the event with Tim.

Last Updated on Thursday, 01 November 2012 07:57

K-9 Comfort Dog Moses Appears on ABC TV Nebraska Affiliate Morning Show with Pastor Keylon and Jaci Knuth

On Friday morning, October 19, K-9 Comfort Dog Moses from Christ Lutheran Cairo, Nebraska accompanied by Pastor Glen Keylon and handler Jaci Knuth visited the studios of the ABC affiliate in Grand Island, Nebraska. They appeared on NTV The Good Life and talked about the K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry, the work of Christ Lutheran and all that Moses has done since arriving in Nebraska just over two months ago. Moses looked wonderful on TV. Pastor Keylon and Jaci did a wonderful job witnessing Jesus and telling the story of the LCC K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry. Click here to see the full interview
Click here to donate to the K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry

Last Updated on Friday, 19 October 2012 12:34

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