This edition is in honor of all the dedicated teachers, curious and hard working students, supportive parents, volunteers and Roxy dogs who love visiting the kids of all ages at school!

Have a happy Memorial Day, a GREAT summer, and KEEP reading!!

Did you notice our new Logo?

In 2017, Roxy Reading Therapy Dogs enters its 12th years as an all-volunteer, not-for-profit organization! For those 12 years, Roxy has worked hard to bring the remarkable benefits of therapy team visits to local children. As awareness of our mission and our successes has grown, the communities we serve have asked us to expand our programs to serve groups of children beyond our original commitment to literacy. We continue to work with leaders in our community to thoughtfully and strategically explore additional opportunities. Always remembering our mission:

To bring comfort to children, to enhance the experience of learning, and to enrich the lives or our canine and human volunteers.

Roxy is not just "reading" anymore nor are our programs limited to elementary school children anymore. For years, our teams have enthusiastically comforted youth of all ages in the Courthouse Therapy Dog programs, Doylestown Hospital Pediatrics, and recently, high school and middle school students suffering from high levels of stress. We recognize that our name does not fully represent the breadth of the heartfelt work that we do in and for our community. As a result, the Board of Directors voted unanimously to adopt the more inclusive legal name of...

Roxy Therapy Dogs

and the tagline,

"We Retrieve Hearts".

We hope that each of you feel that our organization is a caring, professional, reliable and envied part of our community. We are working to not only meet the current needs of our community, but are also working to assure that we can meet our obligation that future generations of children are helped by Roxy Therapy Dogs - because We Retrieve Hearts!

Thank You and Happy Retirement to Denise Delanoy

Congratulations to Denise Delanoy, Learning Support Teacher at Linden Elementary School. Denise is retiring after a 34-year teaching career! In 2007, after seeing dogs at Gayman Elementary, she observed the introduction of Cookie, a yellow lab, and Riptide, a golden retriever, to the kindergarten class by principal, Al Bernabei. “Hey boys and girls,” he said, “these dogs are going to help children at our school learn how to read.” One surprised kindergartner shouted, “You mean those dogs can read?” Needless to say, the start of Roxy Reading at Linden Elementary began with a chuckle in part thanks to Denise.

Over the years, she has commented on how many students have greatly accelerated their reading skills and acquired a love of reading by participating in Roxy Reading. Denise has had a long and mutually rewarding 10-year partnership with Therapy Team Leader Maggie Sivak, and her dogs, Cookie and Chloe.

We wish Denise good health and happiness in her retirement and we thank her for her many years of support and partnership with Roxy Therapy Dogs.

A Special Thank You from the Roxy Literacy Program Director

As the school year comes to a close, I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone for a job “well done.” The dedication to our Literacy Program from teachers, parents, children, volunteers and dogs goes wide and far through our community. Without you, we could not have achieved the great results we have experienced over the past year. We are now visiting over 100 classrooms weekly and impacting the lives of almost 2,000 students.

We have seen our program expand to:

A new class at Tohickon Middle School
Stress Management High School classes
High School Bereavement Support Groups
A new school, Kutz Elementary

Clearly, we are touching the students of Central Bucks in so many ways no matter what their age.

Let me end by sharing a few recent comments from students:

Seeing the dogs each week, and their handlers, puts a smile on my face.
I am challenging myself to read harder books now.
Each week I look forward to the day my Roxy dog and handler come to visit.
I feel like I have gotten better at reading this year.

So, thank you again for all of the support that helps to enrich the Roxy Literacy Program. I’m already looking forward to the next school year with all of you but in the meantime, enjoy your summer!

Phyllis Mikolaj

Roxy Therapy Dogs Director of Literacy Program

A New Chapter Begins for Roxy and Kutz Elementary School

On March 22nd, Phyllis Mikolaj and Anya became the first Roxy team to visit Kutz Elementary School. “The enthusiasm and excitement have been amazing,” says Phyllis (Roxy Director of Schools).

There are now 6 teams supporting 1st and 2nd grade classrooms but more teams are planned for the 2017-2018 school year so that more classes can participate. We are grateful to all who have helped us expand our mission to these deserving kids and their teachers.

A Special Message from a First Grade Teacher at Kutz Elementary

The impact of Roxy Reading on my first grade students has been astounding. They are motivated and excited to read each week! Even my most reluctant reader can't wait to pick out his books to read to Anya. The program has also helped their fluency and expression because of the repeated readings they do together.

Additionally, the program has motivated several students to explore the world of nonfiction because they want to learn more about the dogs and how to care for them. However, the most powerful impact has been in our overall classroom environment. Kids are more excited than ever to come in to school and count down the days until "our dog" comes in. Thank you, Roxy Reading, for being such an important and beneficial part of our classroom!

Alexandra Zucchero

Kutz Elementary School Teacher, First Grade

Another Story about Anya from Cole, a 6th grade student at Gayman Elementary

A Note from Cole's 6th Grade Teacher

There are many incredible benefits of the Roxy Reading program. First, the kids feel a sense of warmth, comfort, calmness and excitement to read to the dog and its handler. Through having an active and engaged handler it also shows the kids a different type of volunteering. Our classroom is a community and to have a dog (and handler) as volunteers become a part of this community enriches the lives of all involved. Overall, the program has been nothing but a positive experience for all involved and we look forward to continuing it in the future!

John Isaacsohn, Gayman Elementary Teacher, Sixth grade

PAL Night at Neidig Elementary School

Roxy Therapy Dogs were invited to participate in PAL Family Fun Night at the Neidig Elementary School, Quakertown. This fun night's theme was Reading. About 25 students attended and read stories, made crafts, participated in a book swap, wrote poems, and visited with Tess and her team mate, Mary Zucal.

Tess has been busy in April! That is Tess in the first photo below in the A-Day story!

Another Great A-Day with DVU

Roxy Therapy Dogs participated in the annual Delaware Valley University’s A-Day (Activities Day) on Sunday, April 23, 2017. It is a fun day with many craft vendors present, animals to see like cows and chicks, and the best milk shakes to drink! There are additional food stands and food trucks so visitors could spend hours there. In the classroom buildings, there were displays on many topics such as snakes, toads, and chocolate! Many people stopped at the Roxy booth area to learn about Roxy Therapy Dog Programs and to pet the furry attendees. Several students stopped by who have and have had dogs in their classes at Central Bucks schools. It was such a pleasure for the volunteers to see children that have had such a good experience with Roxy Therapy Dogs. We hope you got to visit with the volunteers for the day:

Mary Zucal and Tess
Marie Sankus and Skyler
Donna Doan and Buddy
Judy Carson and Jackson
Adrienne Gubernick and Macy
Joanne Loeffler and Ivy & Theo

A Local Company Gives Back to the Community - Please Like Weber Insurance on Facebook

This month, Weber Insurance from Langhorne, PA, is supporting Roxy Therapy Dogs, an amazing organization dedicated to bringing comfort to children and enhancing the learning experience with the help of some incredible canine volunteers! Weber Insurance will be donating $1 per LIKE (up to $500) on Facebook! Please LIKE and SHARE this post and encourage your friends to LIKE us on Facebook! #WeberGivesBack™

Upcoming Events

June 4, 2017 1:00 pm-3:00 pm "Pawtograph" Party Holiday House Spa on State, Doylestown

Come meet some of your favorite Roxy Therapy Dogs and have them sign your copy of our new children's book, Be Like Bud!

1-2pm - Meet Mila, Bauer, Juma and Bud

2-3pm - Meet Freya, Irina and Tess

Say Happy Birthday to your favorite Roxy Dogs next time you see them!

June

Boomer 6/11

July

Gracie 7/1

Bentley 7/6

Luke 7/18

August

Jackson 8/11

Maggie 8/29

Scooter 8/31

Welcome Our New Therapy Teams!

Janet and Nike

Nike is a beautiful reddish brown 2 1/2 year old Doberman who is so quiet and calm! Janet Stavrides and Nike have a neighbor who has an illness, and it was then that Janet realized Nike would be perfect for therapy because of how gentle she can be. They are interested in all three of the programs.

Sharon and Lena

Lena is a year old black English Lab. She licks a lot and is very loveable. She has a lot of puppy still in her! Sharon Schermerhorn and Lena are interested in the hospital program and literacy program.

Sheryl and Calli

Sheryl Moon’s Calli is a 13 year old partially blind & deaf toy poodle weighing 3 pounds. Sheryl is interested in Pedia Manor as she has helped and worked with many fragile children. Calli is a trained Emotional Support Service Dog who loves to sit in laps & arms, and she received her certification 5 years ago.

Alice and Keeper

Alice Sparks and Keeper are both sweet, gentle, calm and friendly! Keeper is a 7 year old golden/lab mix. Alice was an elementary school teacher for 40 years and they are interested in the literacy program and the court program.

May is Pet Cancer Awareness Month

Keep your pets healthy!

May is National Foster Care Month

Thank you to NOVA, court staff, lawyers, volunteers and therapy dogs at Bucks County Court House and across the country for helping children through stressful life challenges.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

Thank you to Central Bucks School District for allowing Roxy teams to help students through Stress Management and Bereavement Support Groups.

Roxy Therapy Dog's Mission

Bringing comfort to children, enhancing the experience of learning, and enriching the lives of canine and human volunteers.

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Roxy Reporter END of SCHOOL Edition