Roxy Therapy Dogs President Receives Doylestown Rotary Club Award

Sharon Fleck, president of Roxy Therapy Dogs, Inc. (RTD) received the prestigious 4 Way Test Award from the Doylestown Rotary Club at its annual ceremony on April 25, 2018. The award recognizes volunteers who demonstrate promotion of the 4 guiding principles throughout the community.

Sharon Fleck

As the first volunteer president of RTD, Fleck has advanced the mission of Roxy Therapy Dogs by creating a better understanding of the connection between people and dogs, evaluating the impact and fairness of each program and project, building strong relationships with community leaders, organizations and partners, and taking extraordinary steps to turn ideas and requests into successful programs that benefit everyone involved.

“Personally, to receive an award such as this and to be recognized for doing something that brings me so much joy, is icing on the cake. To recognize me is to recognize all the dedicated volunteers with Roxy Therapy Dogs. Moving forward, it is my hope that receiving this award will encourage people to help broaden the Roxy Therapy Dogs mission by becoming a volunteer or a donor,” said Fleck.

Fleck was named president in 2016, following Diane Smith, RTD founder and previous winner of the 4 Way Test Award. She has been a volunteer with the organization for 9 years, also serving as the Director of Schools and a School Liaison. Since joining the organization, Fleck has instituted new programs and procedures that have contributed to the overall growth of Roxy Therapy Dogs volunteers and services. In her first year as president, volunteer hours increased by 5%, and in just the last year, the number of classrooms visited by dog therapy teams has increased over 10%.

Fleck established the high school student support program in 2015 which now sends therapy teams into all 3 Central Bucks high schools to visit with support groups and stress management classes. She also co-authored the organization’s children’s book, Be Like Bud, which features Roxy dogs and the characteristics which make each therapy dog special. Bud was Fleck’s greyhound, and as a certified dog therapy team they spent years together visiting elementary classrooms throughout Central Bucks School District as well as comforting children at the Bucks County Courthouse.

“Under Sharon’s direction, certified Roxy Therapy Dog teams see over 3200 children each week—and that’s just with the school programs. As a Rotary club committee member, I can honestly say that choosing the award winners is difficult because there are a lot of wonderful people who contribute so much to our community. So winning this award is not a small matter. Sharon has dedicated herself to serving the organization and the community as a volunteer in what could easily be considered a full-time job,” said Linda McCrillis, RTD Board chairperson.

Fleck has also served as an outreach coordinator for Animal Lifeline, helping with local adoption events and participating in outreach trips to West Virginia and Kentucky to help improve kennels and support spay/neuter initiatives. She is a popular public speaker who enjoys educating people about the science behind the human/canine connection and sharing how RTD uses that knowledge to better serve the community.

Fleck lives in Doylestown with her husband Jack and daughter Maddi who is the only junior certified therapy dog team with RTD and associate director of volunteers with the organization. Fleck graduated from Council Rock High School, and formerly worked as a Supply Chain Analyst for Church and Dwight Co. She enjoys traveling with her family and her favorite place to be is on the sideline of the soccer field watching Maddi play goalie.

About Roxy Therapy Dogs

Roxy Therapy Dogs provide a dependable support system for thousands of children in Bucks County, Pennsylvania by promoting literacy in schools, soothing fears in the courthouse, comforting pediatric patients, medically fragile children, cognitively and physically challenged children, and teens struggling with anxiety, stress and grief. Their unique therapeutic services are provided entirely by volunteer certified pet therapy teams absolutely FREE of charge for families, schools and taxpayers.

From left front– Pam Carroll (Roxy Director of Marketing), Pat Morrison (Roxy Director of Development), Sharon Fleck (President), Maddi Fleck (Roxy Associate Director of Volunteers), Diane Smith (Roxy Founder and Board Member), Linda McCrillis (Roxy Chairperson of the Board), Cecile Balizet (Roxy volunteer).
From left back– Catherine Refice (Roxy Director of Volunteers), Russ Weiss (Roxy Board Member), Denise Cronin (Roxy Board Secretary), Kendal Beck (Roxy Board Member), Bob McCrillis (Roxy Treasurer and Board Member).