Say hello and give a pat on the head to my two new friends, Claudia and Winnie. They are therapy dogs that spread comfort and joy throughout northwest Ohio hospitals and beyond.
Their backgrounds may be different but their mission to console the lonely and hopeless are the same.
Marty Grohnke is Winnie’s owner who escorts her on all therapy visitations. Claudia is owned by Trinity Lutheran Church and School in Toledo and has several handlers. Both dogs are certified as therapy dogs, which is a mandatory requirement for hospital visits.
Grohnke is a retired physical therapy assistant who decided to give back to the community with a therapy dog. After only a year, Winnie has won the hearts of many patients at Mercy Health St. Anne Hospital and Kingston of Sylvania. She is a lovable Miniature Australian Shepherd who is 6 years old. Grohnke enjoys the smiles Winnie brings to patients, their families, and the staff.
Trinity Lutheran Church in Toledo is a member of the national Lutheran Church Charities K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry that was established in August, 2008. All dogs in the church program are purebred Golden Retrievers. Comfort dogs and handlers are all trained at their Northbrook, Barrington, and East Dundee, Ill., facilities.