THANK YOU FOR A GREAT 2019!
Year in Review
2019 was a great year for Paws for Purple Hearts and our Warriors! We are excited to share with you the accomplishments our staff, volunteers, and future service dogs have made this year.
2891 hours
Canine Assisted Warrior Therapy
CAWT
Canine Assisted Warrior Therapy® (CAWT) enlists the help of Warriors to train lifelong service companions for other comrades in need. With the help of our service dog trainers and mental health professionals, this program gently guides Warriors to learn once again how to connect with others, both dogs and humans.
36 Service Dogs
Provided Canine Assisted Warrior Therapy during their training
Service Dogs
Just like a Warrior, a PPH dog is truly born to serve. In 2019, 36 service-dogs-in-training made an impact on Veterans and active duty Service Members though our CAWT program.
37 Dogs Placed
30 Service Dogs, 3 Facility Dogs, and 4 Specialist Dogs
Dogs Placed
We also have placed a total of 37 dogs to date. Our two most recent service dogs graduated in December, 2019. Buck and Autumn trained with their Warriors in PPH Ruther Glen, Virginia and are now living life with their new human companions. Both of these service dogs will help their Warriors live a more independent life and help them along the path to recovery.
400 Warriors
Unique Individual Warriors Served
Warriors Served
CAWT sessions across all five of our regions have allowed us to reach 400 unique individual Warriors in 2019 alone. This number has almost doubled since 2018 when we reached 255 Warriors and tripled since we reached 147 Warriors in 2017. To date, Paws for Purple Hearts has served 863 Warriors through this ground-breaking therapy program and will continue reaching more and more every year.
404 Hours of Social Therapy
Social Therapy is another type of service we offer our Warriors. While PPH service dogs are in training, our program instructors take them to socialize with Veterans and Service Members at VA hospitals, active military bases, and other entities serving Warriors. Not only does this serve as a perfect training opportunity for our dogs, but a quick form of therapy and stress relief for the Warriors we interact with.
404 Hours
404 Hours of Social Therapy
27789 Volunteer Hours
27,789 Volunteer Hours
27,789 Volunteer Hours
Our volunteers are a huge factor in the success of our programs and in raising our future service dogs. Puppy Parents are volunteers who take home and care for our dogs during week nights and weekends to give them a glimpse of what life after training will be like. These special volunteers come to bi-weekly trainings, care for our dogs, and keep up with their service dog training- all on a volunteer basis. Our general volunteers come in during business hours to spend time playing with our dogs, clean our facilities, and assist with special events. Every one of the 27,789 hours volunteers spent with us in 2019 had a positive impact on our mission to improve the lives of Warriors.
We couldn’t do it without you!
It’s been almost a decade since Paws for Purple Hearts began and became dedicated to improving the lives of our nation’s Warriors. 2019 was a great year for our organization and the Warriors we serve, but none of it would be possible without our supporters. Paws for Purple Hearts is a nonprofit organization meaning all of our funding and support comes from generous donors and volunteers.
