PPH Northwest Region
Serving the state of Washington since 2022
About Us
The newest of the sites, Paws for Purple Hearts Washington has been established since late Fall 2022. We are proud to be located in close proximity to one of the largest military bases in the United States, Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Being able to serve such a large active duty and retired military community is why we decided to root ourselves in the beautiful community of Lakewood, WA. In the state of Washington alone, there are over 500,000 veterans to be served. We hope to make an impact on this community and continue to spread our services to those who will benefit the most.
In addition to our state of Washington, we are proud to serve the surrounding states including Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Wyoming. If you happen to live within any of these states, then our site, alongside our Anchorage, AK facility, are your service areas. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, a puppy parent, or finding more ways to be involved with our Paws for Purple Hearts facility then get in contact with us today!
Helpful Links
Our Team
- Cassidy Cooley, Senior Program Instructor
Cassidy Cooley is the Senior Program Instructor for Paws for Purple Heart’s Washington location and a Marine Corps veteran. Cassidy has been at Paws for Purple Hearts since 2022. In 2021 Cassidy graduated from Bergin University with her Masters in Human – Canine Life Sciences. She enjoys the opportunity to engage with Washington’s vibrant veteran community and the ability to expose the dogs in training to Washington’s fun and unique culture. In her free time, Cassidy enjoys watching medical dramas with her personal dogs and practicing scent work as they enjoy their senior years.
- Yayoi Jiko, Program Instructor
Yayoi is the Program Instructor for our Washington State Location. She moved from Osaka, Japan to California in 2022, and in 2023 Yayoi graduated from Bergin University with her Associate’s in Assistance Dog Education. She enjoys the opportunity to work with Washington’s great active-duty and veteran community and let our dogs fully experience Washington’s beautiful nature and culture. In her free time, Yayoi enjoys hiking to see all of the beautiful scenery the Pacific Northwest has.
Dogs
To see pictures of the important work (and adventurous lives) of our service-dogs-in-training, check out our Facebook.
TIMELINE
- 2022 Opened new facility in the fall
Our Partners
Chris Kyle Patriots Hospital
Weekly therapy sessions. Chris Kyle Patriots Hospital is an intensive, holistic treatment program dedicated to first responders, military Service Members and Veterans needing treatment for addiction and/or PTSD, and Service Member dependents for addiction.
Alaska VA Domiciliary Care for Homeless Veterans (DCHV) Program
Weekly therapy sessions at the VA Dom. The Dom Offers a structured setting that includes residential care for sheltered and unsheltered Veterans with multiple challenges, illnesses or rehabilitative care needs.
Caring Spirits, Serving Warriors
We Need Your Support
Donations to Paws for Purple Hearts can change a Warrior’s life from hopelessness to optimism.
Your generous, tax-deductible donation helps thousands of Warriors facing the visible and invisible wounds of war. Our Canine Assisted Warrior Therapy helps them heal as they help others – all with the goal of raising top tier service dogs for Veterans and active duty Service Members with mobility and trauma challenges.
SERVICE DOGS
We place service dogs with Service Members and Veterans facing challenges such as:
– Mobility issues. Our dogs can help with tasks such as: retrieving items, pushing buttons for elevators and doors, turning lights on/off, plus many more.
– Diagnosed trauma-related conditions (PTSD or TBI). Our dogs help by performing a variety of tasks specifically designed to reduce symptom severity.
Through our thorough application process, our qualified staff determines if a PPH service dog will be a fit for your specific needs.
FACILITY DOGS
We place facility dogs with facility managers who work in care facilities that serve Service Members, Veterans, and/or military families. They are also placed with counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, occupational therapists (and other specialists) who serve Service Members and/or Veterans and wish to integrate a dog into their clients’ treatment plans. Facility dogs provide invaluable benefits to the populations they serve, but they do not meet the legal definition of a service dog and do not have public access rights outside of their assigned facility. Facilities must serve at least 50% of military-connected individuals.
Paws for Purple Hearts is the first program of its kind to offer therapeutic intervention for Veterans and active-duty military.
Under the guidance of PPH instructors, Service Members engage with specially-bred Golden Retriever and Labrador puppies.
PTSD patient-trainers must overcome their emotional and affective numbness in order to heighten their tone of voice, bodily movements.
Donation Dollars at Work
With just $19/month gift you will ensure a future service dog has all of its vaccinations, training equipment, and of course toys to get started in their life altering education.
Your gift of any amount will be a tremendous help to our Service Dogs in Training. It costs $52/month in dog food alone for just one dog.
Paws for Purple Hearts Dogs are trained to the most exacting certification because our Veterans deserve the best, and thanks to you, they will never have to pay for any of our services. It costs more than $35,000 to raise just one dog to this high standard.
Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) #43093