EATON – Kathy Campbell and her therapy dog, Holly, serve patrons in the Eaton community by visiting classrooms, nursing homes and hospitals. Together the pair provide companionship, stress relief and comfort, but after working together for several years, Holly is ready to retire. As a result, Campbell is running an online fundraising campaign on RedBasket.org, a free crowdfunding website, in an effort to raise $4,000 to purchase a new therapy dog.
Having a degree in early childhood education and teaching classes at the local community college, Campbell knows the importance of therapy dogs and the impact they have when working with children and adults in classrooms, nursing homes and hospitals.
“The bond that occurs when a person pets or interacts with an animal is significant,” Campbell said in a press release. “They can reduce stress, provide someone with a companion when no one else will listen, and help people remember the good times with current or past pets.”
Campbell and Holly, her eight and a half-year-old golden doodle therapy dog, have had many experiences working in preschools, local elementary schools and attending college classes for future teachers to talk about the benefits of animals in the classroom. But with so many visits taking place each week, Holly’s age has caught up with her and she tires easily.
Campbell hopes to continue to serve the Eaton community, but in order to do so, she needs to purchase a new therapy dog from Domesti-PUPS, a service dog organization based in Lincoln, NE. To help pay for the new therapy dog, Campbell is running an online fundraising campaign through RedBasket.org, a nonprofit crowdfunding website based in Omaha, NE. Every penny donated to Campbell will be used to purchase a new therapy dog so that she can continue to grow her work with schools and other facilities. No fees are charged to donors when giving through Red Basket. To support Kathy Campbell with your tax deductible donation, visit RedBasket.org/647. The fundraising campaign is titled “Kathy’s Community Therapy Companion.”
