spotlight
J
ARC, a nonprofit organi-
zation serving adults with
developmental disabilities
in the Metro Detroit area, hosted
Dogs & Donuts, an event for the
people they serve that involved
interaction with therapy dogs
and eating delicious donuts, on
the evening of July 27.
The event was created with
the help of JARC volunteer
Susan Tauber to offer persons
served an opportunity to receive
attention and comfort from the
trained animals. Interaction with
therapy dogs has been found to
reduce stress and enhance social
interaction for some individuals.
The dogs present at the event
included one who was blind,
which was especially interesting
for some people JARC serves
who have visual impairments.
The event was held outside
at a JARC home in Bloomfield
Hills and was attended by 60
people JARC serves. There
was a lot of excitement and
many smiles by JARC persons
served as they interacted with
the therapy dogs and enjoyed
donuts. JARC plans to continue
visits from some of the dogs in
their homes in the future with
interested volunteers.
JARC
Dogs &
Donuts
Event
PHOTOS COURTESY OF JARC
Cody the therapy
dog looked like
he was having
fun at the event.
Jonathan, a
person served
by JARC, and
Cody the
therapy dog.
Lori, a person
served by
JARC, and
Pearl the
therapy dog
Ivan, Renee and Carrie,
all persons served by
JARC, alongside Pearl
the therapy dog and
her owner Susan
SEPTEMBER 22 • 2022 | 103