Dear Friends of Golden PAWS,
It is with great joy that we celebrate the move into our new home – The Ken & Susan Meyer Center for Golden PAWS and the successful closing of our Just Imagine Capital Campaign this past year.
We have never stopped imagining our full potential and we draw strength from knowing the Golden PAWS organization is resting on a strong foundation. Our mission guides our daily work; it guides the careful use of our many assets. Our commitment to our core values will continue to guide our thoughtful and strategic growth.
As we look forward 2023 and beyond, we aspire to do more! With a $3 million goal, our newest campaign for Mission Enhancement will help us to achieve our goals. This critical need campaign will support our growth as we expand our capacity to house, train and care for more of our Golden Retriever and Labrador service dogs, while providing a lifetime of support to those we serve.
When I imagine the future of Golden PAWS, I see a community coming together to help return a sense of normalcy and independence to our wounded warriors, first responders and to help children with life-changing disabilities achieve their fullest potential.
I invite you to join us in our mission…just be sure to bring your inspiration!
FOUNDER & CEO
Our Campus
KEN & SUSAN MEYER CENTER FOR GOLDEN PAWS
Our 2 ½ acre campus hosts a 30,000+ square foot training center that serves as a model for the industry. Designed for dogs, our building provides every asset needed to ensure that our dogs receive the care they require while enhancing their comfort and emotional well-being.
Every detail was considered based on a benefit analysis to the dogs in our care. With an intelligent monitoring system, features such as circadian lighting, auditory enrichment and climate control facilitate our ability to manage this incredible resource with every attention to detail.
Our in-house clinic will help us to meet the needs of daily health care for our dogs. A fully appointed grooming salon and dedicated dog kitchen provides dedicated space to ensure that our dogs always look their best while meeting the critical nutritional needs of working dogs.
A 7,800 square foot, column free area with matted floors guarantees that our dogs are afforded the best training opportunities. Our real-life training area allows our dogs to train for physical tasks in a true home like setting. A one of a kind, indoor dog park provides a fun area for our dogs to learn through play. The Gerry Community Education Center, staging areas, bonding rooms and high-tech security system promote safety and comfort for staff, volunteers and visitors.
Our Service Dogs
GOLDEN PAWS CADETS
Gentle, intelligent, and kind, our Golden Retrievers and Labrador Retrievers are the hallmark of our work. Beautiful beyond measure, our dogs propel our mission to serve.
We have always been committed to our philosophy of intellectual healing through compassionate canine service. Our dogs are adept at a multitude of physical tasks sets. Intuitive respect balanced with traits of high emotional intelligence enable Golden PAWS dogs to react to the tiniest change in a recipient’s emotional state and act accordingly. Our dogs happily encourage social facilitation while providing an increased sense of independence required to transition in complex social situations.
Our Dogs Change Lives...
Most importantly, Golden PAWS assistance dogs are always gifted at no cost to those they serve.
The Impact
CHANGING THE LIVES OF THOSE WE SERVE
To a veteran who served our country proudly, a first responder or a child in need, the impact of receiving a Golden PAWS assistance dog is profound. With a highly skilled, intuitive, and well-trained dog by their side, disabilities turn into abilities. Isolation ends and life can begin again. It is impossible to place a value on how our dogs impact the lives of those they serve.
When Golden PAWS was founded in 2012, we made a commitment to adhere to specific core values. We know, now more than ever that our dedication to the pillars of our values – honesty, integrity, safety, courage, commitment, and prudent stewardship of our resources continues to inspire us.
As part of the Golden PAWS Training program, each Golden PAWS puppy works in several different therapy assignments serving at-risk children and adults in Collier and Lee Counties. These canine assisted therapy activities are designed to create positive life changes, while providing complex training scenarios for our dogs.
Everywhere a Golden PAWS dog goes, they have had a significant impact on countless people in our community through compassionate canine support.
Our Philosophy
GIVING BACK TO OUR COMMUNITY
Golden PAWS hosts multiple acclaimed community service programs that are at the heart of our ongoing commitment to serve our community.
Our Children’s Literacy and Education PAWS Project (CLEPP) brings at-risk children and dogs together in our schools and libraries to promote literacy skills while providing character and citizenship educational programs.
The flagship Golden PAWS Assistance Crisis Team, or GPACT boasts highly trained canine teams to assist in times of crisis. These teams are adept at mitigating the effects of crisis-related grief, PTSD, and anxiety.
Our Special Operations And Recovery program, known as SOAR is geared specifically toward Golden PAWS veteran recipients who require extra support.
One of our newest programs, the Golden PAWS Teen Champion Program, welcomes teens ages 14 – 17 into our training center where they are partnered with mentors who lead them through a multitude of opportunities directed to enhance their sense of community and service, develop unique skills and explore the exciting and complex world of service dog training.
Why We Need YOU!
Your commitment to our Mission Enhancement campaign is an opportunity to help provide for our future.
We Receive
No Government Funding
We receive no government funding of any kind. It is through your investment, and those of other supporters in the community that we can meet the great needs of today.
Supporting Those
in Southwest Florida
We are a local organization, serving the local community – the only one of its kind in Southwest Florida. When you make a gift, you are investing in your community and those we serve.
To make a gift to our Mission Enhancement campaign, or to learn more about our mission, contact:
Jeannie Bates, Founder & CEO at (239) 276-7308, or Arden Vorperian, Annual Giving Manager at (239) 276-7297.
You can also email us at development@goldenpaws.org.