Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/22108
shooting, a CUTA member called Estep to suggest the services of the Hope Animal- Assisted Crisis Response orga- nization (hopeaacr.org). Estep quickly contacted the group, learning that the national 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization could provide teams of trained thera- py dogs with trained counselor handlers to offer comfort and encouragement to those im- pacted by crisis. In coordination with Principal Armstrong and the Carlsbad Unified School District’s crisis coordinator Keith Holly, Estep arranged to provide Hope teams at the school beginning the week fol- lowing the shooting. For a period of two weeks, the CUTA-sponsored Hope teams of dogs and handlers were available during recess and lunch breaks to provide wordless warmth, quiet com- fort and a brief respite for stu- dents and staff at the school. “The first day, the dogs and handlers were positioned in an athletic field nearby the play- ground shooting scene. But slowly and sensitively, they mi- grated, so that by the end of the day we had reclaimed our ‘space.’ It was magical,” says Armstrong. In addition to coordinating BELOW: CUTA President Sally Estep (kneel- ing) rewards trained therapy dog Izzy after a hard day at work while Susan Harris looks on. the Hope teams’ visits, CUTA also worked with the school’s PTA members, who provided breakfast for two weeks follow- ing the shooting incident. CTA’s Traumatic Events Assis- tance and Management Cadre staff provided backup and as- sistance to Estep and other CUTA members during the first days fol- lowing the event, with periodic follow-up in subsequent weeks. “It was amazing to see how our association stood up for us, making sure we got exactly what we needed,” says Kelly third-grade teacher Taryn Webb. Second-grade teacher Jana Scott says, “The as- sociation’s support by providing the Hope teams was so thought- ful. The kids loved the dogs, and it made it so much easier for us to go back out onto that play- ground. I don’t have words to express my thanks to Sally Estep and CUTA for helping make such a frightening experience more man- ageable.” BILL GUY DECEMBER 2010 • JANUARY 2011 | www.cta.org 29 CTA photo by Alva Rivera