A therapy dog that is a member of the Wagging Tails Brigade licks an airport staff member at Philadelphia International Airport on Monday. Tassanee Vejpongsa/Associated Press PHILADELPHIA — A pack of four-legged therapists got a break of their own Monday when they were honored at the airport where they dutifully work to ease stress and calm travelers. The event at Philadelphia International Airport marked five years since the 23 members of the Wagging Tails Brigade began greeting people and serving as therapy dogs.
Several of them were presented with birthday presents and a customized cake while passersby were invited to eat cupcakes and sign an oversized birthday card. Alan Gurvitz, a volunteer with his therapy dog, Hope, a Labrador retriever, offered their service to passengers at Philadelphia International Airport on Monday. Tassanee Vejpongsa/Associated Press Members of the brigade and their volunteer human handlers are at the airport for at least two hours a week, impressing people with their tricks and doing what they can to raise the spirits of road-weary passengers.
Dogs wear vests asking people to “pet me.” Alan Gurvitz, a volunteer with Hope, a Labrador retriever, said their goal is to make travel a bit more pleasant. “I like to refer to the airport as the land of cancellations and delays.
So people tend to be very stressed out here,” Gurvitz said. Jamie and Victoria Hill, on their way to their honeymoon in the Dominican Republic, turned to pet Bella while trying to stay positive after their flight was delayed. “It’s reminded us of our dog back at home,” Jamie Hill said.
“We miss him.” Back in June, Nancy Mittleman recalled, she was at the airport with her German shepherd Tarik while bad weather snarled air traffic. The two of them spent several hours entertaining stranded children and their parents.
“Soon enough, I had an entire crowd around me,” Mittleman said. “There must have been 10 kids sitting around him and they were talking to each other. And the beauty of it was before that, there were a lot of stressed out parents and a lot of unhappy children.
” Volunteers try to coordinate to have at least one brigade member at the airport to greet travelers, especially on days with significant delays or disruptions. We invite you to add your comments, and we encourage a thoughtful, open and lively exchange of ideas and information on this website. By joining the conversation, you are agreeing to our commenting policy and terms of use .
You can also read our FAQs . You can modify your screen name here . Readers may now see a Top Comments tab, which is an experimental software feature to detect and highlight comments that demonstrate compassion, reasoning, personal stories and curiosity, and encourage and promote civil discourse.
Please sign into your Sun Journal account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe . Questions? Please see our FAQs .
Your commenting screen name has been updated. Send questions/comments to the editors. « Previous Next ».
