Nine comfort dog teams from six different states across the southeast arrived in Barrow County Saturday in the wake of the recent tragic mass shooting at Apalachee High School.
Four people died in that incident, including two students and two teachers. Nine others were injured. Colt Gray, 14, was arrested and charged with murder. His father, Colin Gray, 54, was also arrested for “knowingly allowing” Colt to have a weapon, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Class resumed Tuesday in most Barrow County schools, except for Apalachee High. Paul Soost, the lead volunteer for the Winder deployment of the K-9 Comfort Dogs under the Lutheran Church Charities, said the dogs have had a major impact on students and teachers on their first day back.
“Every one of the schools that we’ve gone into … the teachers have commented, with the kids, it has really helped them come back to school,” Soost told WSB Radio.
Communities across the U.S. can request a deployment of the K-9 Comfort Dogs following a major tragedy or natural disaster. Some recent deployments from the organization include Uvalde, Texas following a school shooting there in 2022, and Charlotte, North Carolina where four police officers were shot and killed in April 2024.
“We can see the calming effect that the dogs have on people as we come in,” Soost said. “Sometimes people are more comfortable connecting with a dog than they are a person.”
Pastor Chris Singer, President and CEO of Lutheran Church Charities, said they have seen the Winder community pull together over the past few days as they visit with their comfort dogs.
“We would love to make all of this just go away,” Singer said. “And obviously we can’t. The next best thing that we believe we can do is be here. Be here with this community and to try and help provide some comfort, some support, and awareness that this community is not alone.”
The dogs, which are all Golden Retrievers, are expected to stay in the Winder community through Saturday.
The Lutheran Church Charities also brought its Hearts of Mercy and Compassion program to Winder, which sees heart and cross displays placed at the location of a recent tragedy. Community members are then encouraged to leave messages on the displays.
“Watching these hearts here in Winder – they are covered,” Singer said. “The crosses are covered, the hearts are covered with messages of hope and messages of encouragement.”
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