Parkland Therapy Dogs Get Their Own Yearbook Page

Katelyn Buck

This year's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School yearbook had a page dedicated to some very deserving good boys and girls. 14 therapy dogs who helped students and staff at MSD High School recover following last year's mass shooting at the school appeared in this year's edition of the yearbook. 

Parkland Yearbook

"After the shooting we wanted that yearbook to be perfect and had to cover as much as possible. This year, we wanted to give proper representation of our school and who we are now without giving so much focus to what happened to us in the past. The therapy dogs are the one thing from last year that is permanent and positive," said 17-year-junior Caitlynn Tibbetts in an interview with BuzzFeed.  

The therapy dogs provided unwavering support to students and staff since the February 2018 shooting that left 17 people dead. They went to class, gave handshakes in hallways, and spent time in the courtyard with students and staff during their lunch breaks. Their presence has brought much-needed comfort and joy when the MSD community need it the most. 

 

"There's nothing a dog can't fix," MSD High Journalism and English teacher and yearbook adviser Sarah Lerner told BuzzFeed. "I'll be teaching and in comes a dog and these big 18-year-old adults all the sudden become mushy 5-year-old kids and it's been such a comfort for us."

"Including them was a really good representation of our school and what we have gone through. Seeing them is something we look forward to every day. These dogs are going to be there until the last of us are gone," said  17-year-old Caitlynn Tibbetts. 

 

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Katelyn Buck