Catherine Rupp of Elmhurst never had an animal growing up, but for the past five years she’s touched the lives of those who could use a visit from man’s best friend.
Every week since 2005, Rupp and her 7-year-old Australian shepherd Annie have visited patients at Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, mostly transitional care patients who are undergoing physical rehabilitation.
“It’s really amazing how quickly their mood changes ... bringing a dog in cheers them up immediately,” she said. “My dog Annie, in particular, she has a very sweet face that puts your whole body at ease.”
Rupp remembers one instance when Annie’s face was made someone’s day.
“One man in particular who was bedridden .... I’m not kidding within two or three minutes his mood was 180 degrees ... after a few minutes I was crying as I left the room because of what she was able to do for him,” she said. “We’re there to help them forget about their problems for a few minutes.”
Annie also accompanies Rupp on trips to Briar Glen Middle School in Glen Ellyn as part of the R.E.A.D. program, which helps children learn to read.
“They’ve found that children that read out loud become better readers, and children who read to a dog get better faster because they’re reading to somebody who’s not judgmental,” she said. “It motivates them to practice the book to read to the dog.”
Annie isn’t the only therapy dog in the family though. Twice a month, Rupp takes her 8-year-old Australian shepherd Jenna, who Rupp describes as the more “athletic one,” to Mooseheart Child City & School near Batavia.
In addition to her two certified therapy dogs, Rupp also has a 4-month-old yellow Labrador retriever named Rufus, a service puppy she will foster over the next year for the Canine Companions for Independence.
Rupp and her dogs are well known. In 2009, the tax manager at DeVry Inc. received the city of Elmhurst Character Counts Service Award for recognition of outstanding service.
Notable
For five years, Catherine Rupp of Elmhurst has visited people in need with her two Australian Shepherds Annie and Jenna.
Quotable
"He told me about his dogs when he was growing up, the more he talked the happier he got with those stories ... she would put her head underneath his hand, it was so nice."
Philosophy
"I have two missions, one is to help people heal themselves, with the children to boost their confidence through exposure to the dog."
Favorites
Thing about dogs? "Their ability to immediately give you unconditional love and affection."
Your dogs' doggie treat? String cheese
Book? "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
