On October 29, 2021, Lakeland University took part in the Pawsitisim Boo-Bash to meet some of our community’s most prized heroes—our service dogs. “Pawsitism is a non-profit organization that strives to provide a family with a personally and professionally trained service dog that will enhance the life of a child with Autism and ensure success through continuing education for the family,” according to Kim McKay. The Boo-Bash event helped to gain more attention for this important program, which serves Sheboygan County area.

Pawsitism trains each dog for 18 months to achieve full confidence that the dog is ready to assist each child with a variety of tasks. “We stand by our abilities to train and certify a service dog to keep the child safe and will be a lifelong companion to that child,” said Kim. “The club is where students gain a first-hand experience in training the dogs themselves and having a role in helping to strengthen the dogs’ talents to go to the child in need.”

Members of Pawsitism LU work diligently to train these dogs and their efforts are paying off. “One of our dogs, Harry, is extremely close to graduating our program. So, we thought it would be an enjoyable time to get some experience and training regarding spooky costumes and events knowing that Harry’s future child will be around Halloween events as well.”

In addition to the excitement, Pawsitsim LU teamed with our on-campus pub to fundraise 15% of all drink orders. All proceeds received from the event will help strengthen Pawsitism here on campus. “We really appreciate everyone’s support throughout this journey and would appreciate if you could advocate for our program to anyone and everyone because our dogs are close to graduation.”

If you would like more information on this organization here on campus you can reach out to the organizer or the trainers: Kimberly McKay ([email protected]), Chloe Cunnigham ([email protected]), Emily Bird ([email protected]), and Hailey Degrave ([email protected]).