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Warrior Canine Connection enlists recovering Warriors in a therapeutic mission of learning to train service dogs for their fellow Veterans.
Warrior Canine Connection
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  • Home
  • How We Help Warriors
    • Mission Based Trauma Recovery
    • Program Details
    • Program History
    • Research
  • Service Dogs
    • Purpose Bred
    • Puppies
    • Puppy Cam
    • Dog Applicants
    • Adopting a Release Dog
  • Get Involved
    • Donate
    • Individual Volunteer Opportunities
    • Corporate and Group Volunteer Opportunities
    • Hold a Community Event
    • Become a Puppy Parent
    • Become a Puppy Sitter
  • About Us
    • Mission
    • Board of Directors
    • Board of Advisors
    • Our Staff
    • Current Job Openings
    • Partners and Sponsors
    • Financials
    • Locations
    • Contact
  • WCC Healing Quarters
    • Construction Cam
  • Newsroom
    • Warrior Stories
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    • WCC in the News
    • Press Releases
  • Shop

2022 WCC T-Shirt Artwork Design Contest

June 27, 2022/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

HOW TO SUBMIT A DESIGN
Be a part of Warrior Canine Connection’s graduation history by designing a limited edition t-shirt celebrating the Virtual Graduation Class of 2022! The contest is open to everyone of all ages and the winning designer will receive a FREE t-shirt featuring their artwork and bragging rights.

GUIDELINES
· Design should not exceed three ink colors
· Design for back of t-shirt only
· If submitting a hand drawing, please submit no larger than 8.5  x 11-inch size
· Multiple designs may be submitted

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: JULY 15, 2022
Design submissions can be emailed as an attachment to info@warriorcanineconnection.org. Hand-drawn submissions are accepted and can be scanned in and submitted as an email attachment.
Acceptable submission formats include *.jpg, *.png, *.ai, *.eps. If designed in Illustrator, Photoshop, or other software, we will request original artwork file if selected.

Once the submission date has closed, WCC will select the winning design and announce it on our Facebook page. We also look forward to sharing a gallery of everyone’s submissions this summer.

FINE PRINT
By submitting a design, the designer consents that his/her design is their own original artwork and that he/she has all the necessary rights and permissions to use included elements. Please do not use elements or designs created by someone else. Images that are not submitted in vector format will need to be recreated. Warrior Canine Connection reserves the right to make adjustments and alterations to the winning entry to ensure that the reproduction of the image is the best quality. The winning designer releases all exclusive rights to the artwork to be used for Virtual Graduation 2022 material. The winner will be rewarded with a WCC graduation t-shirt featuring his/her design.

https://warriorcanineconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_white.svg 0 0 WCC Comms https://warriorcanineconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_white.svg WCC Comms2022-06-27 14:51:212022-06-27 14:51:212022 WCC T-Shirt Artwork Design Contest

The Paw-fect Summer Music Playlist

June 1, 2022/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

The dog days of summer are just around the corner! As the weather warms up, many of us enjoy spending more time outside with our four-legged friends. Whether it’s going on runs, long walks, or car rides, we built the paw-fect summer music playlist of songs all about dogs—using your recommendations!

That’s right, the playlist below was created based on the songs you shared with us on our Facebook page—special thanks to everyone who participated! Check out the complete list below and give it a listen on Spotify.

Paula N.
“Me and you and a dog named Boo – by Lobo, Maggie’s Song by Chris Stapleton, and Ole Red by Blake Shelton.”

Taff Z.
“Jimmy Buffet – Somethin’ ‘Bout a Boat”

Alice B.
“Luke Bryan – Little Boys Grow Up and Dogs Get Old. ”

Leigh W.
“The Beatles fan in me says Martha My Dear.”

Sarah W.
“My robotic dog Poo-Chi liked Sunny Afternoon by The Kinks. He used to bark along to only this song.”

Joyce T.
“Joy to the World – Three Dog Night, Beautiful by Snoop Dogg featuring Pharrell Williams (clean version), and Old King by Neil Young.”

Suzi M.
“A Simple Song – by Chris Stapleton, “But I love my life man it’s something to see, it’s the kids and the dogs and you and me, it’s the way it’s alright when everything goes wrong. It’s the sound of a slow simple song.”

Sheila C.
“WCC Lucy likes Who Let the Dogs Out.”

Lynne H.
“Jingle Bells by the Singing Dogs! (Christmas in July?”)

Joy J.
“How Much is that Doggie in the Window by Pattie Paige.”

Robin M.
“Ol’Red by Blake Shelton.”

Kim R.
“Ahhh, Hound Dog by the King!!”

Carl-Lisa F.
“Cat Steven’s I Love My Dog.”

https://warriorcanineconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_white.svg 0 0 WCC Comms https://warriorcanineconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_white.svg WCC Comms2022-06-01 22:51:512022-06-01 22:51:51The Paw-fect Summer Music Playlist

New Faces at WCC

June 1, 2022/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

We are excited to welcome a new member to the WCC pack! Cathlene Kirkpatrick joined our team last month as a service dog training instructor based at our Healing Quarters in Boyds, Maryland.

Cathlene brings several years of service dog training experience with her; she worked at another nonprofit for five years before joining WCC, noting that she wanted to support Veterans and WCC’s No-Fail Mission.

Cathlene grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, and earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of North Georgia. She says she set out to be a veterinarian but changed her major to focus on animal-assisted therapy. However, during her studies, she concentrated her degree on canine-assisted therapy, focusing on canine cognition and assisting people with disabilities.

Military service runs in Cathlene’s family; both of her grandfathers served, one in the Army, the other in the Navy; her brother is a Navy Chief, and her brother-in-law is in the Marine Corps.

In fact, it was while Cathlene was in high school that her brother, Michael, deployed to Afghanistan, that she says she fully understood the sacrifices and service our members of the military make. As a result, she became very passionate about finding ways to support our Veterans and their care and is thrilled to have joined the WCC team in May.

“It’s been a lot to take in, but I already love all the dogs, they’re incredibly well-bred, and I love the dedication all the Puppy Parents have — it’s really nice to see that,” said Cathlene. “Even though we’re ultimately training the dogs to serve a Veteran, they’re already having an impact through MBTR during the process. That’s very much what drew me in.”

Besides being new to WCC and the state of Maryland, Cathlene was also recently married (March) to her husband, Kevin. So Cathlene will be “Cathlene Holloran” in a couple of months after all the paperwork is finalized. They’re both dog lovers and have a Lab-Golden cross named Pax, 6.

When not working, Cathlene enjoys cooking (Italian is her favorite), gardening, and photography (especially taking photos of dogs).

Welcome, Cathlene!

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New Faces at WCC

March 31, 2022/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

Please join us in welcoming two new members to our team!


Kristina Frick

Kristina is the latest service dog training instructor to join our pack. She is based at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE0) in Bethesda, where she meets with Service Members and Veterans and help run our Mission Based Trauma Recovery (MBTR) training program.

“Although I’m still settling in, I know this work is going to be absolutely rewarding and phenomenal,” said Kristina. “As a member of a military family and community, I’m excited to combine my passion for animals by providing support for Veterans.”

No stranger to the military, Kristina met and married a U.S. Army Foreign Area Officer, John, who gave her the opportunity to literally see the world. She moved 14 times in 24 years, but she was fortunate to enough earn her teaching certification in high school biology and taught off and on while stationed stateside.

Kristina graduated from Southern Illinois University with a bachelor’s in zoology. Her first job after graduation was as a zookeeper at the Houston Zoo. There, she led public animal shows with the birds of prey and educational demonstrations with Texas wildlife, exotic small mammals, nonvenomous reptiles and psittacine birds, and the general husbandry for the animals under her care.

She and her husband have two children, Isabella, 17, and Joshua, 14, and two Boasian street dogs that were rescued while their family was living in Sarajevo during one of John’s deployments.

Stacey Rogers
A Maryland native, Stacey joins WCC as a service dog training instructor from the Baltimore area. She started raising puppies for another organization (she is now raising her 10th puppy) and that’s what led to her interest in a career training dogs. Her experience as a puppy raiser gives her a unique perspective in her work with WCC and its amazing puppy parent volunteers.

“I completely understand what puppy parents go through when they pass the leash for advanced dog training,” said Stacey. “I was always the person bawling my eyes out before, and now I see it from the perspective of being the person taking the leash from the person crying on the other end. It’s helped me in my job to give advice and really relate to what they’re going through.”

Outside of puppy raising, Stacey worked at a dog daycare training facility in Columbia, Md., where she learned about dog behavior, body language and different play styles. Several years later, she began shadowing trainers and began leading group classes and doing 1:1 puppy training — experience that plays an instrumental role in her work teaching WCC’s “Boots” classes for puppies six months and under.

When not working, Stacey enjoys hiking with a combination of her four dogs, three of which are pets, and the puppy in training, which she is caring for until February 2023. She also enjoys participating in nose work with her Golden Retriever, Vito.

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Warrior Canine Connection Holding 2021 Virtual Graduation Ceremony September 25

August 2, 2021/0 Comments/in Stories of Impact, Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

Class of 2021 expected to be WCC’s largest to-date

Mark your calendar for Saturday, September 25 to join Warrior Canine Connection in congratulating its 2021 class of Veteran Service Dog Teams! The virtual ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. Eastern Time and can be viewed on WCC’s Facebook page. 

The ninth annual graduation will feature WCC’s largest graduating class to date, with more than a dozen Veterans and dogs included in the announcement ceremony. The celebration will include powerful Veterans stories, adorable dog footage, awards, special acknowledgments, and more! 

“Honoring graduates through our commencement ceremony is one of WCC’s most important traditions,” said Rick Yount, founder and executive director, Warrior Canine Connection. “Even though they won’t physically be walking across the stage that day, we are privileged to share their stories and achievements with their families, friends, and colleagues, as well as WCC’s dedicated volunteers, supporters and extended pack thanks to modern-day technology.”  

Following the virtual graduation, WCC will host an in-person, post-graduation celebration at its Healing Quarters in Boyds, Maryland—set to begin at 12:30 p.m. E.T. 

Stay tuned to WCC’s social channels for additional information! 

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Thank You, AmazonSmile!

July 29, 2021/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

Did you know you can support Warrior Canine Connection every time you shop on Amazon.com using AmazonSmile? 

AmazonSmile is a simple way for you to assist Warrior Canine Connection every time you shop, at no cost to you. You’ll find the exact same prices, selection and experience as on Amazon.com but AmazonSmile will donate 0.5% of your eligible purchases to WCC. In fact, to date, AmazonSmile has generated $22,839 in support to WCC. 

To turn your shopping into a force for good, simply go to smile.amazon.com/ch/45-2981579 to elect WCC as your charity of choice. It’s just that easy! 

Thank you in advance for your support! And thank you to AmazonSmile for its commitment to supporting nonprofits! 

https://warriorcanineconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_white.svg 0 0 WCC Comms https://warriorcanineconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_white.svg WCC Comms2021-07-29 21:10:042021-07-29 21:11:03Thank You, AmazonSmile!

New Face at WCC: Brady Wilks

July 29, 2021/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

We would like to introduce you to a semi-new face here at Warrior Canine Connection: Brady Wilks. Brady joined the team as its new external relations manager back in November 2020, while most of us were working from home due to the pandemic.  

In his role, Brady is doing great things to lead the WCC communications team to help raise awareness of the organization’s mission and the impact of its programs on Veterans with visible and invisible wounds.

Brady has worked in the communications field for years and has vast experience in photography, design, communications, music, art, and education. Brady graduated from the Academy of Art in San Francisco with a master’s in photography and he earned his bachelor’s in graphics and photography from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. 

With family roots in the military, he is enthusiastic and passionate about WCC’s mission to serve our Service Members and Veterans. Brady has spent years honing his craft and artistic eye and says he is honored to put his experience to use at WCC. 

“When we tell WCC’s story and share the experience of our Veterans, staff, volunteers, and supporters, we are making a positive impact to improve the lives of so many,” said Brady. “I also feel like I am doing my part to engage and celebrate the dedication of our staff and volunteers to one of the most profound missions I’ve ever known.” 

For those who visit WCC’s Healing Quarters, you may see Brady walking Rossi to or from work. Rossi is a WCC Ambassador dog and quite often the “cover girl” for many of our social media videos.  

When not working at WCC, Brady can most often be found spending time with his wife, Laurie, and son, Soren. Together, they enjoy playing games, creating things, going on adventures, and finding ways to laugh together. 

“I hope that what I do goes beyond helping WCC and our organization’s goals but to also be a good model for my son,” said Brady. “It is my hope for him, the Veterans in my life, my ancestors, my family, friends, and peers to be proud of what I do.” 

We are honored to have Brady as a valued member of our WCC team. 

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T-Shirt Artwork Design Contest

June 29, 2021/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms


HOW TO SUBMIT A DESIGN
Be a part of Warrior Canine Connection graduation history by designing a limited edition t-shirt celebrating the Virtual Graduation Class of 2021! The contest is open to everyone of all ages and the winning designer will receive a FREE t-shirt featuring their artwork and bragging rights.

GUIDELINES
· Design should not exceed three ink colors

· Design for back of t-shirt only

· If submitting a hand drawing, please submit no larger than 8.5 x 11-inch size

· Multiple designs may be submitted

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: JULY 14, 2021
Design submissions can be emailed as an attachment to info@warriorcanineconnection.org. Hand-drawn submissions are accepted and can be scanned in and submitted as an email attachment.
Acceptable submission formats include *.jpg, *.png, *.ai, *.eps. If designed in Illustrator, Photoshop, or other software, we will request original artwork file if selected.

Once the submission date has closed, WCC will select the winning design and announce it on our Facebook page. We also look forward to sharing a gallery of everyone’s submissions this summer.

FINE PRINT
By submitting a design, the designer consents that his/her design is their own original artwork and that he/she has all the necessary rights and permissions to use included elements. Please do not use elements or designs created by someone else. Images that are not submitted in vector format will need to be recreated. Warrior Canine Connection reserves the right to make adjustments and alterations to the winning entry to ensure that the reproduction of the image is the best quality. The winning designer releases all exclusive rights to the artwork to be used for Virtual Graduation 2021 material. The winner will be rewarded with a WCC graduation t-shirt featuring his/her design.

0 0 WCC Comms https://warriorcanineconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_white.svg WCC Comms2021-06-29 08:00:472021-06-30 13:21:52T-Shirt Artwork Design Contest

Partner Spotlight: The Patriot Fund—Providing Veterans with the Best Support Possible

June 3, 2021/0 Comments/in Stories of Impact, Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

The Patriot Fund has been helping to make a difference in the lives of our heroic Veterans since 2016. The nonprofit is on a mission to create a world where Veterans can return from duty proactively supported mentally, emotionally, socially and financially as they and their families re-engage into civilian life.

The Patriot Fund is all about connecting Veterans and Military Families to Patriots who can help. This year, WCC is delighted to have the Fund as a new partner in helping us train and place service dogs with Veterans in need. The Fund presented Warrior Canine Connection with a $30,000 gift in February of this year.

“We are honored and thankful to have the support of The Patriot Fund, an organization that is wholeheartedly committed to helping our nation’s Veterans and their families,” said Rick Yount, executive director and founder, Warrior Canine Connection. “This gift is not only a magnificent gesture of support for our programs, it’s also a testament to all this amazing organization is doing in support of our Service Members, Veterans, and their families.”

The Patriot Fund cites research on new Veterans, which found that nearly two-thirds said they faced a difficult transition to civilian life in one way or another. That’s one reason the nonprofit turned its support WCC, to help expand its available Mission Based Trauma Recovery (MBTR) training program for Veterans who can benefit from it. The unique program enlists Service Members and Veterans to train service dogs for their fellow Warriors. In doing so, the Veteran can also benefit from skills development in communication, confidence building, accountability, emotional regulation, and patience to promote an act of service while receiving a therapeutic benefit. Each dog can impact up to 60 Veterans during the training process.

“Thanks to Warrior Canine Connection, our American Heroes who made it possible for us to enjoy the comforts of home are connected with the dogs who are now Heroes keeping our Military Veterans safe at home,” said Major General (Ret) Steven Hashem, co-founder & vice president on The Patriot Fund’s Executive Committee. “The Patriot Fund shares the same commitment as WCC to do the right thing for the right reasons for our Veterans.”

The Patriot Fund will host the 2021 Patriot Invitational, its annual golf event and biggest fundraiser of the year to raise money for other deserving nonprofits serving Veterans, this October.

Please join us in thanking The Patriot Fund for its support of WCC!

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New Faces at WCC

June 2, 2021/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by WCC Comms

Please join Warrior Canine Connection in welcoming the newest member of its pack—Freddy Galea!

Pictured here with his beautiful family, Freddy joined WCC as its new part-time Digital Communications Specialist in April. In his role, Freddy will use his photo and video journalism expertise to help WCC share its powerful stories of using the human-animal bond to assist Service Members and Veterans with visible and invisible wounds.

Freddy is a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserves at Joint Base Andrews, where he focuses on air transportation and logistics. He also runs his own media company that specializes in video production work and is currently pursuing a degree in graphic communications at the University of Maryland.

He says he came to WCC for an opportunity to marry his professional media skills with a personal passion to help fellow Service Members and Veterans.

“I definitely feel like I am on the right team and on the right side of history here at WCC,” said Freddy. “It’s a great place to be and all the people are so educated, friendly, and doing great things. I get to not only see the impact these dogs have but also the people supporting and training them … it’s just great, I love it here.”

Freddy lives nearby in Frederick, Maryland, with his wife, Eliana, their two adorable children, Emma, 5, and Nolan, 2, and their dog, Toby.

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Contact Us

14934 Schaeffer Road
Boyds, MD 20841

(T) 301.260.1111
info@warriorcanineconnection.org

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Warrior Canine Connection
is a 501(c)(3)
Nonprofit Organization
# 45-2981579

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