by Asher (Comfort dog) and Maree Garchow
Last Monday we carefully prepared for our visit, my caregiver Maree wanted me to look my best as this was our first visit to Forrestal School. We quickly ran through our pre visit routine: breakfast, grooming, and backpack supply check. That completed I was ready for my first visit to Forrestal school.
I vested eagerly anticipating my visit with the children and meeting with Pastor. We had a prayer before a brief get to know you session with the school principal and deputy principal. The principal explained that Forrestal school is located on federal land amongst military housing. It is K-3 and has 435 students. About 20 percent of the students come from military families. The rest come from the surrounding area.
The principal explained she had announced we would be visiting this morning and the children would be expecting us. The plan was to walk down the hallways accompanied by the principal and say a brief hello to all the children we met along the way. On our walk we met children coming out of classrooms and children in lines. The Principal stopped and introduced us and let the children know they could pet me. Some were excited to pet me and told us about their dog at home. Others were hesitant and needed to be encouraged to touch me on my back, far away from my head and teeth.
We walked the entire length of the school, about a mile of hallways dotted with colorful art projects. As we turned back towards the office we encountered older children with their teacher who were changing classes for library or art. They were also excited to meet me. We noticed several pairs of children carrying cases of water. When we asked about it the principal explained that the school had to rely on bottled water because all the school pipes contained lead. She said she looks forward to a new school building sometime in the future.
We ended our visit with a photo op and a warm invitation to come back. The principal even wrote my name on a water dish for me when I return. What a great visit!