Dave Frew of Dunwoody, a promise honored has become a lifes commitment.

• Report rights infringement
• published: 14 Apr 2010
• views: 2383

By Carol Niemi For The Crier By all accounts, Dave and Stephanie Frew had a storybook marriage - a romantic courtship, an active social life, a beautiful home in one of the few secluded spots left in Dunwoody and international travel that took them to the far corners of the earth. It was on a safari to South Africa in the year 2000 that Stephanie first experienced the symptoms that would change their life forever. Back in Atlanta, tests revealed that she was suffering from a rare form of cancer called carcinoid. It was slow-growing, but terminal, and she had three years to live. Dave took charge of the situation, seeking the top specialists and the newest treatments. They continued to travel the world - now in search of the worlds carcinoid experts. What followed were many painful surgeries and treatments that enabled Stephanie to bounce back repeatedly and live almost 10 years despite her gruesome disease. During one long, painful stay at a Tampa cancer center, Stephanie was visited by therapy dogs. When they walked through the door, she lit up, Dave said. She hadnt been that happy in months. Upon returning to Atlanta, Stephanie was determined to bring the same relief to other suffering patients. She joined Happy Tails of Atlanta and began training so she and her beloved English setter, Ranger, could become a certified pet therapy team. For three years, even as her disease progressed, as certified members of Happy Tails, Stephanie and Ranger brought love and comfort to countless patients at hospitals, nursing homes and hospices. Few, if any of those they visited, knew how sick she was. You fake it till you make it, she often told friends. In 2009, with no more treatment options, she couldnt fake it any more, and in July she succumbed to the relentless disease. Dave was determined to honor the promise he had made to continue her pet therapy work. As a new team, both he and Ranger had to go through certification. Last October, they began their work. As might be expected, Happy Tails has been therapeutic, not just for the patients, but for Dave as well. Every time I visit a patient, he said, shes there with me. Ranger is happy to have his job again. When Dave puts his Happy Tails gear on him and he knows hes going to work, he gets so excited, said Dave, but then is totally calm on the way home. As Dave is nearing retirement, he has the time for therapy work several times a week. Ranger is particularly good with rehabilitation of stroke victims. Once we get the patient standing and holding onto Rangers collar, said Dave, Ranger instinctively knows how fast or slow to go and walks the patient sometimes as far as 100 feet. Ranger is also good with handicapped children. He will stay in the down position, said Dave, to encourage a child to crawl across the floor to pet him. Ranger has his own business card, which patients display on their walls. When he returns to visit, they light up the way Stephanie did when first visited by therapy dogs in Tampa. You can hear them calling, Its Ranger! Its Ranger! said Frew. Through Ranger and our work with Happy Tails, I am continually reminded of how blessed I have been and still am. For Frew, what began as a promise honored has become a lifes commitment. Ranger is one of 300 certified therapy dogs in Atlanta, but there is a need for more. A therapy dog must be at least six months old and the handler at least 18. A calm disposition and basic obedience training are essential. Anyone interested in learning more about pet therapy should call Frew at (770)393-0263 or visit the Happy Tails website at www.happytailspets.org.