Dogs and Their Owners Race to Support United Hospice

The Skyline Agility Club of Rockland County's Alan Dingman Memorial Relay Tunnel Challenge at Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park in Yorktown Heights has for a fifth year raised funds to support United Hospice of Rockland in New City.

This year, the proceeds will support UHR's Healing Hearts Family Bereavement Program.

Organized by Bonnie Laura Clauss of Britt Cavaliers, and Border Collies, Brittanys, the fundraiser, a canine agility tunnels relay race, was held in memory of Alan Dingman, who was one of Skyline's founding members. Owners and their dogs were in costume and ran a tunnel relay course.

Established in 1994, the Skyline Agility Club, located in Garnerville, is an active participant in the fast growing sport of dog agility. In addition to popular AKC and NADAC agility trials, the organization conducts several matches and dog agility seminars during the winter months. The club's staff of experienced instructors includes accomplished participants in AKC, USDAA and NADAC agility. Daytime and evening classes for students at all levels, beginner through competition, are available Monday through Friday at their indoor training site. Visit www.skylineagility.org.

Healing Hearts, a family bereavement program of United Hospice of Rockland, provides the time and continuity necessary to enable children, teens and adults to progress at their own pace through grieving and healing.  Designed for children and teens, ages 4 to 18, who have lost a loved one, groups are organized according to the ages of the children and their developmental levels.  

A group for surviving parents or guardians is held concurrently. Grief support groups are held on an ongoing basis during the school calendar year and are facilitated by the program coordinator, certified social workers and trained volunteers. In view of the difference in intensity and duration of grief for each individual and family, children and teens may choose when to start and when to stop attending. The average length of attending groups is one year but it varies greatly from a few sessions to 2-3 years.  

Healing Hearts is funded in part by A Little HOPE, Inc. and Athelstane Lodge #839 F& A.M. of Pearl River. UHR support groups and bereavement programs are held in the Provident Bank Hope & Healing Center, 11 Stokum Lane (off South Main Street), New City and are supported in part by The Jeffrey David Walerstein Fund for Bereavement. Anyone who knows of a child or family who might benefit from this program can call Sharami Kerr, Ph.D. coordinator of the Healing Hearts Program, at (845) 634-4974.

United Hospice of Rockland serves as a community resource for bereavement support, palliative care, and information about end of life issues, leading the health and human services community in improving the provision of care to those affected by serious illness. Founded in 1988, United Hospice of Rockland Inc., a 401(c3) nonprofit corporation, serves as a resource for palliative care, bereavement support, and information about end of life issues.

United Hospice of Rockland is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and meets the Standards for Charity Accountability of the Better Business Bureau, Inc. In addition, UHR has been rated 4-stars, the highest rating, by Charity Navigator.  UHR's mission is to enable patients with advanced illnesses to live in comfort, with dignity, and surrounded by those they love.  When time matters most, UHR provides care, comfort and improved quality of life to individuals and their families and offers compassionate support to members of the community who have experienced the loss of a loved one.