The Health and Counseling Department has been quite busy over the last few months, as on top of the newly opened Mary Lou Retelle Wellness Center, they welcomed a new member to their crew late last year. He gets paid in belly rubs and treats, and although he doesn’t have much to say, he is a fantastic listener. He’s also very photogenic and eats a very different diet than us.
Reintroducing Our New Employee
Allow me to reintroduce Elwood, the 2-year-old Labrador Retriever who was assigned to Kelly Sullivan, Director of Counseling Services, in November of last year. Elwood comes from the NEADs program.
Catching Up with Elwood
With few months on the job under his collar, we decided to fetch Elwood and ask about his first impressions of working at Anna Maria. We asked him questions like “Have you had a pawsitive first impression of working at Anna Maria?”, “Are they treating you well, or working you like a dog?”, and most importantly…. “How’s the food?”
Elwood decided that instead of answering any questions, he would give us a sneak-peak of the work he does. We won’t give anything away, you can find out for yourself how good he is at his job.
Elwood Availability Details Below
A Short History on Elwood
Elwood was named in memory of firefighter Robert Halloran. Halloran served in the Worcester Fire Department for 30 years. Before being assigned to Kelly Sullivan, Elwood was in the Prison Pup Program, which is a rehabilitation program for incarcerated individuals which aims to teach them responsibilities and skills through caring for a dog.
More About NEADS
NEADS is a non-profit organization that breeds and trains service dogs that cover a wide variety of assistance. This includes dogs for physically disabled adults and children, therapy dogs, service dogs for veterans who served in our military, and much more. NEADS functions through volunteers and staff who raise dogs and train them by gently exposing them to various environments. Some volunteers are full time, while others take pups in for college semesters or just the weekends. Explore NEADS
Wellness Services and Elwood’s Pawffice Hours
Elwood is available to all members of the Anna Maria Community. You can often find him at AMCAT sporting events, visiting academic buildings and residential areas, and in the Mary Lou Retelle Wellness Center. Feel free to go say hi when you see him exploring!
You can also find Elwood’s Pawffice Hours in the Student Life Weekly Updates.
Mary Lou Retelle Wellness Center is open Monday-Friday, 8:30am – 4:30pm.
Ben Milgate, Communications ’29
