MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Children's Minnesota received a $30,000 grant from PetSmart Charities to support the health care system's Pets Assisting with Healing program in 2020. The grant will help fund program-related expenses including staffing, pet acquisition, training costs, equipment and supplies.
"We're so thankful for this generous grant from PetSmart Charities which will help us provide a better experience to patients and families," said Joy Johnson-Lind, senior director of child and family services at Children's Minnesota. "As a nonprofit pediatric health system, we rely on the community to support us in offering unique services that make kids feel more at home and support them on their medical journey."
Pets Assisting with Healing is a volunteer service offered at both the Children's Minnesota hospitals in Minneapolis and St. Paul. The program aims to normalize the hospital environment by supporting a human-animal bond; encouraging conversation and interaction; and simply brightening the days of patients, families and staff. The program also helps motivate kids with their occupational, speech or physical therapy goals.
"As the leading funder of animal welfare in North America, we recognize the unique connection between pets and people and how it improves quality of life in many ways," said Jenny Aho, regional relationship manager at PetSmart Charities. "We're excited to support the Pets Assisting with Healing program that shows just how impactful the healing power of pets can be."
About Children's Minnesota
Children's Minnesota is the seventh largest pediatric health system in the United States and the only health system in Minnesota to provide care exclusively to children, from before birth through young adulthood. An award-winning health system, Children's received Magnet® recognition from The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and was verified as a Level I Children's Surgery Center by the American College of Surgeons in 2018. Additionally, Children's is regularly ranked by U.S. News & World Report as a top children's hospital. Please visit childrensMN.org.
About PetSmart Charities
PetSmart Charities, Inc. is committed to finding lifelong, loving homes for all pets by supporting programs and thought leadership that bring people and pets together. Through its in-store adoption program in all PetSmart® stores across the U.S. and Puerto Rico, PetSmart Charities helps to find forever homes and families for more than 500,000 shelter pets each year. Independent from PetSmart Inc., PetSmart Charities is a 501(c)(3) organization that has received the Four-Star Rating from Charity Navigator, a third-party organization that reports on the effectiveness, accountability and transparency of nonprofits, for the past 16 years in a row – placing it among the top one percent of charities rated by this organization. To learn more visit www.petsmartcharities.org.
SOURCE Children's Minnesota
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