The organization PAWS for People will be hosting a class throughout the month of March to teach your dog, cat, or rabbit to become a therapy animal for those in need.

PAWS (Pet-Assisted Visitation Volunteer Services) for people is a non-profit organization that provides therapeutic pet visits to those throughout Delaware, Southern Pennsylvania, Cecil and Harford Counties in Maryland, as well as Camden and Gloucester Counties in New Jersey. They provide visits to those in hospitals, skilled care facilities, chemical dependency centers, and even to elementary schools. The organization currently has over 350 volunteer teams consisting of one volunteer and one pet that visit over 150 locations.

PAWS has earned several awards and accolades including the Daily Points of Light Award, as well as the 2007, 2008, and 2010 Delaware Governor’s Award for Outstanding Volunteerism. Founder and Executive Director Lynne Robinson has also received several awards for her years of service including the President’s Award (given for having over 1000 hours of volunteering), the 2007, 2008, and 2010 Governor’s outstanding volunteer award, the Award of Excellence from the Delaware Association of Volunteer Administrators, the 2011 Cecil County Commissioners Award for Volunteerism, the 2010/2011 Woman of the Year Award from the National Association of Professional Women, and an award for more than 10,000 volunteer hours from RSVP.

This month’s classes will be held at the Harve de Grace Maritime Museum located at 100 Lafayette St., Harve de Grace, MD. The classes will be from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. from March 10 to March 24. If you are not able to attend the classes this month but are still interested in volunteering, you can register for one of three courses at the PAWS website. The Therapy Dog Prep Course is open to both PAWS and non-PAWS member and teaches the basic skills for your pet to become a therapy animal. Advanced Skills Training for the Therapy Dog is open to PAWS members who have completed the PAWS Standard of Excellence Test (STEX) at the basic level or higher and focuses on tricks to encourage people to interact with your dog and strengthening basic obedience skills. Lastly, Tricks of the Trade teaches your pet tricks to make therapy visits all the more entertaining.

If you would like to register for a class, donate to PAWS, or join the organization you can visit their website at www.pawsforpeople.org to learn more.