My Nonprofit Reviews

February 1, 2022
Board of Directors
National Crisis Response Canines
RE: December 2021 Kentucky Tornadoes
To Whom It May Concern:
Please allow me the opportunity to thank you for the recent four-week deployment of your volunteers
to western Kentucky in response to the December 2021 tornadoes. In the face of such despair, loss and
destruction across our Commonwealth, we saw so much hope from how people responded to help our
community. However, none of those that have helped – and there have been so many – have had as
universally positive, uplifting and genuinely joyful response as the teams from the National Crisis
Response Canines received.
Our agency was on the ground in the immediate aftermath of the storms. In a matter of days, we were
embedded with the FEMA Disaster Recovery Center and working alongside their teams, the America Red
Cross and the consolidated local efforts. Early on Andy Garmezy connected with me and was simply
wonderful to work with. He and Cooper made such a positive impression everywhere they went. Mr.
Garmezy kept in regular communication with our team. He would confirm with us opportunities he and
the team had to visit storm survivors and participate in community support events over their
deployment. He actively sought opportunities to make the most of their time on the ground here,
including stretching activities across the hundreds of miles ravaged by these historic tornadoes.
Our team that volunteered to provide mental health support at the various locations saw the impact Mr.
Garmezy, Cooper and the other volunteers had first hand. They also benefited themselves from
interaction with Cooper. Here are a few direct quotes from our staff members from their interactions
with the National Crisis Response Canines teams.
"As volunteer clinicians, interacting with Cooper and Serene provided a mental reprieve.
More importantly, it was incredible to see how their presence at the FEMA site was a
rainbow moment for so many affected by the tornado. The National Crisis Response
Canines brought a smile to many faces during a dark time in the community."
"As a volunteer at the FEMA site - having Andy and Cooper visit the site was a nice moment
for all. The check-ins with staff made you realize the importance they have during times like
this. Watching staff members just pet him and the others and just talk - you could tell it was
something that helped them get through the rest of their day. We are ever so grateful for
the work Cooper put in, we know it isn't easy and exhausting. He is one thing that I took
away from all this as a source of sunshine and a help to the victims and workers of the
tornado disaster"
I had the good fortune to witness the impact this work can have myself. One afternoon while talking
with Mr. Garmezy about community opportunities for him to consider, a member of the national
response group from American Red Cross stopped by to check in with us on another matter. Cooper
walked up to him, sat down and ‘smiled’. The man stopped talking for a minute and bent down to pet
Cooper. Cooper put his paws on his shoulders and leaned in to hug the man. It moved him to tears. He
began to talk about how he was processing what he had seen as they surveyed the storm damage and
talked with survivors. It was a profound moment and I am so glad that Mr. Garmezy and Cooper were
there to help him.
I hope that no community ever has to deal with the loss and devastation that Bowling Green, Dawson
Springs and Mayfield experienced in December. However, I’m eternally grateful for the service that the
National Crisis Response Canines, Mr. Garmezy and Cooper provide. If there is ever anything I can do to
help your organization going forward, please let me know. You can reach me at jbeaver@lifeskills.com
or (270) 901-5239.
Here in Bowling Green, we are forever grateful for your response in our time of need and the lasting,
positive impact it has had.
Sincerely,
Joe Dan Beavers, CPA, MHA
President/CEO