Local Red Cross chapter gains tiny mascot
Thor is a 12 week-old French Bulldog. He began his work as the Southeast Ohio Red Cross office dog on Tuesday.
September 5, 2019
The Red Cross of Southeast Ohio office welcomed its newest team member this week.
After wanting an office dog since he assumed the position as Executive Director of the Southeast Ohio region of the Red Cross about a year ago, Matthew Riddle adopted Thor.
Thor is a 12 week-old French Bulldog. His first day in the Red Cross office was Tuesday.
“Ever since I took over about a year ago, I wanted to have an office dog that could really do a couple of things,” Riddle said. “One, keep the vibes in the office cheery when there’s hard times with disasters going on. And also for people who come in here who are going through, you know, some of their worst days.”
Whether it’s a normal day in the office or a day stricken by tragedy, Thor is available to provide some comfort.
“Being able to see Thor coming puts an immediate smile on your face, I think, even if you’re not a dog person,” Riddle said.
In the future, Riddle is hoping that Thor will be a certified therapy dog to help people impacted during tough times.
The duo has to partner with a local training facility for Thor to undergo therapy dog training, which is a rigorous process. Once Thor would complete that training, he would be able to go on deployments with Riddle for the Red Cross to help comfort victims of natural disasters.
“So, let’s just say there was an apartment fire in Zanesville and they had 20 people staying at a shelter, I could bring Thor with me and walk him around and have him cheer people up,” Riddle said.
It’s a dream for Riddle to be able to deploy to a natural disaster zone, like Hurricane Dorian, and bring Thor along to help comfort victims whose homes are getting destroyed.
While taking Thor to a natural disaster to help out is a goal, Riddle said he’s excited to even take Thor out in the community to help with programming or just for visits.
Throughout the week, Thor has traveled with Riddle’s four-year-old daughter to daycare to bring a little joy to the younger community members.
A few days a week, Thor is the head mascot and office dog for the Red Cross, but he’s also serving as Riddle’s family dog. Riddle said his daughter is loving the addition of her “little brother,” as she calls him, to their family.
