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The Therapy Dogs Of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

There's at least one page of this year's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School yearbook that brings smiles. It's photos of the faces of the 14 therapy dogs brought into the school since last year's shooting. The dogs seem to smile back. A couple wore bow ties. It's been a year of recovery at the school, marked by rough patches. Two teens in Parkland who lived through the shootings took their lives this year. There were other school shootings around the country to bring back nightmares and the first anniversary of the shootings that killed so many classmates and staff.

The therapy dogs were part of the campus. They strolled into classes, were there for a hug, brought a sense of comfort and calm to students and staff. Caitlynn Tibbetts, the yearbook's editor, told BuzzFeed, including them was a really good representation of our school and what we've gone through. Seeing them is something we look forward to every day. These dogs are going to be there until the last of us are gone.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Scott Simon
Scott Simon is one of America's most admired writers and broadcasters. He is the host of Weekend Edition Saturday and is one of the hosts of NPR's morning news podcast Up First. He has reported from all fifty states, five continents, and ten wars, from El Salvador to Sarajevo to Afghanistan and Iraq. His books have chronicled character and characters, in war and peace, sports and art, tragedy and comedy.