CHATHAM, Ill. (WAND) — Lutheran Church Charities gathered from as far as Northbrook, IL and Des Peres, MO to give support to the Chatham community as they grieve the loss of four young girls after a tragic car crash.
Dan Fulkerson, Site Visitation coordinator for LCC, said that bringing therapy dogs to first responders and to vigils for Chatham community members is to help others de-stress. “Our ministry is — It’s just giving people time to breathe for a minute after, a traumatic experience.” Fulkerson said.
Fulkerson explained that there was a scientific reason they brought therapy dogs to scenes of tragedy.
“There’s science involved in that, that when you pet an animal that your blood pressure will go down, your heart rate will drop, and and your body creates chemicals that actually make you feel better.” Fulkerson said.
Sarah Sekki, the Director of Hearts and Mercy of Compassion at LCC stated,”We heard about this tragedy and we knew that four young girls lost their lives, we wanted to bring our hearts.”
Sekki explained that LCC creates wooden hearts and crosses for community members to write supportive messages for the victims’ families. These tokens are then given to the families to help them during their grieving process.
“We’ll help them along their grief journey, knowing their community has surrounded them with that love.” Sekki said.
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