The value of PADS

Two people who know first-hand the value of PADS service dogs are Penticton’s own Dede Dacyk and Sarah Lapp-Bourne of West Kelowna.

Dacyk is the Victim Services manager at the Penticton RCMP detachment and works with PADS accredited facility dog Calypso. The pair have been partnered since 2016, when Calypso became the first therapy dog connected with an RCMP victim services program in B.C.

Earlier this year they received a special award from the provincial government for the work they do.

On any particular day, Calypso and Dacyk can usually be found at the hospital, courthouse or hospice.

“It’s a very vulnerable time for these people and we don’t want them to think they’re alone,” said Dacyk. “For victims of a crime or people who have been traumatized or something has affected them in a terrible way, Calypso helps because she is so calm.

“I’ve had people come off the witness stand at the courthouse and say: ‘I couldn’t have done that without Calypso.’”

Bourne received her first PADS service dog, Rico, in 2004 just after she turned 20.

“As a person with a disability, before the service dog I had to rely on everybody else to help me, basically I was 100% reliant on care givers…. I even had to stay with the light on at night until somebody could come in and turn it off,” said Lapp-Bourne.

“Without my dogs I wouldn’t be where I am now. Without PADS I wouldn’t be where I am now. They’ve been like a family to me.”

She has volunteered with PADS for nearly 20 years and also works as its client services co-ordinator. Rico served as the ring-bearer at her 2019 wedding.