Pets as Therapy chosen charity for survey winner
Published on 17 May 2021
You may remember that when we recently held our Returning to the Workplace Survey, there was the opportunity for the winner to choose their charity for the winning donation.
Well, many congratulations to Jessica Mann who is the News Picture Desk Manager at Alamy, the stock photo collection based at Milton Park.
Jessica was a newspaper photographer for years at The Winston-Salem Journal and Orlando Sentinel in the US and the Picture Editor at the Oxford Mail and Oxford Times.
Her story about why she had selected her charity really struck a chord, so we thought it would be good share it.
Jessica explains...
"I've been working at Pets as Therapy since 2019, so not too long.
I love the idea of therapy animals. Sometimes when people have problems, or can't vocalise what's wrong, or are just a little lonely, petting an animal can make them feel so much better.
My dog is called Roxie and I've shown her at Crufts...
The animals that pass the Pets as Therapy assessment are very empathetic.
Like many charities, lockdown has been very difficult for Pets as Therapy. They haven't been able to do any in-person visits.
Here's Roxie after a long day volunteering at Oxford Brookes University for their Mental Health Day...
I'm hoping this money can go to expanding their reach and letting everyone know the benefits they bring and maybe help to bring in some new people and animals to become volunteers.
You don't have to have a dog, you could have a rabbit, cat or any animal which likes to meet people and be social."
You can follow Roxie and her dog adventures on Instagram @roxiedogadventures
£200 has been donated to Jessica's chosen charity. What a wonderful cause. Thank you Jessica for sharing your story and to everyone who entered the survey.
Find out more about Pets as Therapy.
