DOWNRIVER LIFE
Section D ■
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Happy tail
www.TheNewsHerald.com
HALLOWEEN
HAPPENINGS
Corn mazes hosted
by J. Webb Farm, 4262
Post Road, in Newport,
are open from 5 to 10
p.m. Fridays, 2 to 10 p.m.
Saturdays, and 1 to 7 p.m.
Sundays throughout
October. Free games
are included with maze
admission and many free
children’s activities are
available at the farm.
Farm animals, varieties
of pumpkins and Indian
corn, gourds, squash,
straw bales, and corn
stalks are all part of the
experience. Corn maze
tickets are $5 for ages 13
and older and $4 for ages 4
to 12. Children ages 3 and
younger get in free. Prices
include admission to two
mazes. Other activities
include scenic hayrides
for $3 each and evening
bonfires. Call 1-734-6524287 for group rates and
reservations, and visit
jwebbfarm.com for more
information.
Homeless pooch
becomes therapy dog
By Andrea Blum
The News-Herald
A
year ago, Chester was living on the streets, scrounging for food and finding
shelter wherever he could.
Now the little rescue
dog brings smiles and happiness
to patients in Dr. Robert Sharon’s
Wyandotte office every week.
The rambunctious, honey-colored
pooch — a mix of terrier, poodle
and Bichon Frise — came to the
Dearborn Animal Shelter as a thin,
8-month-old pup, missing patches of
hair and suffering from mange.
After being treated, he took the
spotlight as one of the dogs at the
shelter’s Black Tie & Tails event last
year.
Sharon, an internal medicine doctor and Dearborn resident, first came
across the pooch at the fundraiser,
and said it was love at first sight.
“We’d just had to put our little
Yorkie down and weren’t intending
on getting another dog,” he said,
“but at the event I saw this little
mangy looking canine by the name
of ‘Jose.’ He was this little hyper
dog that wouldn’t sit still and would
literally jump several feet in the air.
“The next day we went and started the adoption paperwork.”
A video of Chester’s heartwarming story will kick off the Dearborn
Animal Shelter’s 12th annual Black
Tie & Tails fundraiser at 7 p.m. Oct.
26 at the Dearborn Inn. Chester will
serve as canine co-chair of the event.
A signature fundraiser for the
organization, Black Tie is targeted
to raise more than $100,000 to help
care for homeless animals that
come through the shelter’s doors.
“It’s an incredible event to shed
light on these animals,” Sharon
said. “It’s pretty amazing how you
Guest Janet Wright greets a feline
friend at the 2011 Black Tie & Tails
fundraiser.
can take a little pup that’s been on
the streets and turn him into a therapy dog that gives back so much.”
Sharon said the fundraiser is a
great way to showcase dogs and cats
that desperately need homes. The
event also features live and silent auctions, music, food and entertainment.
Today, Chester is the first therapy
dog in an ambulatory setting for
Oakwood Healthcare System.
“When we brought him home and
I started work that Monday, I didn’t
want to leave him alone,” Sharon
said. “So I brought him to work and
put him in my private office, but he
snuck out and ran down the hall to
an exam room.”
There was the rescued pooch
being petted by a patient.
“At that point, he went from a rescue dog to a therapy dog,” he said.
“He’s a real gift to the people.”
As soon as Sharon discovered
Chester’s abilities, he enrolled him
in private training lessons through
PetSmart.
“He passed his canine good citizenship test and was so good that
they wanted to test him for becoming a certified therapy dog,” he said.
Not only did Chester learn basic
obedience commands such as sit
and stay, he also had to allow the
trainer to touch his tail, look in his
ears and brush him. As part of his
therapy training, he had to maintain composure while things such
as a cane and walker were placed
closed to him or dropped near him.
Chester now spends two days a
week with Sharon at the office on
Biddle in Wyandotte — greeting
patients and staff, offering free licks
and basking in endless petting and
hugs.
“Chester precedes me,” Sharon
said. “He’ll be in the next room
while I’m seeing the patient in the
room before.
“It’s been quite overwhelming. I
really didn’t expect what he did. I
think Chester adopted us.”
Initially, Sharon was a little
apprehensive about bringing a dog
to the office, thinking that some
patients might not like it, but he
said the lovable dog’s impact on
patients is remarkable.
“I have patients where a nurse
will check their blood pressure,
then Chester will come in and 15
minutes later, their blood pressure
is down,” he said. “Now they’re
making their appointments according to Chester’s schedule.”
The once-homeless dog brightens
up the days of staff members, too.
“He not only helps the patients
immensely, but the whole atmosphere of the clinic,” Sharon said.
“He’s in the kitchen at lunchtime
trying to catch a snack.”
Chester’s story epitomizes the
value of the work that the Dearborn
Animal Shelter is trying to do,
according to the doctor.
“No one likes to see an animal put
down and the nice thing about the
Dearborn Animal Shelter is that it’s
a no-kill shelter,” he said.
“Shelter dogs might not be the
healthiest or the best looking, but
they have such a different type of
Chester was found on the streets of Dearborn as a stray and brought
into the Dearborn Animal Shelter before being featured at the shelter’s
Black Tie & Tails fundraiser last year. Dr. Robert Sharon, a Wyandotte
internist, saw him there and adopted him. Today, Chester is an official
therapy dog at Sharon’s Biddle Avenue office and will serve as canine
co-chair of the Oct. 26 Black Tie & Tails event.
Dr. Robert Sharon talks to Jeanette and Paul Deller recently at his
Wyandotte office while Chester makes himself at home on Jeanette’s
lap. The doctor says Chester has an uplifting influence on patients —
from making them smile and laugh to bringing down their blood
pressure.
love to give. I think it has a lot to do
with the experience they have living
on the streets.”
Chester is now a much-loved family member — both at the doctor’s
office and home.
“He’s there with me two days a
week for 12 hours,” he said. “By 4
p.m., he wants to take a nap. I have
a glass table he lays on. It’s nice and
cool and he can look down the hall.
Sharon joked: “He asks for vacation days, but I don’t allow it.”
To gear up for the presidential
election, this year’s Black Tie & Tails
will take a playful twist on the presidential race. Instead of human candidates, the shelter will feature feline
frontrunners and doggie delegates. In
keeping with the theme, guests will
have a chance to “vote” for “Mittens
Romney” or “Bark Obama.”
“The four-legged bipartisan
candidates truly take center stage,”
said Elaine Greene, executive director of Friends for The Dearborn
Animal Shelter. “They will shake
paws and cuddle with attendees and
be featured on the convention floor.
Their single agenda: to find forever
homes.”
Since its inception, Black Tie
has raised more than $1 million,
benefiting more than 25,000 rescue
animals.
Tickets for Black Tie & Tails are
$175 per person and are available
online at dearbornanimals.org or by
calling 1-313-943-2697.
Contact Entertainment Editor
Andrea Blum at 1-734-246-0860 or
[email protected]. Follow her on
Facebook and @AndreaBlum1 on
Twitter.
Autumnal activities abound around town
By Laura Zoochi
789-7130.
Salon Europa, 27395 Telegraph
Road, is holding its first trunk-orIf you’re looking for a way to cel- treat event at 6 p.m. Oct. 27 in the
ebrate Halloween with friends, fam- Flat Rock Plaza parking lot. Pumpily, or children, take a trip to Flat
kin painting and trick or treating
Rock and Gibraltar this month.
are on the agenda, along with
Mr. Bean’s Treatery, 26314 E.
contests for doughnut eating, best
Huron River Drive, is having a
painted pumpkin, best costume and
Halloween block party for adults
best decorated vehicle. Hot apple
and children from 2 to 3 p.m. Oct.
cider and doughnuts will be served
27 at the farmers market and then
at the family friendly, free event.
from 3 to 6 p.m. in front of the coffee
“The only thing they need to
shop. Plans are in the works for a
bring are their bodies,” owner Dave
hayride from the farmers market to Brossia said. He added that there
the downtown area.
will be sponsored race cars at the
The farmers market is in front
event for children to sit in.
of Huroc Park, at Gibraltar and
Those interested in handing out
Arsenal roads.
candy should come with their own
Don Thompson, owner of Mr.
treats. Those interested in participatBean’s, said they have a band lined
ing in the activities should call the
up from 3 to 6 p.m. for entertainsalon at 1-734-782-9884 by Saturday.
ment and are looking for a disc
Community Lutheran Church,
jockey for the farmers market. A
23984 Gibraltar Road, has a haunted
“people” costume contest and a
hayride and forest from 8 to 11 p.m.
dog costume contest will provide
Oct. 19, 20, 26 and 27. Admission is
chances for pooches and their own- $10 for 10 and older and $7 for those
ers to show their creativity, and a
younger than 10. Call the church
sidewalk art contest from 11 a.m.
office at 1-734-782-0563 for details.
to 1 p.m. is in the works. For the
To wrap up the Halloween sealatest updates regarding the block
son, the Gibraltar Rotary Club is
party, visit Mr. Bean’s Treatery on
sponsoring a Halloween party at
Facebook or call the shop at 1-7347 p.m. Oct. 31 at the Gil Talbert
The News-Herald
Plenty of spooky Halloween fun to freak out the young and old is on
tap in Flat Rock and Gibraltar this month.
Community Center, 29340 S.
Gibraltar Road. The hourlong event
will feature a disc jockey and a costume contest. The family-friendly
event is open to all ages.
Call the community center at 1-
734-671-1466 for more information.
For those wanting to stick around
their neighborhoods, regular trickor-treating hours are 5 to 7 p.m. in
Gibraltar and 6 to 8 p.m. in Flat
Rock Oct. 31.
Camp Dearborn hosts
Halloween Camping
Weekends at 1700
General Motors Road in
Milford. The weekends
of family fun take place
from Oct. 19-21 and 26-28.
Activities include a magic
show, hayrides, pumpkin
contest, a haunted house,
a costume parade, a
mummy wrap and more.
Trick-or-treating will take
place Saturday evenings.
Fees are determined by
the campsite. To make a
reservation, call 1-248-6846000. Visit campdearborn.
com for details.
Greenfield Village
hosts its 30th annual
Hallowe’en in Greenfield Village, at 6:30
p.m. Oct. 19-21 and 26. 28.
A guided path lit by 900
hand-carved jack-o-lanterns will guide guests
through the village to
experience the holiday as
it was celebrated in the
early 1900s. Guests will
come face-to-face with
characters from classic
literary works come to
life, such as “Treasure
Island,” “Hansel and
Gretel” and “The Legend
of Sleepy Hollow” at stops
along the way. They can
search for buried treasure
with pirates along the
Suwanee River, listen to a
chilling retelling of Edgar
Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale
Heart,” and stroll through
the Sleepy Hollow Forest,
all the while on the
lookout for the infamous
headless horsemen. A
classic scary movie from
the silent film era will
be shown near the Sarah
Jordan Boarding House,
and guests can boo-gie
down to Mrs. Fisher’s
for some frightfully good
music. There will be
a variety of treats for
guests to enjoy, including
hot cider, doughnuts, and
Greenfield Village brews
for the adults. Tickets
cost $12.75 for members
and $15 for non-members.
Children ages 2 and
younger get in for free.
Visit thehenryford.org for
more information.
The Allen Park
Historical Museum will
host a visit from the Ghost
Hunters of Southern
Michigan at 7 p.m. Oct. 17
at the Allen Park Parks
& Recreation Center,
15800 White Street. The
program includes true
recordings and camera-captured views of
paranormal happenings
in homes and cemeteries,
along with local findings
from Allen Park. After
the program, presenters Robin Lemkie and
Tom Lundy will take any
interested individuals to
the Allen Park Historical
Museum, an 1888 farmhouse that’s believed to be
home to spirits. They will
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