Poor Stacey Mae

We have been having a good time meeting new people and other dogs. Unfortunately there are 2 dogs here at the hotel that want to attack Stacey. She also got bit in the face by a little dog but she is fine.

A day on Rodeo Drive

I had a wonderful day with stacey and our friends walking around on Rodeo drive. Everyone that was there was so nice and friendly. Everyone seamed to love dogs and let them in their stores. There is so much more to say but i am just to tired to write. I will add some photos tomorrow.

Guffey therapy dog already a hero

This is copied from Guffey therapy dog already a hero

Therapy dog Stacey Mae, a 4-year-old Greater Swiss Mountain Dog who lives in Guffey, has her own Facebook page, a charitable project called The Teddy Bear Project and is a finalist for the American Humane Association’s inaugural Hero Dog Award. Photo by Norma Engelberg

Four-year-old Swiss Mountain Dog Stacey Mae is a big dog with a big mission.

A therapy dog who lives in Guffey with her handlers Richard and Pam Mandel, Stacey Mae collects Teddy Bears and other stuffed animals to give patients in nursing homes and hospitals.

She is also one of eight finalists in the American Humane Association’s inaugural Hero Dog Award Contest. More than 450 dogs were nominated.

Richard Mandel’s daughter, 17-year-old Maria Mandel, helps Stacey Mae collect the stuffed animals for The Teddy Bear Project by creating and maintaining the big, friendly dog’s Facebook account.

“We’ve collected more than 2,000 stuffed animals,” Richard Mandel said. “Most of them have been donated through the Facebook page.”

Stacey Mae wasn’t always a therapy dog. At first she was just a dog that visited nursing homes with her owners.

“Someone thought she fit the description of a therapy dog and somehow the label stuck,” Richard Mandel said. “I thought she was just doing what dogs do, bringing love and comfort.”

He isn’t sure who nominated Stacey Mae for the hero dog contest but he found out about the nomination last May. “We heard she was a finalist last month,” he said.

According to a news release from the American Humane Association, Stacey Mae and the other finalists have received more than 300,000 online votes since their nominations. This has helped the association meet its goal of earning a $200,000 donation from Cesar Canine Cuisine. Voting continues through Sept. 30 atwww.herodogawards.com. Friends of Stacey Mae can vote once a day.

On Oct. 1 Stacey Mae, will join the other finalists as they walk the red carpet at the association’s Hero Dog Awards show, which will air on Veteran’s day, Nov. 11 on the Hallmark Channel.

According to the contest rules, the winner in each of eight categories will receive $5,000 for its charity and the top dog will receive another $10,000. All finalists are the top dogs in their category: law enforcement and arson dogs; service dogs; therapy dogs; military dogs; guide dogs; search and rescue dogs; hearing dogs; and emerging hero dogs to honor “ordinary dogs who do extraordinary things.”

“It isn’t just the votes that will determine which dog will win,” Richard Mandel said. “It also will have a lot to do with whether or not the dog’s story fits the (association’s) overall mission of encouraging volunteerism. That is as it should be.”

For more information about Stacey Mae’s charity, visit her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/StaceyMaeTBP.

Stacey Mae, a Greater Swiss Mountain Dog with a mission, was greeted as a guest of honor at a ‘Puppy Picnic’ in Colorado Springs. With Stacey Mae are her handler Maria Mandel, left, and Anna Cannan, founder of Puppy Rescue Mission. Photo by Norma Engelberg

Guffey therapy dog Stacey Mae and her owner Maria Mandel, center, were guests at a Puppy Rescue Mission Puppy Picnic in Colorado Springs last month. Stacey Mae is now one of eight finalists in the American Humane Association’s inaugural Hero Dog Award Contest. Stacey Mae’s friends are asked to vote for her once a day through Sept. 30 at www.herodogawards.com. Pictured at left is Anna Cannan, rescue mission founder, and in the background are Maria Mandel’s father Richard Mandel and his wife Pam Mandel. Photo by Norma Engelberg

Finally in Las Vegas

After a 5 hour drive that felt like 2 we are finally in Las Vegas. We drove through a small part of Arizona today and brought back some great memories. When I was in 7th or 8th grade my dad took me to the Colorado Rockies spring Training in Arizona. We had such a great time and shared some wonderful memories.


It's almost 95 here today. Not the best place for a big black dog so we are going to be spending most of the day inside. We have been putting some plans together for when we get to L.A tomorrow and the days we will be there.

Wednesday we just plan on laying around and taking it easy until the events start on Thursday. Thursday we have a photo shoot at 10:30 A.M. for the Hero Dog Calendars. The American Humane Association is putting together Calendars of the eight finalist.

Friday we have another photoshoot at 10:30. A group of young girls asked if Stacey Mae could be in their coffee table book. That evening we have a dinner where the eight finalist are really the stars of the dinner.

Then comes Saturday. It's going to be a long day, but a day we will not forget

One woman and her dog

On our way to Utah we were looking for a place to eat. There were a couple places in Breckenridge, Colorado but there were no places to park so we kept going till we got to Frisco, Colorado. We stopped at the Butter Horn Bakery & Cafe. Wonderful people there and amazing food.

When we sat down our waitress asked us if we were traveling somewhere and we told her to California for the Hero Dog Awards.  She thought it was so neat and congratulated us on our accomplishments and gave us two cookies for our trip.  She went over to her friend who is such a big dog lover.

She put her black book down on the table and pulled out a photo of her dogs. One a Australian Cattle dog and another one that looked like a mutt. She was telling how she went into the shelter one day and laid eyes on the cattle dog. She knew this was the one she had to get. The only problem was he had a back problem and needed to be seen by a vet to get some treatment. She didn't have the money.

Her uncle had just  passed away and left her some money. When she looked it was just enough money to get her dog the treatment he needed to get better.

She was telling us how she suffers from bad Panic Attacks and how he can sense them way before they are about to come and help her through them.

When she found out Stacey Mae was nominated for Therapy Dog in Hero Dog Awards. She had to go meet Stacey Mae. So we brought her out to the truck and let her give Stacey Mae a good but scratch. Stacey Mae met a new friend today.

Heading to L.A

Tomorrow morning we are heading to L.A. We have everything we need packed in the truck ready to go. Now that we are getting closer and closer to the awards ceremony I must say I am getting pretty nervous. I really don't know what to expect. I just know it will be a great experience and that  I am really lucky to have this experience.

Our first day we will be driving about 7-8 hours to Richmond, Utah. We have 3 days worth of driving. We could properly make this trip in 2 days but with the dog it makes it a bit harder.

And some exciting news! Yesterday we collected our 2,000 teddy bear. I never thought in 10 months I would have collected over 2,000. Thank you everyone for being so supportive of my project and helping me bring joy to many.

Maria


Stacey's Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/StaceyMaeTBP

Trip To L.A

Back in July of 2011 8 winners of the Hero Dog Awards were announced. Each dog and their handler won a 5,000 donation to their charity of their choice as well as a trip to L.A for an awards ceremony that will be held at the Beverly Hill Hilton.

Stacey & I won first place out of 100 other Therapy dogs and their handlers. The American Humane Society sent out a film crew from L.A to our small town, Guffey Colorado. They spent the day with us at the nursing home filming Jackie, Ken, Stacey and Me. Once we finished we went up to the house and they did an hour long interview with me. They will be taking the clips that they got from the filming and turn it into a 3 minute video. The awards ceremony will be on the Hallmark Channel on November 11th. I am not sure what time it will air yet. Once I get the time I will let everyone know.

It really has hit me on what exactly I won. I think the people around me are a bit more excited them I am. I am sure once I get to L.A it will hit me.

I really think it is amazing though to see how far the Teddy Bear Project has gone from December 2010 when I first started. As of today I have collected 1967 teddy bears and stuffed animals for sick kids in the hospital and elderly in the nursing homes. I never thought I would collect this much. To be honost I thought I would only collect 100. It's amazing to see how many people will come together to help someone out. People from Australia, Canada, United Kindom etc have sent bears.

Now others are interested in starting the Teddy Bear Project in their area. As far as I know people from, Florida,  Canada and California has started a Teddy Bear Project.

I am planning on expanding more on the Teddy Bear Project. I am going to start looking into getting a non-profit status for my project so I can do more with my Project. I have been wanting to send out care packages to kids fighting Cancer and other illnesses but it has just been so difficult since everything is coming out of my own pocket.

I want to Thank everyone for supporting me along my journey with my project over the last few months.
Especially my teachers Mr. Aamodt, Mrs. Harkins. Mrs. Miller, Mrs Jackson and Dr. Riendeau.

Filming at PCC in Canon City, Colorado

Stacey Mae's Facebook Link: http://www.facebook.com/StaceyMaeTBP

Teddy Bear Project Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChRI_ZrO5yA

American Dog Magazine Article: http://www.theamericandogmag.com/dog-profiles/amazing-dog-stacey-mae-mountain-summer-2011