T.S. Giilck
The annual Blessing of the Animals service, sponsored by the Beautiful Joe Heritage Society, went to the dogs on Sunday, September 11 – literally.
The service attracted a small audience of about 30 people – and 10 dogs – to Beautiful Joe Park.
The canines were the only ‘beasts’ to show up for the service, which also marked the 15th anniversary of the 9-11 attacks in New York City, and the contributions service animals made to the rescue efforts.
Reverend Anne-Marie Jones of Knox Presbyterian Church presided over the event, meeting each animal in attendance and their humans with a compassion that obviously resonated profoundly. The service has been performed for several years now, reviving an ancient tradition with deep agricultural roots.
An unidentified Meaford couple was the first to line up for the blessing with their small dog, ‘Boss Man’. They also asked Jones to bless a plaque they had erected to another dog they had owned, which had died in 2012.
“It still hurts deeply, I know that,” Jones consoled the couple, and then blessed Boss Man, who cooperated with the procedure, albeit with a jaundiced eye toward Jones.
Robert Pugsley, whose spouse is a member of the Beautiful Joe society, brought his dog Morgan as well. Morgan, he told Jones, was “not doing so well today” as his arthritic hips were bothering him.
Jones performed a blessing on him as well, paying special attention to his hips.
Mardi Puttick brought Darla, a senior dog she’s had for only four months now.
“I think it’s good for everyone to be blessed, animals and people. This girl is very, very special. She’s a retired breeding bitch from a kennel near Mount Forest. She’s been a total blessing for us, since my husband and I are at an age where a younger dog is too much of a handful. She’s calm and quiet and doesn’t even bark.”
Puttick said Darla was her seventh golden retriever, and she had tracked the dog down through the Canadian Kennel Club listing.
Darla clearly enjoyed the extra attention from Jones, who prayed for her to continue to have a good life with Puttick.
