Her calling, as it turned out, was turning her hobby into something that would change lives in immeasurable ways.
In 1992, Mrs. Picard was living in Connecticut with her husband, Dale, and their two daughters. When her father suffered a debilitating stroke, he came to live with Mrs. Picard and her family.
“He had just retired,” Mrs. Picard said. “After working hard his entire life, he had just retired and then had this stroke.”
She explained how her mother died at age 50, and said she thought her father had been robbed when he lost her.
“When he had the stroke after just retiring, he was ripped off again,” Mrs. Picard said. “I wasn’t having it.”
Mrs. Picard said she realized early on that her father was becoming more depressed and angry because he lost his independence and had to rely on someone for help.
She began teaching Juliet, one of the family’s dogs, some commands that would assist her father with basic things.
Mrs. Picard had taught Juliet to respond to her Dad’s tug by pulling him up to his feet. Soon they were walking together-and little by little Juliet was doing more and more for him, such as retrieving a magazine or the remote control.
The two became inseparable.
Her young daughter was also struggling. In fifth grade, her daughter had a learning disability and Mrs. Picard found that it was undermining her confidence. The process at school to assist her in learning actually drew more attention to her being different.
Mrs. Picard began teaching her daughter to train Juliet to respond to commands to help the girl’s grandfather. What Mrs. Picard realized was the process for both her father and her daughter was therapeutic and had remarkable results.
It gave them confidence they needed, and Mrs. Picard realized that kind of confidence would go a long way.
Mrs. Picard’s experience with her Dad and daughter inspired her to pursue groundbreaking ideas that led her to where she and her husband, Dale, are today.
Not only did Mrs. Picard want to deliver expertly trained service dogs to assist people with disabilities but her vision was to have at-risk youth train the dogs.
“It always starts with helping teenagers rebuild their lives through the dogs,” Mrs. Picard said. “That’s the foundation. My goal is to get the best-trained dog out to people with disabilities, but how I get there is by using these teenagers.”
In 1994, Dale found a suitable piece of property in Torrington with a house, a barn and a chicken coop.
The Picards started with dogs from the pound before determining that the disposition and strength of golden and Labrador retrievers would make the best assistance dogs.
When the Picards presented their vision to Dr. Samuel Ross, the founder of Green Chimneys, an alternative school in Brewster, N.Y, Dr. Ross offered them a contract to work with his students by teaching them how to train dogs.
Dr. Ross is the pioneer in animal assisted therapy and animal assisted activities (AAT/A), and it was the basis of his work at Green Chimneys.
Contracts with more schools soon followed.
Then, in 1995, Lou and Dale realized their dream and founded Educated Canines Assisting with Disabilities, ECAD, whose mission is to educate and place service dogs trained by at-risk youth, with people with disabilities.
“For many of these kids, this may be the first time in their lives they have self-esteem and a sense of accomplishment,” Mrs. Picard said. “I have seen three lives changed, a teen’s, a client’s and a dog’s,” said Mrs. Picard.
With the teens, she said, if you keep putting out good energy and good thoughts, good things will come back to you.
They began working with Children’s Village in 1998, an alternative school in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. ECAD’s training facility is on the campus.
ECAD is the equivalent of home for many of the students attending the school and in the ECAD training program.
“It’s tough for kids to believe when they’ve had everything taken from them,” Mrs. Picard said.
“By assuming the roles of teachers, these teens learn to set goals. And they learn to have patience and self-control.”
Cesar, a 17-year-old student, said the program changed his life and made him a better person.
“I love this program,” Cesar said. “It kept me away from the violence and off the streets. I spend all my time here now, I would actually like to work here.”
Cesar was attending Children’s Village; he
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