PORT ANGELES — Although Chaplain Kathi Gregoire originally got her dog, Scout, as a pet, she soon realized Scout could be much more than that.
Gregoire and Scout have been training to be a therapy dog team and provide additional chaplaincy resources.
Gregoire currently serves as a volunteer chaplain with the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), the Washington State Patrol (WSP) and the Captain Joseph House Foundation in Port Angeles.
Between the law enforcement chaplain positions, Gregoire said she gets called into the community about once a month or once every other month. In those situations, she provides emotional and spiritual support through unintended deaths such as car crashes, overdoses or heart attacks.
Although Gregoire was ordained into the ministry more than 25 years ago, this chaplaincy phase of her life started about 10 years ago. At that point, she was living with her husband in Montana, where they volunteered with backcountry search and rescue.
During one of their calls, they met a chaplain working with the sheriff’s office.
“My husband said, ‘Have you ever thought of putting your love of first responders and ministry together?’” Gregoire said. “That was an ‘aha’ moment.”
After starting a volunteer position, she provided chaplaincy services to a county record clerk, who witnessed someone die by suicide in a county building. A few days after the event, Gregoire brought Scout into the office, with permission from the clerk.
“I watched Scout work the room,” she said in a CCSO press release. Then, he focused on the clerk, “as if to say, ‘I am going to comfort and take care of this one for a while.’”
Scout is a mix of a variety of working dog breeds and not bred to be a therapy dog, Gregoire said. But in that moment, Gregoire saw Scout was naturally perfect for the job.
“She’s very sweet and she has an innate desire to take care of people,” she said. “This dog is built for this kind of thing.”
Soon after, Scout was assessed as a potential therapy dog, and they began training. But when Gregoire and her husband moved in 2021 back to Clallam County, her childhood home, they had to restart their progress.
Now Gregoire and 4-year-old Scout are in the process of getting certified with Therapy Dogs International.
So far, they’ve passed the lowest level of training — basic obedience.
“Scout is a natural,” Gregoire said. “It’s my end of the leash that needs most of the training.”
While they wait to start the next levels of training, Gregoire has been taking Scout around the community to practice the skills they’ve learned and to acclimate her to the outside world. Often, she’ll bring Scout in the elevator in the Clallam County courthouse to make sure she’s used to it.
The first time they used it, she said Scout seemed to be saying, “What is this magic box?”
Their next training will be at the Canyon Crest K-9 Training Center in Tacoma. Gregoire is hoping that will happen during the summer.
Although it’s Gregoire’s responsibility, she said some individuals have donated funds to help cover some of the costs.
“We would not be able to afford what we’re doing without their support,” she said.
The advanced training costs $3,000, not including travel expenses and housing, she added.
Once their training is complete, Gregoire will be able to take Scout on community calls. They will be the only in-house dog chaplain team for both the WSP and the CCSO.
“She’s not a fancy dog,” Gregoire said. “But in her individual personality, she’s got a lot to give.”
Gregoire teared up while discussing how she had stumbled into this partnership with Scout.
“I just think it’s really neat that the chaplain somehow stumbled onto the chaplain canine,” she said. “Scout makes the chaplaincy better.”
If anyone sees Gregoire and Scout around town, the CCSO encourages people to approach them and make friends.
Those who are interested in learning more, or to support the training, can contact Gregoire at chaplain.gregoire@gmail.com.
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Reporter Emma Maple can be reached by email at emma.maple@peninsuladailynews.com.
