Brendan Santo's parents donate $10K to Oxford Community Schools therapy dog program

The legacy of Brendan Santo will soon live on in the halls of Oxford Community Schools in the form of a therapy dog funded in part by the donation of the Santo family to the fundraising campaign for a therapy dog program.

Oxford high school students returned to campus on Monday for the first time since a deadly shooting on Nov. 30 killed four classmates and injured many more.

The Oxford shooting occurred approximately one month after the unrelated tragedy of the disappearance of 18-year-old Brandan Santo in late October on Michigan State University's campus. His body was discovered Friday in the Red Cedar River after months of searching by officials and community members.

While Brad and Wendy Santo are not part of the Oxford community, the family donated $10,000 to the Oxford therapy dog program in honor of their son, writing in the post on the donation page that their son loved dogs.

Karen Storey, founder of the Brighton Area Schools (BAS) Pack of Dogs and a teacher in the Brighton School District, said this sort of community connection is why the program exists.

"(This program) really and truly is about how gracious people are, even when you're dealing with tragedies and turmoil," Storey said.

Storey has worked with Oxford schools to loan BAS therapy dogs to the Oxford students. For the last several weeks, middle and high schoolers were greeted by six therapy dogs from the BAS Pack of Dogs each day as they returned to campus.

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"Experiencing the level of trauma that Oxford has gone through, biggest (goal) is allowing kids and staff to make connections that they normally might not have made with others just by the presence of the dog," Storey said.

Pack member Oscar, a miniature goldendoodle, will stay with Oxford high schoolers in the near future while the Oxford community continues toward their $50,000 therapy dog program fundraising goal. As of Tuesday, the campaign had topped $36,000.

Storey spoke about the plan and the timeline of a possible Oxford-based therapy dog program to the Oxford Community Schools Board of Education meeting on Tuesday night. She told the Free Press the program has been well-received among Oxford community and school members.

Storey said that the Oxford community is welcome "with open arms" to the Santo family naming one of its therapy dogs when the program begins.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Brendan Santo's parents donate $10K to Oxford schools fundraiser