Tim Hetzner, president of Lutheran Church Charities, leads a presentation on using “K-9 Comfort Dogs” in disaster response. Hetzner described the golden retrievers as “lovers” by nature who are “great listeners and nonjudgmental.” The photo on the screen behind him shows a young man lying on a floor with comfort dog “Howie.” The young man — who was grieving his girlfriend, who died in a car accident — stayed with the dog for 45 minutes, Hetzner said. (LCMS/Paula Schlueter Ross)
