An Ellwood City funeral home is providing a unique aid to mourning families: Aragon, a grief therapy dog who offers unconditional hugs and big shoulders to cry on.

	Bob Donaldson, Post-Gazette Aragon, the grief therapy dog at the Turner Funeral Home in Ellwood City, visits with the Brenner family, who came to make funeral arrangements for their father, Ken Brenner Sr., who died on November 18. From left are Bruce Brenner, Sally Magill, Judy Brenner and Blair Magill. Click photo for larger image.

Aragon, a golden retriever/yellow labrador mix, has been working at Turner Funeral Home since late September, after he graduated from more than two years of training by Canine Companions for Independence and assigned to Pam Turner.

CCI, a non-profit organization headquartered in Santa Rosa, Calif., trains assistance dogs from the time they are puppies to work in four different areas. They include service dogs that perform tasks for people with physical disabilities; companion dogs who work a three-part team with children or adults with physical, developmental or emotional disabilities; hearing dogs for the deaf; and facility dogs like Aragon that serve with professional adults working to improve the mental, physical or emotional health of others.

CCI has placed 2,190 person-dog teams since 1975. There are 1,089 active teams, and the dogs, especially bred by CCI, are either purebred golden retrievers or yellow labs or crosses.

"Goldens want to please people; labs have the ability to retrieve," said Judy Myers, development director for CCI's north central region. "[CCI] found the crosses bring out both those traits."

Aragon is a facility dog who definitely wants to please people but looks and retrieves like a lab. Pam Turner is a former social worker who thought she could combine her skills and love of animals to help mourners deal with their grief. The pair also visit nursing homes.

She learned of grief dogs at a funeral directors' convention and applied to CCI. There apparently aren't many of them, though. Myers, developmental director for CCI's North Central Region, agrees, knows of no others in the Pittsburgh region.

The Turners do not put Aragon on duty unless the family approves of it.

"Ninety percent of them do," Pam Turner said.

"He eases the pain they're going through. He's just so comforting, so well-behaved. He won't jump on them or bark."

Families who have requested Aragon's presence during viewings of loved ones have been glad they did.

"When the dog looks at you, it's like he's feeling your pain," said Helen Houk, of Chewton, Lawrence County, who lost her father Oct. 29. A cousin also had died and was at Turner's at the same time.

"I don't know how to describe his eyes," Houk added. "It's the way he looks at you. It's like he knows more than you do about your own pain."

Charlotte Price of Ellwood City lost her mother Oct. 24. She found Aragon was a particular comfort to her 6-year-old grandniece, whom Price's mother had cherished.

"It's quite confusing to little ones. The dog really kept her occupied," Price said. "It went around to some of my brothers, who are animal lovers, and my sons, who have lab dogs. It was comforting to them and my husband."

Price said she was a "wee bit" skeptical of using Aragon when she was working out arrangements for the funeral with the Turners. Then Aragon came into the room and lay down beside her and a niece.

"In other words, [he said] 'I'm here if you need me,' " she said. "It sort of relaxed my niece a bit."

During viewings, Pam Turner and Aragon stay in the back of the room unless the family wants the dog closer.

"We don't thrust the dog on them," Ken Turner said. "Pam's always got him under control."

Aragon put his training to work last week when the family of Ken Brenner Sr., who had died that morning, came in to make arrangements. Despite performing a sad duty, Brenner's sons and daughter and other relatives smiled when they caught sight of the dog.

The smiles got broader when Pam Turner, who was standing at the edge of the room with Aragon, took him off his leash. Without a command, the golden retriever-yellow labrador mix did what he's trained to do: He went right to the sofa where three of Brenner's survivors sat to offer comfort.

Pam Turner, the wife of funeral home owner Kenneth Turner, told Aragon, "Visit," and the dog put his head in the lap of Judy Brenner, of New Castle, the deceased's daughter-in-law.

With the command "lap," he rose on his hind legs and laid his paws across Judy's lap. Then he snuggled in so he also was leaning on Brenner's daughter, Sally Magill of Ellwood City. The two women hugged and petted him. So did Sally's husband, Blain Magill, who was sitting on the other side of Brenner.

Aragon stayed so long in Judy's lap that his back legs finally tired and he slid down to a sitting position. But he managed to keep his head in her lap.