Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

The Parkland Shooting Survivors' Therapy Dogs Just Got Their Own Yearbook Page And It's Absolutely Perfect

The Parkland Shooting Survivors' Therapy Dogs Just Got Their Own Yearbook Page And It's Absolutely Perfect
@AerieYearbook/Twitter

A team of adorable therapy dogs that helped the surviving students of 2018's Parkland shooting was honored with their own page in the school's yearbook.


It has been over a year since a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida on February 14, 2018. Seventeen students and staff members were killed in one of the worst mass shootings in the U.S.

After the shooting, fourteen dogs were enlisted to help students cope in the aftermath as they mourned the loss of their friends and classmates.

The high school's yearbook staff, headed by adviser and journalism teacher Sarah Lerner and rising editor-in-chief Caitlynn Tibbetts, featured the dogs who managed to bring out smiles as students struggled to go about their daily lives in the wake of the shooting.

Lerner told Buzzfeed that "there's nothing a dog can't fix."

"I'll be teaching and in comes a dog and these big 18-year-old adults all the sudden become mushy 5-year-old kids and it's been such a comfort for us."


Tibbetts, a 17-year-old junior, described putting the yearbook together after the tragedy as being a "balancing act."

"After the shooting we wanted that yearbook to be perfect and had to cover as much as possible."
"This year, we wanted to give proper representation of our school and who we are now without giving so much focus to what happened to us in the past. The therapy dogs are the one thing from last year that is permanent and positive."



The dogs often greeted the students in campus hallways and outside the cafeteria and lifted people's spirits, merely by their furry presence.

They continued emotionally supporting Parkland students and staff who grappled with the suicides of two Parkland teens, a slew of false fire alarms and the first anniversary of the shooting.

The puppy feature in the yearbook was a way to recognize these dependable animals, thanks to Lerner who came up with the idea.

"I told one of their handlers about it and next thing I know I had 15 dogs in the room. We sat them up on chairs, they were smiling for the camera. It was the greatest day of my life."



You would think therapy dogs would make you smile, but this lot sure do bring on the waterworks.

But for that, we're grateful.



Tibbetts explained how therapeutic it has been having the four-legged friends around campus.

"It was such a mood lifter. Including them was a really good representation of our school and what we have gone through. Seeing them is something we look forward to every day. These dogs are going to be there until the last of us are gone."

These dogs also proved to be expert photographic subjects during their photo sessions in October.






This year's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School yearbook theme is "It All Depends," and does not feature the victims who were in 2018's yearbook.

However, there are snippets of tributes and photos of memorials woven throughout the 2019 edition with the concept focusing more on a celebration.

Lerner said of her yearbook staff:

"It's hard to be here some days because of the trauma and reliving and revisiting things. I couldn't be prouder of my students and the yearbook they put together. Honestly, it's my favorite. We have a different perspective on things now, and it's not just a yearbook — it's a record of history."

If the dogs were under consideration for class superlatives, they most definitely would win for most popular and most adorable, paws-down.

More from News

Jesse Watters
Fox News

Jesse Watters Dragged After Adding Another Mind-Boggling Rule For 'Real Men'

Fox News host Jesse Watters, who is apparently an authority of what it means to be a manly man, gave jazz hands to make a point about how "real men" should or shouldn't wave.

The target of his ridicule was Tim Walz, the enthusiastic Democratic Minnesota governor and vice presidential candidate who often greets the public by raising both hands in the air to wave.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of crowd at town hall and Rep. Mike Flood
@MorePerfectUS/X; KETV NewsWatch 7

GOP Rep. Goes Viral For His Response To Crowd Chanting 'Tax The Rich' At Town Hall

Nebraska Republican Representative Mike Flood was criticized following his incredulous response to a crowd that chanted "Tax the rich!" during a town hall meeting.

The Columbus High School auditorium hosted the town hall on Tuesday evening, drawing "nearly 380" attendees, according to local network KETV Omaha. The event was lively, with Flood facing both sharp criticism over Trump administration policies and some appreciation for showing up in person.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Awkward Typo In Elon Musk's Bizarre 'Education Department' Trump Meme Is A Total Self-Own

Billionaire Elon Musk was widely mocked after he celebrated President Donald Trump's executive order to begin to dismantle the Department of Education (DOE) by posting a meme of Trump at the department's grave, only for an awkward misspelling to get all the attention.

Polling indicates that eliminating the Education Department is largely unpopular, with 60% of registered voters opposing the move, according to a Quinnipiac University survey conducted March 6-10. Support stands at 33%, with opposition particularly strong among Democrats—98% oppose it, while just 1% support it.

Keep ReadingShow less
JB Pritzker; Donald Trump
Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images; Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Dem Governor Reveals Trump's Bonkers Demand In Exchange For Equipment During COVID

Illinois Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker revealed during a speech this week that he clashed with President Donald Trump during the first Trump administration after Trump promised necessary medical equipment during the COVID pandemic on the condition that Pritzker praise him publicly.

Five years ago, the United States was grappling with the initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The country had entered shutdowns that had severe economic consequences, leaving businesses and industries on the brink of collapse.

Keep ReadingShow less
Scrabble tiles spelling the word scam
Scam spelled with scrabbles on a wooden table

People Break Down How They Realized An Entire Industry Was A Total Scam

We unfortunately live in a world where scams are on the rise.

Thankfully, some of them are pretty easy to detect, such as an automated call from the IRS telling you a warrant is out for your arrest, or an email claiming to be from Amazon or the USPS asking for your credit card information, only to look closer and see the email address is a yahoo account.

Keep ReadingShow less