Luna wakes up in the morning, like the rest of us, with a stretch and maybe a yawn. She eats breakfast, drinks some water – never coffee – then is out the front door and on her way to work.
She is one of the lucky ones who has escaped the cramped, often sterile cubicle atmosphere. Instead, she travels around Reno all day, meeting people familiar and unfamiliar, doing one of the most important jobs in the world: making them smile.
Luna’s job is harder than you might imagine. One look at her resume makes it clear that this isn’t a job just anyone can do. But let’s break down what it takes.
The job requires two essential certifications. To qualify, candidates must demonstrate their ability to greet strangers politely, navigate crowds confidently, maintain composure amid distractions, and listen attentively to people. The next step of the hiring process is the most critical, and it is based solely on your looks. To be considered you should ideally have two ears, four paws, and a tail for wagging. That’s right, you have to be a dog. Specifically, a therapy dog.
Luna, a jet black standard poodle, is pigeon-toed. Originally trained to be a show dog, she had to switch careers early-on – her condition kept her from passing both physical appearance and movement tests. Her friendly personality made her easy to adopt and lent itself well to a line of work requiring constant human interaction.
Behind every great therapy dog is their dedicated human partner. For Luna, that’s Mel Minarik, a retired professor of the School of Public Health at the University of Nevada, Reno and a current non-denominational minister. Mel and Luna have been doing therapy work for a year and a half now, but have been together for almost seven.
"It's kind of like a ministry for me," Minarik said. "To me this is a great way to connect with people."
Connection is what drives both Mel and Luna’s work. Whether they're visiting the HOPES campus, a community health center serving vulnerable populations in northern Nevada, or making rounds at Renown hospital, Luna approaches each person with the same welcoming spirit. Mel finds humanity in these interactions. Given America’s fraught political climate, understanding and listening to others can be scary, frustrating, or both.
“She [Luna] greets everybody equally, and that's a lesson for me,” Minarik said. “Then, when I can connect with the people, the stories they tell me remind me of the humanity out there.”
An obviously inseparable pair, they learn from each other every day, but save some room for having fun. On their days off, Luna gets any extra energy out chasing bunnies and dog balls in the park while Mel watches and laughs.
And their kindness does not go unnoticed; the good they do is deeply felt around the community.
One of Luna’s private clients has severe dementia and doesn't always remember her when she’s not around. But when they are together, for the moments that matter, she often says: “Luna knows everything, doesn’t she?”