More than a hundred two-legged friends — and five four-legged ones — gathered at The Rock Lutheran Church in Seward April 12 to honor and remember a popular local canine who passed away Feb. 25.
A nine-year-old golden retriever, Nicodemus, or Nico, as he was more often called, was a common sights at schools, nursing homes and community events in and around Seward.
Nico was euthanized Feb. 25 after he fell ill and veterinarians at the Kansas State College of Veterinary Medicine discovered he was full of cancer, with no hope of recovery.
“It all happened very, very quickly,” said Randy Newsome of Seward.
A trained Lutheran Church Charities (LCC) K-9 Comfort Dog owned by The Rock, Nico lived with Randy and his wife Marcia, with Randy serving as “Top Dog” on the Nico team, being his primary caregiver and one of his handlers.
LCC comfort dogs are purebred golden retrievers trained to interact with people of all ages and circumstances who are suffering and in need of comfort, Newsome said.
The dogs serve every day in the community in which they are placed and are also deployed in times of disaster and crises to help victims and first responders deal with the situation at hand.
“Nico did a lot of unusual things, and a lot of not so fun stuff,” Randy said, noting that Nico and his team of handlers went to the scene of a mass shooting at a concert in Las Vegas in 2017, the STEM school shooting in Highland Park, Colorado in May 2019, and the mass shooting at a WalMart store in El Paso, Texas in August 2019.
But Nico and other comfort dogs are more often used in their local community to help initiate conversation and reduce stress at places such as schools, hospitals and nursing homes.
Nico and his handlers were common visitors at Seward public and Christian schools, as well as Concordia University and local rest homes and care facilities.
“He just brightened their days,” St. John Lutheran Church Deaconess Jeri Morrison said. She who often accompanied Nico on his nursing home visits.
“Nico liked kids, so we tried to get him involved with kids as much as possible,” Newsome said, noting that the dog even had a part in Seward High’s production of the musical “Annie” a few years ago
“We really looked at him as a community dog,” Newsome said.
And many members of his community were on hand at The Rock April 12 to honor Nico and the effect he had on others’ lives.
“It was a celebration of Nico and his life in the ministry,” said Lori Howard, a member of the team that handles Glory, a comfort dog owned by Christ Lincoln Church in Lincoln.
Glory and four other comfort dogs were among those that attended the event: Glory and Joanna from Lincoln, Phinehas from Fremont, Eden from Columbus, and Keren, who was brought all the way from Elsworth, Kansas.
“Comfort dogs provide love and comfort in times of need and stress,” according Howard. “That’s what they’re there for, and that’s part of the reason we’re here.”
“We were very pleased with the turnout we had to help celebrate Nico’s life,” Newsome said. “We are very close with the other dogs and their handlers in the region, many of which we’ve worked with for several years.”
Although taking care of Nico and having him around all the time was very enjoyable, Newsome said, it also involved a lot of work and responsibility.
LCC comfort dogs are trained to follow 32 commands, he said, and their handlers work with the dogs every day.
Each dog also has to wear a special vest when it is working and only go places where it is invited.
“Whenever we put his vest on, he knew it was time to got to go to work,” Newsome said. “I personally would like to see it continue (having a LLC-trained comfort dog living and working in Seward), but you have to find the people who have the time to get and keep it going.”
As for he and his wife, Newsome said, it has been hard not having Nico around anymore and that he will always be missed.
“Any time you lose an animal that you’’re attached to, it’s really tough,” he said.
“He was special, and he was a true sweetheart.”
