Zoe the dog standing looking directly into the camera (Stripes Europe Writing Team and USO Ramstein)

“Follow the sound of Taylor Swift,” I texted my fellow writers as I walked up to the space where pancakes were already sizzling on the griddle at the USO on Ramstein Air Base.

Every month, the Ramstein USO gathers some of the finest therapy dogs and heats up the griddle to provide pancakes, sausages and playtime with the dogs at Paws and Pancakes.

Stripes Europe got the opportunity to go to the April event and we had a blast not only getting all the kisses from the dogs and eating pancakes but also getting to talk with some of the volunteers and participants on-site.

Groups of people gathered at purple table-clothed tables to eat pancakes (Stripes Europe Writing Team and USO Ramstein)

Upon arrival, we quickly noticed some service members who had already gone through the line to get their pancakes and were waiting patiently for the puppies to arrive. For one service member, Paws and Pancakes was a great way to get away from the constant busyness of work and get some pancakes with coworkers.

One of the volunteers we spoke with was Paige. She brought along Kea, her medical alert service dog. Kea is a cardiac service dog, but he also does therapy work “on the side.” Kea has been a service dog for five years. He also gives the best kisses of all the dogs we met that day, in my opinion.

Writer kneeling down next to Kea and petting him (Stripes Writing Team and USO Ramstein)

We also met Bundy, a black lab puppy who was merely there to observe and learn. Bundy is five months old and is in training to become a therapy dog one day. His owner, a therapist herself, noticed how good Bundy was with her three children and his calm demeanor and thought that those qualities would make him a great therapy dog.

Ramstein Sexual Assault Prevention and Response was also present to get the word out about their organization and hand out some cool goodies like sunglasses, bracelets and pins. I snagged one of their witty stickers for the back of my phone case.

We all got to gather for tasty treats and puppy love that day, not only because the awesome USO volunteers were on-site cooking a delicious breakfast but also because of the work of Gunzelman and her therapy dog, Zoe.

Zoe the dog standing looking directly into the camera (Stripes Writing Team and USO Ramstein)

Gunzelman noted that the origins of Paws and Pancakes came about because USO wanted to bring service members and their families together on Fridays to “allow them to have a delicious pancake breakfast and be able to pet some cute pups.” She also stated that all of the dogs present were USO Canine Volunteers and AKC-Certified (or, in the case of Bundy, learning how to be).

Paws and Pancakes isn’t the only event these dogs attend. USO Canine Volunteers also provide greetings and goodbyes to service members flying off for a deployment. Zoe the therapy dog also goes to the USO Warrior Center at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center to comfort people.

Paws and Pancakes happens one Friday every month from 9-10:30 a.m.

Follow the Ramstein USO on Facebook or check their website for upcoming events.

USO Banner and Paws and Pancakes event in background (Stripes Writing and USO)