AU senior Brooke Young publishes children's book about therapy dog

ASHLAND, Ohio – When Brooke Young was growing up, she found some of her most meaningful relationships were formed in nursing homes.

Those facilities aren’t the kinds of places you often see the youngest generation. Young would like to change that.

The Ashland University senior has made intergenerational interactions her platform as she prepares for the Miss Ohio pageant in June. But she’s also made it the theme of her children’s book, “Murray’s Miraculous Mission”, which is available for pre-order now and scheduled for a wide release in February.

The mission of the “Mission” is to recount some of the experiences Young had during the five years she spent in nursing facilities with her therapy dog, Molly, a Golden Retriever she worked with her grandfather to train. “The memories are very close to my heart,” Young said, adding that the book is dedicated to the memory of her grandfather Larry Volz, who died in 2018.

Getting the book from concept to print has taken about four years, according to Young. Her publisher connected her with illustrator Chad Thompson, who had previously done clean up animation for Disney. “He was a sweet, wonderful person who brought my vision for the book to life,” she said.

And while Molly is no longer around to tell her story, Young is getting plenty of help from Murray, a St. Bernard-Poodle mix Young rescued. “He’s very strange looking, but very cute,” she said, “like a big teddy bear.” The COVID-19 pandemic has made it impossible for Murray to begin his own therapy dog training; still, he enjoys meeting both children and senior citizens via Zoom and has his own stamp with which to sign copies of Young’s book.

While she is busy as a business administration major and a journalism and digital media minor at AU, Young still makes time not only for meet-and-greets with Murray, she also created the Pandemic Penpals program earlier this year, matching women in local nursing homes to fellow pageant contestants and AU students as a means to decrease isolation during the pandemic. A veteran of regional musical theater, Young also is in preparation for the Miss Ohio Pageant, where she will compete as Miss Heart of Ohio.

And she sings, every day, for at least 30 minutes.

“I’m very into positivity,” Young said. “You can probably sense that.”

She hopes some of that will rub off the children who read her book. In addition to the recollections, the theme of the book is clear – you’re never too young to make a difference. “No matter what, you have something to give,” Young said. “You are maybe 5 or 6 or 7, but you can do something in your local community.”

Young is currently offering pre-ordered, signed copies of “Murray's Marvelous Mission” to community members for $13, including shipping. Copies are expected to arrive in late January. Payments are accepted through Venmo or PayPal. She is also interested in opportunities to read her book to children via Zoom. Pre-order request and Zoom inquiries can be sent to  brookeeliseyoung@yahoo.com.

Ashland University is a mid-sized, private university conveniently located a short distance from Akron, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. Ashland University (www.ashland.edu) values the individual student and offers a unique educational experience that combines the challenge of strong, applied academic programs with a faculty and staff who build nurturing relationships with their students.###