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Order of St. John recipient accompanied by dog

When David Fletcher was invested in the Order of St. John by chancellor F. Richard Bruce, he stood with his dog Samara by his side.
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DAVID FLETCHER enters the Order of St. John in Ottawa accompanied by his faithful therapy dog Samara.

When David Fletcher was invested in the Order of St. John by chancellor F. Richard Bruce, he stood with his dog Samara by his side.

This is the first time in the 19 years of the Therapy Dog Program that a dog has been present at the National Investiture in Ottawa – and the honour went to a dog from the Comox Valley.

Samara has accumulated over 1,500 hours of community service with the elderly, special-needs children, the Reading Tails program and at public events. She has worked with Fletcher for nine of the 12 years he has been with St. John Ambulance.

Samara's presence at the event was facilitated by the efforts of MP John Duncan and Speaker of the Senate Noel Kinsella, who together cut through red tape and moved the Ottawa bureaucracy to set a precedent for future Investitures.

— St. John Ambulance