With more than 1 million followers on Instagram and more than 6.8 million on TikTok, Brodie the Goldendoodle has much more Internet clout than the average canine. But don’t let the fame fool you — this pooch is for the people.
“[Its owner] has brought Brodie for the last couple of years to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital for the holidays and for a couple of other highlighted days but we thought that it was important to spread the happiness,” said Kim Carbo, director of community development and communications for the Memorial Foundation and the Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital Foundation, “Brodie had never made an appearance at a nursing home facility before so between making our patients smile for a day and checking off something he hasn’t done before, it was a win. Brodie definitely left some paw prints on their hearts.”
Brodie’s owner, Cliff Brush, Jr., was born at Memorial Regional Hospital and routinely brings his furry friend to visit the affiliated Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital. This special connection makes his visits with Brodie even more meaningful to patients and staff across the system.
“He’s a product of the Memorial Healthcare system,” said Carbo. “He was born there and now he resides pretty much in our backyard. We hold a special place in his heart now and I think that’s a connection that will just continue to flourish. He puts a lot of smiles on our patients’ faces and it goes a really long way.”
After connecting with Brush via Carbo, Memorial Manor nursing home administrator Jon Hennemrye coordinated a Brodie visit at the building on Grandparents’ Day on September 8. While bringing animals into the facility was nothing new, Brodie’s bubbly personality was uniquely endearing.
“Animal-assisted therapy is a huge activity here,” said Hennemyre. “We do have animal-assisted therapy as a routine but those dogs are small compared to Brody, and not bringing the personality that he brings to the equation. That gets a lot of patients involved, especially the nonverbal ones that have a little more difficulty engaging in other activities.”
Even though it was his first time in the building, Brodie seemed to feel right at home among his new friends. After all, being a social media influencer, the paparazzi are nothing new to him. Brush never intended to make his dog an internet celebrity, people just naturally gravitated to Brodie. Now he flies first class.
“Once we walked into the dining room, every single person sitting in there wanted a photo with Brody and wanted to kiss him,” said Hennemyre. “His demeanor was perfect for our patients in residence. He was calm and he was more than patient. It took a while for him to make his rounds but it was very heartfelt and it was very exciting to see all the happy faces of all the residents.”
