When Helene caught Steve feeding squirrels,

she knew it was time to get another dog.

Family portraits capture the spirit of a family. Whether that be the frenzy of excited children tumbling over each other or just one person and their pet, photographs celebrate our deep bonds. We feel a special sense of love when we preserve these connections. Photos can become wall displays, mantle enhancements, or in the case of Helene Shapiro and her husband Steve Bartlebaugh, a meaningful addition to a room in an Alzheimer’s memory clinic.

Helene Shapiro recently had pet-inclusive portraits done with her golden retriever, Stanley. Three of these photos hang in Steve’s room in the memory clinic where he lives, uniting the family when it cannot be together and highlighting Stanley’s role as a beloved and important member of the family. Read Helene’s story here:

When Helene Shapiro caught her husband, Steve Bartlebaugh, feeding squirrels, she knew it was time to get another dog.

In 2016, Steve was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, a form of dementia that erodes memory and thinking skills, so Helene took her time finding the right “fit” for their family of two. But Stanley, a 75-pound golden retriever, made the decision for them.

“Stanley was Steve’s person,” Helene said. The 18-month-old pup plopped next to Steve at the breeder the first time they met in 2019.

The couple’s previous terrier mix, Dempsey, had been Steve’s “everything”. The two shared slow walks, and Helene and Steve fretted over Dempsey as though he were their child. Since the couple does not have kids, the 40-pound hound completed their family. Dempsey died around age 14, two years after Steve’s diagnosis.

Caring for a pet can help people with dementia find companionship, support, and a sense of purpose, according to the Alzheimer’s Society. A 2021 study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease found a link between pet ownership and positive effects on daily life functions and mood, and slower disease progression.

Helene and Steve got Stanley a year after losing Dempsey, and the chocolate-eyed pooch soon took to following Steve around.

All plans to keep “Stan the man” off the furniture were dashed the night of his arrival, when a photo that is now on Steve’s Facebook page captures the two asleep in a chair. It is the first picture of them together.

“Stanley just sat in front of him and looked at him with such love,” Helene said.

When Steve moved to the memory clinic two years ago, Stanley began trailing Helene around the house, even curling up like a cat on her head—except after she got neck surgery last February, when he knew to be gentle.

Stanley’s understanding of Helene shone through recently when she had a particularly difficult night. He sat on her feet, rooting her to the ground, and looked into her eyes.

“I don’t think I could’ve gotten through the last three years without him,” Helene said.

When Helene and Stanley visit the memory clinic, the gentle giant leaps onto Steve’s bed and greets the other patients.

Neighborhood children run to Stanley on walks to stroke his reddish-gold fur—a color that featured prominently on cards the kids made for Steve’s 60th birthday. In this way, Stanley has helped Helene and Steve’s community.

“Sometimes dogs are better than people,” Helene said. “They don’t judge you, and they just want love.”

—Lindsey Bynam