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Interview with Patricia Fragen of Normal Moments

February 19th, 2010

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K9 Cuisine: What is your story-how did you get into pet care for these families?

Patricia: My daughter, Melissa, died 4/1/07 after battling cancer. Just over a month before she died, we were talking about some of the cool and amazing experiences we had during the course of her treatment, including the people who really stepped up to be there for us. One of these, was our friend David, who was phenomenal for many reasons but most importantly because he stepped in at a moment’s notice to take care of our three (rescue) dogs, whether for days or weeks. Melissa said “you know, everyone deserves a David,” so we made some calls to special people asking them to be on our Board of Directors and we filed incorporation papers for Normal Moments the next days. Pet care is one of many services we offer to help improve the lives of parents with critically ill and/or medically fragile children.

K9 Cuisine: What is the secret to your success with the your organization-how have you gotten to where you are today?

Patricia: Thankfully my “real” job is as a business consultant. My company, Strategic Office Solutions, helps small to mid-size business start, run, and grow, so I had all the knowledge I needed to get our 501(c)(3) paperwork through reasonably quickly. I knew where our liability exposure was so that I could get the right coverage and write the right contracts, etc. I brought great people into the organization with me and we have gotten somewhat lucky with publicity, including national exposure on the Martha Stewart Show and WGN-TV.

K9 Cuisine: What makes you different?

Patricia: There is no one in the world doing what we are doing. We have had inquiries from 18 U.S. states and as far away as Israel with people interested in getting services or volunteering. While we currently only serve the great Chicagoland area, we do hope to start national expansion this year if we can get funding, along with the people willing to head up chapters. Right now we have good potentials in the PA/NJ/DE tri-state area and in Minneapolis/St Paul.

K9 Cuisine: What is it about dogs that you love?

Patricia: I’ve always loved dogs for their soft, cuddly, and playful natures. But since my daughter’s death, my dogs have become even more important to me. I have some really bad emotional days and my dogs are great at reading my moods and supporting me. I might be crying for no reason and they will all try to climb in my lap at once so that I end up cracking up. Other times, the tears are rolling down my face because I miss Melissa so much and they’ll rest their heads on my knees and look up at me as if to say they miss her too. They just seem to know what I need and they provide it. The unconditional love they give is also always a joy.

K9 Cuisine: What is the neatest part about your work?

Patricia: Some might think it would be the appreciation from the families we serve, but the reality is that the best moments are the conversations with and emails from our volunteers who are so deeply touched by the service they are providing. It changes them in very positive ways.

K9 Cuisine: Where do you see the pet care industry going?

Patricia: I am far from an expert on the pet care industry, but I think that in-home services are going to continue to build, such as the dog-walkers, groomers who make house calls, etc. Having these services makes pet ownership available to those people who love animals enough to have said “I don’t have the time to be a good owner” in the past and can now have the joy of owning their pet, still maintain a busy schedule, and know that their pet is being treated well.

K9 Cuisine: How do you fit into that-what are your future plans?

Patricia: As mentioned above, I hope to expand the services we offer through Normal Moments to families across the country, allowing families who have to give up so much in order to face the challenges of childhood illnesses to not give up their family pets when they may be needed most.

K9 Cuisine: How can people find out more about you and the your organization?

Patricia: Visit our website at www.normalmoments.org.

K9 Cuisine: Tell us a little about you!

Patricia: My daughter and I were best friends as well as mother/daughter. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss her terribly. I have written a book about our experiences that I hope to publish by the end of the year (so watch for it). She was amazing and it is a good story. While both my businesses are about serving others, I do one thing purely for my own pleasure, which is playing violin with the DuPage Symphony Orchestra. I also recently joined the Board of Directors for this organization.

This information was provided by Patricia Fragen of Normal Moments, helping parents of critically ill children share more normal moments everyday. For more information, please visit http://www.normalmoments.org/.

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