{"id":22127,"date":"2016-11-30T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-11-30T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resource-center.hrblock.com\/newsroom\/recent-retiree-and-service-dog-find-awesome-accessibility-at-tax-office\/"},"modified":"2023-03-02T14:18:45","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T20:18:45","slug":"service-dog-and-tax-advisor-rewarding-experience","status":"publish","type":"newsroom","link":"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/about-us\/service-dog-and-tax-advisor-rewarding-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"Recent retiree and service dog find \u201cawesome accessibility\u201d at tax office"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>When Joel Hook applied for a seasonal job at a Texas tax office last year, he kept his hopes in check. A recent retiree who spent 40 years as a restaurant franchisee, he wanted to stay active and productive. However, Hook \u2013 who walks with a cane because of a leg amputation \u2013 requires some furry help: a service dog named Grace.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Joel came in for an interview, he was apprehensive about the interview because he needed a service dog,\u201d said Amanda Thompson,<\/strong> area manager for H&R Block, who interviewed Hook for a job as a client service professional in Greenville.<\/p>\n

Hook needn\u2019t have worried.<\/p>\n

\u201cI offered him the job on the spot,\u201d said Thompson. \u201cJoel has a wealth of knowledge about the business world and was a perfect fit for the position he wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two for one<\/h2>\n

When Thompson hired Hook, she got Grace, too. A mixed breed about the size of a collie, Grace generally sat curled up at Hook\u2019s feet behind the front desk \u2013 when she wasn\u2019t doing her own job: chasing after pencils and keys that Hook might drop or fetching paperwork from around the office.<\/p>\n

Grace even looked the part of a professional: She sported a special vest that says \u201cI\u2019m working\u201d and, like many well-trained service dogs, wore a harness and leash on the job.<\/p>\n

\u201cClients loved Grace,\u201d said Thompson. \u201cGrace is gentle and disciplined and a great ice breaker, especially with kids. They liked to pet her and talk to her, and they learned from Joel that Grace was here to do a job, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

A rewarding experience<\/h2>\n

After tax season ended, Thompson got a surprise: she received an award on behalf of H&R Block from Service Dogs Inc.<\/a>, a nonprofit group that rescues shelter dogs \u2013 including Grace \u2013 and rigorously trains them to serve people with disabilities.<\/p>\n

Presented to Thompson at a ceremony in Austin, the Awesome Accessibility Award<\/a> honors businesses for making the workplace accessible to people with service dogs.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead<\/h2>\n

But that\u2019s not the end of the story. When tax season was over, Hook told Thompson he wanted to come back. But it might be in a new role: Hook is taking H&R Block\u2019s Income Tax Course (ITC)<\/a> with hopes of becoming a tax professional next year, says Thompson. \u201cIt\u2019s very humbling when someone faces so many challenges but doesn\u2019t let anything stand in the way of a goal,\u201d said Thompson. \u201cJoel was a great asset as a client service professional and I\u2019m confident he\u2019ll be the same if he returns as a tax professional.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Joel Hook applied for a seasonal job at a Texas tax office last year, he kept his hopes in check. A recent retiree who spent 40 years as a restaurant franchisee, he wanted to stay active and productive. However, Hook \u2013 who walks with a cane because of a leg amputation \u2013 requires some furry help: a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":418,"featured_media":24540,"menu_order":0,"template":"","tags":[],"news-categories":[23376,23377],"class_list":["post-22127","newsroom","type-newsroom","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-categories-around-block","news-categories-about-us"],"acf":{"post_rest_thumbnail_alt_id":null},"yoast_head":"Service Dog and Tax Advisor: A Rewarding Experience | H&R Block<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Joel Hook, an H&R Block Tax Advisor for clients, needing a service dog created a rewarding experience for him as well as customers.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hrbcomlnp.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/service-dog-and-tax-advisor-rewarding-experience\/\" \/>\n<meta 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