For most of us, puppies and dogs put smiles on our faces in a way that not much else can. Who can refuse the gleeful antics of our pet when they see us? And, whether it's morning breath or grumpiness they're still happy to see us.

NorCal Golden Retriever Rescue brings surrendered dogs and people together to experience that joy.  Along with thirty other volunteers, Contra Costa County Area Coordinator Lynn Parapar heads up the task of taking in surrenders, fostering, adoptions and the medical needs of golden retrievers brought to NorCal.

"It's a great all-volunteer group working together to save displaced golden retrievers and we always need more volunteers," said Parapar. Positions include fostering (taking a dog in until a "forever home" can be found), assisting with adoptions, telephone interviews, home visits, and also support positions such as fundraising, writing, web site support, or working on a committee.

NorCal carefully matches its golden retrievers up with forever families. Just ask Kimberly Young of Danville, who adopted a golden retriever from NorCal 15 years ago and has since adopted a total of six. Currently, the Young family is the forever home for Starbuck and Harley.

Young fell in love with Starbuck when he was 9 years old. She's had him for two years. He came from an abusive home, so in the beginning, Young said, he was very shy and looked around to make sure he was safe.

"Now, he's a sweet, beautiful, big dog, with funny poses, like hiding his face in his paws or turning around to face an empty wall. When he arrived at NorCal, he had a ladies' curling iron wrapped up in his tail, walnut-sized mats of fur, and he was filthy," she said.

"He's now friendly and loving. He's becoming a real golden, much more social." Young stressed that older golden retrievers are great to adopt. "Typically they don't need a lot of work, they don't need the exercise that a young dog needs, just want to be loved, and have great dispositions."

Their other golden retriever, Harley, was two-and-a-half when adopted. Initially, Young was just going to foster him because the regular fosterer was on her way to a wedding and Harley needed an emergency foster home. However, she fell in love and decided to keep him before the NorCal medical examination had taken place.

"He was the perfect dog in shape, structure and golden features, but with heart problems. NorCal was willing to take him back, but we were so attached to him," Young chuckled, "that he was ours and we were going to keep him."

He also had entropion, an eye condition in which the eyelid rolls under and eyelashes constantly scratch and rub against the eyeball, which can cause ulcers and blindness. NorCal paid for eye surgery at UC Davis. Harley's heart problem couldn't be fixed without a heart transplant, so the veterinarian recommended exercise. Harley couldn't walk for more than 10 minutes without exhaustion, but he can now walk for an hour.

Danville resident Sharon Brechtel is the volunteer assistant area coordinator for Alamo, San Ramon and Danville and said, "Basically what everyone in the group does is for the good of the dogs by finding forever homes, educating the public about puppy mills, accepting and providing medical attention for sick dogs. NorCal is a wonderful group that does incredible things for goldens."

All potential adoptees must complete an online application, followed by a telephone interview and a home visit to make sure the home and back yard are dog friendly. "If I would feel comfortable leaving one of my two goldens there, I feel it's safe enough for me to begin the search (for a golden)," she said.

Whether you are interested in adopting, volunteering, or learning more about NorCal you can check out their Web site at www.ngrr.org. You can also contact Lynn Parapar at 925-935-2846 or lparapar@astound.net with questions.