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The University Medical Center lobby is the new, temporary home for a very special Labrador retriever named Manzanilla. This life-sized, colorful pup, painted by local artist Chicho Lorenzo, is one of 20 unique statues installed at locations throughout Albemarle County and beyond as part of Art Unleashed, a public art event and fundraiser launched this year by Service Dogs of Virginia (SDV).

“We were thrilled to partner with UVA Health in this effort to increase our visibility and raise public awareness by doing something really cool, artistic and community-oriented for the greater Charlottesville area,” says Tina Floyd, Director of Development for SDV. 

Manzanilla and the other 19 painted pups will be on display through October, when they will be auctioned off at an event held at the CODE Building on Saturday, Oct. 24. “This event will be open to the public, and we’ll begin selling tickets for $50 in August,” says Floyd. “We’ll have appetizers and cocktails, a small silent auction, followed by the live auction.”

More Dogs and More Hope for Those in Need

SDV was founded in 2000 by Peggy Law, who started the organization out of her garage with a couple of dogs and a desire to help people confined to a wheelchair. Today, SDV has expanded to include five programs that provide service dogs to those with mobility issues, PTSD, autism, chronic health conditions like diabetes, as well as facilities like hospitals or courthouses where people are in high-stress situations.

“We currently have over 50 dogs placed throughout the state of Virginia,” says Floyd. “But the demand is much greater. Our wait list is long and getting longer — it’s about a two-year wait on average currently.” 

SDV’s greatest limitation: space. “We’re in an office park with a small patch of grass on one side, so we don’t have the capacity to increase training or breeding,” says Floyd. 

A mission to grow their services to meet the needs of more Virginians is at the heart of SDV’s first major capital campaign. “Our goal is to raise $6.6 million. We're at just over $5.2 million at this point, so we're making good headway,” says Floyd. “With the Art Unleashed event and additional community support, we hope to reach our goal.”

The funds they’ve raised thus far are already being put to good use, supporting the initial planning and construction of a new, larger facility in Keswick. “This new facility will provide us three to four times the space that we have now,” says Floyd. “It will allow us to have multiple training options, a small kennel so we can board dogs during the week rather than have them go home with volunteers. But the breeding space is most important. Having our own breeding program will be the biggest difference, allowing us to have enough dogs each year to meet the needs of people coming to us for service.”

As they strive to grow and expand, SDV maintains its commitment to provide service dogs free of charge. “We average a cost of about $40,000 over a two-year period to train a dog,” says Floyd. “We don't pass this cost on to individuals who receive their dog because we don't want it to stand in the way of them getting the help they need.” 

Four-Legged Ambassadors 

UVA Health is one of the organizations fortunate enough to receive an SDV service dog this past year. The 2-year-old lab named Woody joins his handler, Lt. Maeve O’Neill, UVA Police, Medical Center Safety Support Unit, on daily rounds across our campus, stopping first in the Emergency Department, where he has become a welcome sight.  

“We have bomb dogs and our bloodhound who have very specific tasks. But Woody is different. He's our first facility canine, but his job is entirely relational; it’s all about human support and human contact. He is kind of our ambassador for community relations,” says Lt. O’Neill. “His presence in University Medical Center has improved the lives of countless people, and frankly, he’s improved my life.”

It was Lt. O’Neill who first received the call from SDV about the Art Unleashed project. And she didn’t hesitate to get involved, connecting SDV with Anne Brown, Environmental Experience and Arts Program Manager. “These fundraisers are important to give more people the opportunity to have service dogs in environments where they’re needed,” says Lt. O’Neill. “Fortunately, UVA welcomed the opportunity to help Service Dogs of Virginia get some exposure.”

“The program offers a unique opportunity to combine community service with artistic expression — two values that align closely with UVA Health's commitment to community engagement and the healing power of the arts,” says Brown.

Lt. O’Neill says she will be among those present at the event in October because she’s seen firsthand the impact service dogs can have. “I see what these dogs do, not just for our department and facilities, but for individuals. Helping them gain independence and live full lives — it’s magic,” she says. 

Painted With Purpose

It was this sense of “magic” that the artist, Lorenzo, hoped to capture with his colorful design for Manzanilla, a name his daughter selected that means “chamomile” in Spanish. “The painting of the dog was a bit like surrealism, connecting with parts of the brain or the soul that we don’t really access. I was painting the spirit of a service dog that is full of love and care,” he says.

Originally from Madrid, Spain, Lorenzo has been a staple of the local arts scene for 15 years. He has painted vibrant murals for Ix Art Park, the Venable School, McGuffey Arts Center, and many other locations. This was not his first time painting an animal sculpture, nor his first time helping support local organizations. “Any way I can help with my art, I'm happy to. This dog is going to inspire health and joy for many. The more people who see it, the better. Not for me, but for a good cause.”