Some stories are about numbers. This one is about heart.

Hope Heroes is the 2024-25 Beachwood High School Marketing / Junior Achievement Company. It’s a campaign, yes—but more than that, it’s a calling. One led by 40 high school seniors from eight school districts across Northeast Ohio who dared to believe that dogs—and love—can change the world.

Their mission? To unleash the healing power of dogs, bringing comfort, courage, and connection to children, families, and caregivers facing life’s hardest battles.

This is what happens when compassion meets creativity—and it all began with a teacher.

One Last Lesson from Mr. Perry

For 32 years, Mr. Greg Perry has stood at the front of classrooms, helping students find their voice through marketing, entrepreneurship, and real-world learning. But anyone who knows him will tell you—he’s been teaching far more than business.

He's taught young people how to lead. How to serve. How to believe in something bigger than themselves. And in this, his final year before retirement on May 27, 2025, he’s left behind something extraordinary.

Hope Heroes is Mr. Perry’s legacy—and the students who built it are his final masterpiece.

Balloon Dogs and Big Dreams

This spring, four giant inflatable balloon dogs and a whimsical doghouse toured Crocker Park as part of a traveling installation that turned heads and touched hearts. Created in partnership with District Gallery and famed artist Josh Mayhem, the balloon dogs represent joy, resilience, and the simple truth that love, especially from a dog, can lift anyone's spirit.

Through sponsorships, merchandise, and bold outreach, students raised $228,000 to support and expand therapy and facility dog programs at:

• University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s
• Cleveland Clinic Children’s
• Akron Children’s Hospital
• MetroHealth

That’s not just a donation. That’s a movement.

W.A.G.S. 4 Kids Joins the Story

On April 15, W.A.G.S. 4 Kids had the honor of meeting the Hope Heroes executive team—and we were floored. The professionalism, unity, and drive of these students were beyond what we’ve seen in many adult-led campaigns.

Then came May 20—a day we’ll never forget.

At a celebration hosted by Karen Chaikin at District Gallery, surrounded by families, mentors, and professionals, we were presented with a $50,000 donation—a gift that will fund the training of two life-changing service dogs for children with disabilities.

In that moment, it wasn’t about charity. It was about kids lifting other kids up. It was about seeing each other, and choosing love.

Enter: Hero

That same day, one small dog started a very big journey.
Meet Hero, a standard poodle pup who entered training through W.A.G.S. 4 Kids at Grafton Correctional Facility.

He’s named not just for what he’ll become—but for who inspired him.

This is for the Hope Heroes.
For the kids who gave with their whole hearts.
And for a teacher who never stopped believing.

Let the magic begin.

The Heart of It All

Hope Heroes is about many things:

• Therapy dogs who bring peace to hospital rooms.
• Art that turns public spaces into playgrounds of imagination.
• High school students who built a business, raised six figures, and changed real lives.
• A beloved teacher’s final bow—met not with applause, but with impact.

But most of all, it’s about what’s possible when we choose hope. When we see pain and answer it with presence. When we teach kids that their dreams, their voices, and their hearts matter.

This is what Hope Heroes taught us.

This is the legacy of Mr. Greg Perry.

This is what it looks like when love takes the lead.

This is hope, unleashed.

See Also:

• Beachwood Schools
• WKYC
• The Villager Newspaper