About Us
Who We Are
Our Story
Every day, people who rely on service dogs face challenges most never see.
A simple trip to the store. A meal at a restaurant. Boarding a flight.
What should be routine becomes stressful, unpredictable, and sometimes humiliating. Service dog handlers are questioned, denied access, interrupted, or forced to explain deeply personal information just to exist in public spaces. These moments aren't rare — they're constant.
And they come at a cost, eroding confidence, limiting independence, and forcing individuals to choose between their safety and their ability to participate in everyday life.
Justice Speaks was built from lived experience.
Our founders have experienced firsthand the frustration, anxiety, and exhaustion that come from navigating a world that doesn't fully understand service dogs. But they've also seen something powerful:
Education changes everything.
When people understand how service dogs work — and how to interact appropriately — barriers disappear. Access improves. Dignity is restored. That's the change we exist to create.
Our Work
What We Do
Justice Speaks works at the intersection of education, advocacy, and real-world application. We equip people to create real change.
We support service dog handlers
With tools, scripts, and guidance to confidently advocate for their rights without sacrificing their privacy.
We train businesses and frontline staff
Through clear, practical protocols that help teams understand exactly how to interact with service dog teams in real situations.
We educate communities
By addressing misconceptions, promoting respectful behavior, and helping the public understand the critical role service dogs play.
We advocate for systemic change
By supporting policies, legislation, and accountability that protect access and reduce discrimination.
Our Mission
To advance service dog rights through community education, business training, advocacy, and practical tools that improve access, reduce harm, and transform how society interacts with service dog teams.
Our Vision
A world where every service dog team can move through life confidently — free from discrimination, interruption, fear, or injustice.
Our Values
- Inclusiveness: We are respectful by embracing intersectionality of all individuals with their unique backgrounds.
- Learning: We foster an environment of continuous learning with a growth mindset.
- Guidance: We have strength in the service of others and believe whole-heartedly in human rights.
- Compassion: We believe in non-judgment so that we can appreciate others' perspectives when they are different from our own.
- Integrity: We do what is right guided by honesty, accountability and sincerity.
The People Behind the Mission
Meet the Team
Cathy Burds
Founder
Duke
Trainer
Curriculum
Education
Justice Speaks has carefully crafted and patented a Pre-K through 12th Grade curriculum with easy to follow directions for presenters, educators and students. This curriculum, titled “Your Guide for Forming and Informing Citizen Advocates for Service Animals,” is designed to create and inform the students who will be our future citizen advocates.
The lesson plans outline the role of the teacher and provide engaging activities that build on and reinforce what came before. Our goal is to expose children to alternate lifestyles and special needs to help them respond with compassion and understanding when they encounter service dogs in the real world.
The future of Justice Speaks is ambitious and heading full steam ahead. Based on academic research and the advice of the Colorado Department of Education, the following curricula are scheduled to be created and launched in the coming years:
- Elementary grade school levels 1st through 4th grades
- Middle School levels 5th through 8th grades
- High School levels 9th–12th grades
- Post-Secondary
- Employee Training for Businesses