Inevitably, someone would trip over my cane and it would break. “I was totally blind, and I just dealt with it. “In high school I was a cheerleader, competed in swimming, and ran track,” she says. She lost vision in one eye at 14 months and in the other eye when she was six. The countdown came to an end when she graduated from high school at 18 and Guiding Eyes partnered her with Hara, a black female Lab.Īngela was diagnosed with retinoblastoma, a rare form of cancer. Keith and I will figure it out together.”Ĭongratulations to Keith’s puppy raiser, Bethany Reinhardt!Īngela has wanted a guide dog since she was ten, and every year on her birthday she asked her mother if she could make that happen. I’ve thought about becoming a research analyst for the CIA, but I’m not sure. As for her future, she says, “I’d like a career in the service field.
In addition to enhancing her independence around campus, Amanda is looking forward to Keith accompanying her on the plane to and from her home in North Massapequa, NY, and college in North Carolina. And he gives me an awesome outlook on life!” How can you be sad around this dog who is always happy? I will be able to share adventures with him. “No matter what you say to him he wags his tail. It’s a totally different way to travel.”Īmanda has already formed a strong bond with Keith. Keith is going to help me get to where I need to go. With a guide dog it’s going to be more efficient. Often there are no sidewalks and, if there are, they’re uneven, so I have to figure it out. It’s a 30-minute walk from my apartment to my classroom. No more bumps and bruises, no more crashing into things. Now that she’s been partnered with Keith, her yellow Guiding Eyes Lab, she says, “Not only am I going to become more independent, I’ll have more confidence in where I’m going. Until recently Amanda relied on a white cane to navigate to her classes and clubs on campus. She is the president for the local chapter of the Special Libraries Association and treasurer for the Association of Science and Technology Professionals. I’m totally blind in my right eye, and I can only see shapes and shadows in my left.”Īmanda has one year left of her two-year master’s degree program at the University of North Carolina where she is majoring in information science with a concentration in data analytics. “I went from reading kindergarten worksheets to not seeing them at all. “I was five when, all of a sudden, I went blind due to a tumor,” she says. Graham Buck, Assistant Director of TrainingĪmanda was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis type 1 at nine months. Special Programs Trainer-Running Program: Nick Speranza Jack was special named by Earl and Maxine Reiss.Ĭlass Instructors: Michelle Tang, Shannon McGee, Deanna Lentini.Macallan was special named by Joseph Loonan and Linda MacDonald.S: The donors listed below made a special gift to personally name the following dogs: P: A Pathfinder Society Member-someone who has remembered Guiding Eyes in their estate plans and has received this dog’s progress reports and photos from puppyhood.
Watch this month’s graduation live by clicking here. We gratefully acknowledge the Fain Family’s support of our
In memory of Henry Safer-Januto June 14, 2017. Halsa’s pup Keith and Evita’s pup, Macallan, are graduating today!
We also honor the GEB Brood Stud Program and thank them for the opportunity to foster broods Halsa and Evita. Our sponsorship is in loving memory of our parents: Mildred and Edward Foley and Marjorie and Willard Flynn, who had a lifelong commitment to community service. 1.Congratulations to the July 2017 graduating teams.