The airport terminal was under construction.  Whole sections of the concourse had been  blocked off, so that passengers who were coming off their flights found themselves face to face with other travelers who were trying to hurry in the opposite direction to get to their gates before their planes took off.  Parents holding small children by the hand tried to maneuver around travelers pulling large suitcases on wheels.  Everybody seemed in a very big hurry to get to wherever they were trying to go. I walked through all this noise and confusion, guided by Charlie, my Freedom Guide Dog.  As he followed behind the customer service representative who was assisting us, Charlie seemed completely unimpressed by all the commotion around him.  The three-year-old Black Labrador Retriever just kept moving through the crowd, guiding me around people and obstacles, pausing only long enough to show me the entrance to the elevator we would take to get down to the baggage area so I could claim my luggage. Charlie and I have been a team for nearly a year now.  During our time together we have traveled to meetings in Albany, New York City, Tucson, Chicago and Kansas City.  We are scheduled to make

When I’m not traveling to job-related meetings, I work in a Medical Center, coordinating services for patients who have visual impairments.  In my office, Charlie lies quietly under my desk, except for those occasional times when he can’t resist poking his nose out to discover who has come in to talk with me.  For the most part, patients and staff are very mindful of guide dog etiquette.  They don’t pet or talk to Charlie while he is wearing his harness.  They understand that even though he is lying  down, he is still “on duty”, and that petting or talking to him might distract him from his work.  So I contacted the staff at Freedom Guide Dogs and asked them for help in finding a successor dog.  I chose Freedom because I was confident that their staff would find a dog that was a good match for me.  I also appreciated the opportunity to be trained at home so that I didn’t have to take too much time away from work or my family.

I  met Charlie for the first time on  September 17, 2004.  My first thought, when I reached out to pet him, was, “Wow, he sure is wiggly!”  My second thought was that he had the softest coat I had ever felt on a Labrador Retriever.  During our first few days together, I discovered that he loves to play, especially with toys that squeak, and that he likes to chase his tail.  He can almost always find a way to make me laugh, even when I am sad or stressed.  He is affectionate and playful, but I can count on him to be an excellent guide when he is wearing his harness. As time passed, I learned more and more about how Charlie and I can work together.  I now know that I can trust him to guide me through heavy traffic on our way to work, or down the familiar aisles of the grocery store where we sometimes stop to pick up dinner on the way home.  Whether we’re flying in an airplane or spending a quiet day in the office, Charlie and I have become a comfortable, confident team.

After five bouts with cancer, my mother, Sally Miller, passed away at the end of May, 2005 at age 79.  During the last few months of her life, my husband and I brought her to live with us in Pennsylvania.  She was an amazing mother who insisted that her blind daughter be independent and productive, and I was indeed…except for the fact that for the past 5 years, my Mother has seen several guides come and go due to health issues or other unforeseen problems with the dogs and this upset her greatly.  She had come to terms with her own fate, but continued to worry about my future without the right guide dog.  Thank goodness Eric and Freedom Guide Dogs came into our lives at just the right moment with the most amazing guide dog, Jasmine!  Through all the training, the construction of a wheelchair ramp for my mother, visiting nurses in and out, bringing her back and forth for radiation and the hospital visits, Jasmine just hung in. My Mother was happy to see me working with a good, solid, well-trained dog and obviously Freedom’s ability for home training was a total necessity as I had to stay home and be a caretaker.  My Mother was

We are raising money for Freedom to thank them for all they’ve done for me and my Mother.  A dog has been named for her and now I dream of this sweet little dog becoming a Guide some day and having someone walking around saying “good girl Sally”.  My Mother was such a wonderful person and such a beautiful soul.  I’ll always miss her, but I know she’d be thrilled to know that there is a Sally who will continue to do good in this world as she always did.

Thanks to Freedom for my Jasmine and my ability to be independent and have my Mother so happy at the end of her life.

Wendy Miller Slominsky MSW/Jasmine

You can name a puppy for a $5,000 donation.  Please call Sharon if this is of interest to you.

Friends of Freedom, Jim and Jill Sheffield, Ed Hockman and Edie and Al Grossman, put on an informational cocktail party/ fundraiser for Freedom in early September.  The party was well attended with a number of young families and their children as well as retired people all coming together to play with puppies and hear from some of Freedom’s graduates.   The graduates told of life working with their  Freedom Guide Dogs in the busy city of New York.  A good time was had by all, with the moneys raised being put towards our new Puppy Nursery.

We have put together a Power Point presentation , in which we are able to share information about Freedom Guide Dogs with  clubs and schools, and people coming through the facility on a tour.  The show is only about 6 minutes long but is informative.  We will be working on other presentations on such things as puppy raising and applying for a guide.  Potter, a smooth coated collie pup whom is being raised as  a potential guide dog, is attending our Open Kennel.

Eric explaining how he trains the  dogs and clients.

September  24th was a beautiful day for our annual Open Kennel.  Freedom Guide Dogs volunteers were all on hand to give tours or the facility, demonstrations of the working of the guides,  hand out hotdogs and soda, sell sweatshirts and tee-shirts .  Puppy Raisers came from near and far to both have a tour and talk with other raisers or potential raisers about the dogs they have now and ones in the past.  A number of graduates were also on hand for the same reasons.  We plan on holding this even each September and enjoy talking with everyone who attended.   As each year goes by people, can also see the advancements we have made and take pleaser in knowing that each and every volunteer has helped to produce a guide dog and thus Freedom.

As Freedom continues to grow the needs for financing has increased.  Freedom is at the cross roads of adding additional training staff, to support the ever growing list of applicants.  With each passing year the number of guide dogs we are replacing, due to retirement, has increased.  The number of new applicants continues to increase also.  In order to expand an endowment fund, Freedom Forever is being created.  This will ensure a financial base for the necessities of Freedom Guide Dogs. If you wish to donate to the Freedom Forever Fund please indicate that on your donation.

We are still accepting Vehicle donations.  The laws have changed, but you still would receive a tax break for your donation.  If you have a vehicle please phone 1-877-227-7487, ext 1273.  Tell them you wish to Donate to Freedom Guide Dogs.

Freedom’s services, provided at no charge to its clients, are made possible through generous support from individuals and organization dedicated to giving blind people and their families the freedom of a guide dog.
Freedom Forum is published by Freedom Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc.
1210 Hardscrabble Road – Cassville, NY 13318
(315) 822-5132 – Freedomdog@a-znet.com – www.Freedomguidedogs.org