PASADENA -
Across Canada there are thousands of people who have been born with or have developed a disability that leaves them dependent on others or lacking in the confidence to undertake the everyday pastimes and work opportunities that most of us take for granted.
The Lions Foundation of Canada's Dog Guide program provides Vision and Hearing Impaired dog guides, Special Skills dog guides, Seizure Response dog guides and Autism Assistance dog guides to help restore independence and dignity to people with disabilities.
Every one of these amazing dogs has been raised from a puppy and trained in it's specialized classification at a cost of thousands of dollars and it is then given, completely free of charge, to its handler.
The Lions Foundation of Canada relies on donations from the general public and fund raising efforts to be able to run this program and on May 30th, in association with Purina, 200 walks were undertaken nationally by various organizations.
For several weeks a committee led by Joy Crocker and comprised of nine Lions club members and three members of Pasadena's Pathfinder group, have been meeting regularly to organize the first ever Pasadena Purina Walk for Dog Guides.
On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, a total of 22 walkers and nine dogs set off from the Pasadena Lions Club on Tenth Avenue to walk to the former Superior Propane site on Main Street and back, a round trip of about four kilometres.
At the end of the day Crocker said $1,979.50 had been raised and she gave heartfelt thanks to everyone who had taken part, both in the organization of the day and in the walk itself - two- and four-footed.
