I was 15 years old when my grandfather moved in with my family. He was 93, blind, deaf and didn’t have use of his hand because of his neuropathy. Although we had been raising guide dog puppies since I was 11, I never fully appreciated what a service dog could do for people with disabilities until I lived with my grandfather on a full time basis.
My sister started raising a guide dog puppy as a senior in high school. While watching her raise Dominic, then I as helped with Melissa, Huey, Joseph, and Dean, I made the decision to try to raise a puppy on my own. I co-raised Waylon with my parents, and this year, finally, am raising Burke, on my own.
Our guide dog puppies would go over to my grandfather, and he would reach out to stroke them, and that action seemed to make him very happy and content. Although he didn’t want a guide dog, because of his age and inability to walk, he was happily entertained by our raising of them and I could see how great it would have been for him to have had a guide dog of his own when he was younger. I take raising more seriously now, because I can see the incredible help a service dog would be for people with loss of sight, limbs, wheelchair bound individuals and even those with PTSD.
I have been accepted to Georgia Institute of Technology, and will be studying Materials Science Engineering with a Biomaterials emphasis. I want to create materials that will help individuals like my grandfather by replacing failing organs and other body parts with man-made synthetic materials that will help them live more easily with their disabilities.
Raising guide dog puppies has influenced me in many ways. I have learned a tremendous amount of patience, and how to put another creature’s needs before my own. I have learned leadership and how to create boundaries when taking Burke to school and work, and learned teaching by explaining to other students how to act and react to people and their service dogs. I have had to be strong, and although sometimes feel uncomfortable with enforcing the rules, I’ve benefited by having to do so.
Home »
guide dog
,
Guide Dogs for the Blind
,
puppy raiser
,
Puppy Raising Youth Scholarship Winner
,
Youth Scholarship
» GDB Puppy Raising Youth Scholarship Recipient: Sam R. Nelson Essay
GDB Puppy Raising Youth Scholarship Recipient: Sam R. Nelson Essay
07:30:00
guide dog, Guide Dogs for the Blind, puppy raiser, Puppy Raising Youth Scholarship Winner, Youth Scholarship
Related Posts:
“Pins for Pups” Rolls in Dollars to Support Guides and Puppy RaisersThe Rocky Rovers GDB alumni chapter in Colorado held its Third Annual Pins for Pups and have raised nearly $6,000 over the past three years to support Colorado GDB alumni and puppy raisers and national Guide Dogs for the Blin… Read More
Marlaina Lieberg: Celebrating 50 Years as a Guide Dog HandlerMarlaina Lieberg of Burien, Wash., is nothing if not tenacious. As a young 7th grader in the 1960s, she was the first and only student who was visually impaired at her school, and the principal would not allow her to particip… Read More
Halloween Costume Contest Goes to the Dogs!By: Patti Ehle, GDB Utah Alumni Chapter Vice President of Greatest Paws on EarthThis Halloween costume contest clearly went to the dogs. On October 25th, approximately 50 puppy raisers and guide dog users joined together in S… Read More
Alum Roaring with LionsGDB graduate Larry Marcum and his guide dog Brinkley (class 729) have been very busy the past three years in leadership roles in Lions Clubs International. This year Larry holds the position of District Governor of district 4… Read More
GDB Puppy Raising Scholarship Essay: My Experience as a Guide Dog Puppy RaiserBy: Emily Mason (2014 GDB Puppy Raising Scholarship Recipient for Overall Achievement)Raising guide dog puppies has a way of impacting people. Whether that person is me, my family, or whoever receives the puppy, there is no d… Read More