Six client-dog pairs of graduates will cross the stage at 2:00 p.m. this Sunday, April 29 at Guide Dogs of the Desert, a guide dog breeding and training center in Whitewater, CA.
Graduating on Sunday are Alicia Auger of Santa Ana, CA and her guide dog Adrian; Cecile Caggiano of Chino Hills, CA and her guide dog Leazy; Sharon Coverstone of Vancouver, WA and her guide dog Tara; Ann Nevitt of Tempe, AZ and her guide dog Mango; Haya Simkin of Jerusalem, Israel and her guide dog Pammy; and Doris Brueggeman of College Place, WA and her guide dog Reta.
Attending the event as special guests of longtime Guide Dogs of the Desert patron and owner of Lady Golf in Rancho Mirage, Countess Karen Cantrell Eckert are, Prince Gharios of Ghassan and his wife, Princess Vivianne of Ghassan, Broadway star Rita McKenzie, and Christopher Chambers.
“It’s very gratifying to be able to provide guide dogs to our clients, so they can appreciate the special freedom having a guide dog brings,” said Roccie Hill, Executive Director of Guide Dogs of the Desert.
Since 1972, Guide Dogs of the Desert, an award-winning 501(c)(3) non-profit public benefit organization, has offered increased freedom, companionship and safety to the blind through the use of a guide dog. Guide Dogs of the Desert breeds, raises and trains guide dogs for the blind and trains their blind clients to work with their dogs—all at no cost to the people they serve. For more information, please visitwww.gddca.org. This year marks Guide Dogs of the Desert’s 40th anniversary of service to the blind.
According to the American Foundation for the Blind, every seven minutes someone in America becomes blind or visually impaired.
