In August of 2000, after the application, interviews, waiting list and much anticipation, my mom and I loaded our stuff into a van and set out for Team Training at Canine Companions for Independence. At the end of the two-week training, I graduated with my first assistance dog, Keno. To my parents, Skilled Companion Keno […]
“I knew I wanted an assistance dog,” explains Jeanette, a four-time graduate of Canine Companions for Independence. “I watched as my sister and brother deteriorated and passed away. As I lost the ability to do many things, I could anticipate what tasks an assistance dog could help me with to stay independent for as long […]
While deployed to Afghanistan to serve our country in 2010, Josh Sommers sustained a head injury caused by the blast of a rocket-propelled grenade. The injury left Josh in a coma for eight months, caused paralysis on one side of his body and a partial loss of both his hearing and vision. Five years later, […]
“I’d been married seven years when everything changed. I woke up one morning and I couldn’t pick up my foot,” recalls Nancy. “For thirty years I was very able bodied.” After weeks of trying to determine a cause, doctors diagnosed Nancy with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive and fatal neurological disease, and gave her […]
