My Nonprofit Reviews

Almost 12 years ago I volunteered at Guiding Eyes Canine Development Center where 500 puppies are bred each year. Due to a physical disability, I am unable to work with puppies. Fortunately, the Guiding Eyes Genetics Department needed someone who was familiar with spreadsheets and medical terminology to enter health surveys into the files of both guide dogs and released dogs, as this data is used for making breeding decisions. I enter downloaded health surveys, and for some folks who are unable to enter their health survey into a computer, we call them to update the dog's record. My greatest joy is speaking with grads who love to tell us how their dog is doing. In addition to health data, I hear wonderful stories. For instance, one grad traveled with her husband from their home in the upper mid-west to Washington State, stopping at each Lyons Club along the way to say "thank you" for supporting Guiding Eyes. Another grad is in a travel Beep Baseball League and so enjoys playing. One grad, is an amazing woman who is not only legally blind but also deaf. She became a college professor, teaching sign language. So many grads and each with a different, wonderful story. In talking with people who have adopted released dogs, I discovered that so many have had their remarkable dogs subsequently trained as therapy dogs and I listen to stories of these dogs working in hospitals, pediatric departments, hospice centers, VA homes and hospitals, women's shelters, homeless shelters, etc. Every story is different. Every story is amazing, and it makes me love how I am using my retirement years. I work with three other volunteers who enter other data, and I am so pleased and proud to call these women new-found friends. In all these years, every staff member I have met truly treats volunteers as valued members of an important team. As a volunteer, I love the small part I have in an organization that goes so far in making the lives of others better.