A. E. Wright students see the need for guide dog awareness

EYES TO SEE- Students and faculty from A.E. Wright Middle School present a check to the Guide Dogs for the Blind organization. Third from right, teacher Robin Schneider, with her guide dog Evita, was the inspiration for the project. Student Brandon Begg, far left, played a key role in helping to raise funds for the nonprofit organization. Because of the awareness raised by teacher Robin Schneider and her guide dog, Evita, the students at A.E. Wright Middle School in Calabasas came up with a $1,100 donation for the Guide Dogs for the Blind organization in San Rafael, Calif.

Schneider, a visually impaired instructional assistant at the Calabasas middle school, works in a special education program that teaches social skills to autistic students.

When Schneider and Evita first came to work last fall, the students were naturally curious about the role of guide dogs. As a result, Schneider and Evita began visiting classrooms to discuss proper guide dog etiquette and the fact that dogs are provided to the visually impaired at no cost.

The raising, training and placing of a guide dog is funded solely by donations. The A.E. Wright students did their part and raised more than $1,000 to pay for the cost of transporting puppies to and from the families who volunteer to raise the service dogs before they graduate to advanced guide dog training.

Special education student Brandon Begg was actively involved in the fundraising project.

For more information about the role of these special dogs and the people they help, visit www.guidedogs.com.