- April 19, 2024
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Co-Chairs Jason Hughes and Susan Malloy Jones
Guest Speaker Keni Thomas and his service dog Keith
Marlo Turner and Mischa Kirby
Guests were blindfolded during the main course to experience eating while not being able to see.
Dessert was placed on each table setting.
"Geebee" was paint by Jean G. Farmer.
"Valor" was painted by Debbie Marucci.
Cards were placed on the tables to help guests understand the vision differences between total blindness and partial.
Phil Chaikin gets kisses from Ambassador dog Astro.
Marisa Blanca and Dick Singer
William and Lorna Nagler
Janice Shanaham and Cheryl Cummerow
John and Janice Shanaham
Leigh Hughes, Michael, Heather and Leah Yancy, Reagan Hughes and Holly Campion
Mark and Marcia Sherwin
Page Robinson, Lori Sikorski, Christine Mathis, Darrin Robinson and Jenni Kessock
Co-Chairs Jason Hughes and Susan Malloy Jones with Sean Brown and his service dog Pella.
Dawn McKnight, Debbie Marucci and Janey Donadee
Pam Wiley and Barb Janes
Carson
Rich and Dee Nicoletti
Guest Speaker Keni Thomas and his service dog Keith
CEO Titus Herman gives the welcoming speech.
It was a dog lovers paradise April 4 at Art Ovation Hotel as guests gathered together in support of Southeastern Guide Dogs.
But there was a bigger mission at hand – to raise awareness of the darkness for those not only with visual impairment, but veterans as well. As CEO Titus Herman told guests, veterans with PTSD and other disabilities experience their own version of darkness.
Southeastern Guide Dogs train dogs for the visually impaired and veterans, giving them "hope, independence, confidence and mobility." Veteran's guide dogs are trained to perform tasks such as checking corners, retrieving items and turning on lights.
After eating their dinner with a blindfold on to experience firsthand what its like to lose one of the senses, guests heard from Veteran and Southeastern Guide Dog graduate Keni Thomas, joined by his service dog Keith. Thomas was part of the 18-hour firefight recounted in the book and movie, "Black Hawk Down."
