Guide Dogs celebrate 50 years with a ‘Puppycino’ - April 2010
What: Puppycino Fundraiser Launch, International Guide Dog Day
Where: The Coffee Club, The Strand, Townsville
When: Wednesday, 28 April 2010. A Guide Dog Client available for photos at 10am.
Guide Dogs Queensland will ask Townsville locals to enjoy a ‘Puppycino’ on Wednesday 28 April to help celebrate their biggest day of the year – International Guide Dog Day.
On this special day on the last Wednesday in April each year, Guide Dog Schools around the world celebrate and acknowledge the life changing role of a Guide Dog.
This year as GDQ celebrates its 50th Birthday, Townsville Coffee Club stores will sell a Puppycino coffee – a cappucino with a pawprint-shaped sprinkle, to raise funds for Guide Dogs Queensland.
GDQ’s Community Relations Officer in Townsville Mary Anne Bakker said the Puppycino had been added to the Coffee Club’s menu and 50 cents from every Puppycino sold during the month of May would go toward training more Guide Dogs.
“It costs $30,000 to breed and train each Guide Dog and there are now two people in Townsville whose lives have been changed thanks to the gift of a Guide Dog,” Ms Bakker said.
“It’s great to be working with the Coffee Club to raise funds and awareness of the rights of Guide Dog teams to access public places in Townsville. To deny Guide Dog handlers access to public places such as restaurants, hotels and taxis is discrimination and against the law in Queensland,” she said.
Ms Bakker said in 1960 Townsville was home to one of state’s first Guide Dog users - local man Hubie Morris was matched with ‘Halda’ and went on to be an advocate for the blind and well known identity about town. He was awarded an OAM in 1979 for his services to the blind and vision impaired community.
She said Guide Dogs Queensland had a proud record of service in Townsville offering Guide Dogs as well as White Cane Training to many hundreds of residents.
“We receive no funding for our Guide Dogs yet they cost $30,000 to produce. Thanks to community support, we are able to provide them and in fact all services, free of charge, to Queenslanders who are blind,” she said.
For more information contact GDQ Townsville Community Relations Officer Mary Anne Bakker on 4728 6922 or email m.bakker@guidedogsqld.com.au
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