The Pet Valu Walk for Dog Guides will be without a staple of the annual event this year.
Norma Jean, the well-known dog guide of Laura Joyce, suffered a twisted bowel and died unexpectedly on March 17. Norma Jean served Joyce for eight years as “the best” dog guide she ever had.
“She was happy and healthy one day and gone the next,” said Joyce, organizer of the Orillia walk. “Even on the last day of her life, when they were bringing her in so I could say goodbye, her tail was still wagging even though she was in so much pain and discomfort.”
The death of her dog has left the visually impaired Joyce without peace of mind and a sense of independence.
“I felt safe with her,” she said. “Without her, I’ve felt lonely, isolated and confined.”
Joyce, 54, says she’s been dealing with depression since losing her “best friend.”
The Lions Foundation of Canada, which matches people with a dog guides at no cost, will be able to provide Joyce with her next dog in September.
Joyce says the support she is receiving from the Lions Foundation of Canada is what makes her so passionate about the Pet Valu Walk for Dog Guides, which will take place Sept. 24 at Tudhope Park.
“As soon as Norma died, the Orillia Lions Club, Oro-Medonte Lions Club and Washago Lions Club all pitched in to make sure I would get a dog,” she told OrilliaMatters while battling tears.
Last year, the Pet Valu Walk for Dog Guides raised close to $8,000. The goal for this year’s event is $10,000. The money is put toward seven dog-training programs that can help people with autism, those who are blind or visually impaired, hearing impaired, in wheelchairs, diabetic, have seizures, and who need emotional support while dealing with trauma.
“We want to make sure that everybody who wants a canine companion and is in need of one is covered,” Joyce said. “Each dollar raised goes directly to the care and support of these dogs, and it’s about $30,000 to train each dog.”
Registration for the event will begin at 10 a.m. and the walk will start at 11 a.m. There is no cost to register, and pre-registration can be completed here.
“Even if you only want to sponsor yourself $20, every dollar matters,” Joyce said. “Any age, any fitness level, with or without a dog — we want everybody to be there.”
