In June 2007, Charles and Kelly worked at the Little Rock Film Festival with Georgann and Ben Freasier. Charles grew up with Georgann's sons so they've known each other for many moons. As it turns out, Georgann and Ben are avid dog lovers and train their dogs for agility. And as fate would have it, their agility trainer Linda Laughlin also trains service animals for people.
Charles and Kelly had talked about service dogs periodically over the years, but the logistics always seemed challenging. The only places that they knew of were in Florida and California and traveling that far is always a challenge. Plus, a two week visit is required when you pick up the dog to orient the new owner. Anyway, there seemed to be enough obstacles that they never pursued it very intently.
That is until Georgann convinced Charles & Kelly to ride out to Mayflower with her to meet Linda Laughlin and to see a demonstration by Linda's dog Peek-a-Boo. The demonstration was amazing! Kelly & Charles left there with tremendous excitement about the possibility of a service dog but also more keenly aware of the cost associated with acquiring such a highly trained animal. If you've ever met Georgann and Ben, then you know how dedicated they are. Periodically Georgann would ask Kelly or Charles if they were ready to talk to Linda about a service dog, but they just weren't ready to make that kind of commitment (not to mention their inability to come up with those kinds of funds!). Evidently Charles made an impression on Linda, and she realized what a dog lover he had always been. She also knew what a difference a dog could make in Charles' life. Over the years she had placed many dogs in homes to help children, and although she hadn't worked with an adult client before, she knew that the need was equally as great.
As time passed, Linda and her son Joe (also a dog trainer) eventually learned of a border collie puppy through a contact of theirs at a West Tennessee rescue.They had found a dog that would work perfectly for Charles. As a Border Collie, Rufus was tall enough to be able to reach Charles' lap to retrieve dropped items. Also, he was agile enough to be able to keep up with Charles' motorized wheelchair. And his demeanor was sweet enough that he would put everyone who encountered the duo at ease.
And that was the beginning. Georgann and Ben spearheaded the fund-raising efforts while Joe worked on Rufus. Rufus turned out to be a very quick study and mastered the tasks more quickly and better than any dog Joe had ever worked with. Georgann and Ben kindly asked everyone they knew to help with the fund-raising - either by contributing themselves or by posting fliers and spreading the word. One of the very generous doctors that Kelly works with at Arkansas Children's Hospital offered to leverage his donation by hosting a party. See more details under the thank you post, but Dr. Stanford's Raise the Rufus party was a HUGE success - both in terms of the amount of fun everyone had, but also in terms of the amount of money raised. It sealed the deal on Rufus becoming Charles's by Thanksgiving. How very blessed and lucky Charles and Kelly are!! THANK YOU to everyone who helped. Many people played big and small roles in this process, and we are grateful to each of you.
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