Service Dogs

Meet Me At The Corner And Canine Companions For Independence

Do any of you have children? If so, or even if you don’t have kids, have you ever heard of the website “MEET MET AT THE CORNER?”

Until recently I had not heard of the website, but lucky for me I received an email regarding a recent featured video about Canine Companions for Independence (CCI). Of course after hearing about a video about CCI I immediately rushed over to check it out. I was thrilled to not only see a great interview with one of CCI’s puppy raisers, but also witnessed perhaps the next Barbara Walters. Maybe I’m going a little too far, but I was definitely intrigued by the young lady (Katelyn) conducting the interview.

Meet Me At The Corner – Virtual Field Trips For Kids

What exactly is the MEET ME AT THE CORNER website all about? Check out this little excerpt from the about us section of the website:

MEET ME AT THE CORNER, Virtual Field Trips for Kids, is a dynamic, interactive site, which encourages individual expression and participation through video submissions from children worldwide. Through these video pod casts we hope to create a community of children, who learn the art of self-expression and storytelling through video.

What a great concept! I sat back and watched several other videos from MEET ME AT THE CORNER and each time I was absolutely astonished by the professionalism of the kids conducting interviews.

Looking back at my own childhood I never would have built up the nerve to conduct an interview with adults. Great job by all the kids and adults involved with this website!

If you have a chance I definitely recommend you check out Katelyn’s video on Canine Companions for Independence (CCI). Here’s a little CCI snippet from the website:

CANINE COMPANIONS FOR INDEPENDENCE

Eight-year old, Katelyn, learns about the importance of service dogs for people with disabilities and meets a pet owner who is raising a puppy for Canine Companions for Independence.

How about you? Are you interested in sharing your corner of the world? If so visit MeetMeAtTheCorner.org for more information.

Trixie Koontz A CCI Golden Retriever and Author

Once again while sorting through my RSS reader I came across a touching article about a man and his dog mentioned on the Bark-N-Blog. A story about how this dog transformed lives. The dog I’m talking about is Trixie Koontz, a Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) service dog who entered early retirement because of elbow surgery. Of course the “man” I was talking about is the famous horror novelist, Dean Koontz.

Here’s a little excerpt from the article:

When Trixie met us, she was a highly educated and refined young lady of three. We were standing with others, but she came right to us, tail swishing, as if she had been shown photographs of us and knew we were to be her new mom and dad.

Here’s the full article and be sure to have some Kleenex in hand: Our Golden Girl.

I’ve had many dogs throughout my life and it’s been over 7 years since we lost our last dog, but I can’t bear the thought of losing either Stetson (almost 3) or Linus (almost 5). Hopefully I will be better prepared in the coming years.

By the way, not only was Trixie a wonderful family dog, but she is also an accomplished author of several books. Take a look at some of the books she wrote:

Bliss to You: Trixie’s Guide to a Happy Life

Life is Good!: Lessons in Joyful Living

Christmas Is Good: Trixie’s Guide to a Happy Holiday

If you have any touching stories about you and your dog please tell us in the comment section below.