Guide Dog Surprise For American Idol’s Scott MacIntyre
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I saw this article early in the week on Paula Abdul Surprises Idol’s Scott MacIntyre with Guide Dog, but I’m just finally getting a chance to post a short article. Actually throughout the week my RSS reader has been filling up with other articles and commentary about Paula Abdul’s Surprise Guide Dog.
American Idol Star to Get Guide Dog
Actually the main thing that caught my attention was the Guide Dog organization that will supply Scott MacIntrye with a guide dog: Guide Dogs of America! Yep, isn’t that exciting!
If you haven’t already take a look at the article on Eonline. Check out the video from the article…if you’re a GDA puppy raiser I’m sure you’ll recognize the GDA campus in the video footage.
Guide Dogs of America Puppies
After reading the article headline, I thought he was in the last graduating class with our friend Jamaica. After reading the entire article the press conference was on Friday, not Sunday (GDA graduation day) and Scott won’t start training at GDA until after the America Idol tour ends on September 15th.
Now a few things started racing through my mind after I saw this news. First, what graduating class is Scott going to graduate from and will he get one of the dogs from our Orange County group. Now I’m speculating, but if he is really serious about getting a Guide Dog then the earliest he’d be able to start training is after the American Idol tour ended. That means he’d have a shot at graduating in the October 25th, 2009 graduation. I’m going to guess it’s fairly unlikely he would graduate on that date, but just in case I took a look at the OCGDA website to see what dogs were in for training. Lex, a black lab and Egan a black and tan labrador retriever are both at GDA and could potentially graduate on that date.
The next two graduation dates after that are January 31st 2010 and May 2nd 2010. That means Dexter and Dutch could have a chance at being on a celebrity guide dog team.
Anyways, I’m glad Guide Dogs of America is getting publicity and hopefully it’s helping with donations during this recession.
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Thanks Denise for adding Lorri’s comment! This helps clarify things. The articles I read (and there were many) were very confusing.
Hopefully the end result is good publicity for GDA and an increase in donations.
This came from Lori @ GDA
Hi everyone,
The real story of what happened on Friday at GDA with Paula Abdul
and Scott MacIntyre from American Idol fame.
Your confusion is absolutely granted….the best way I can say about
what happened is that it was a media “spin”. Over and over I had
prepped Paula to make sure that she states that the dogs that Scott will
be walking with, neither one of them will be given to him – that these
dogs will be “similar to one that he would get if he chose to come to
GDA for the 28-day training process – AFTER he goes through the whole
application process”. As you have seen, the media took a much different
spin, as did Paula in her delivery of the events of the day.
Unfortunatly, when the media and celebrity is concerned, the end result
of the article or TV spot is out of our hands, but the real end result
of how/when someone receives a guide dog still remains in our control.
I spoke with Scott in detail for a long time after the media left to
explain to him that this turned out to be a “media blitz” and that
if/when he decides to get a guide dog, we will talk again at that time.
There is no way we at GDA would EVER “surprise” someone with a guide dog
without going through the whole application process – no matter who they
are, and I’m sorry that the media and Paula presented it in a different
light. At this point, Scott’s life is very busy and full, and at this
stage in his life, his career is very important to him. Maybe down the
road a guide dog will be next to him, but I assur you all that he will
have to complete the same process as any other visually impaired person
would.
Lorri Bernson (and guide dog “Nigel”!)
Guide Dogs of America