April 12, 2024
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Guide Dogs of the Desert Beneficiary of Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day at the Palm Desert Store
The organization provides custom-trained guide dogs
at no cost, bringing independence
and security to people who are legally blind.
WHITEWATER, CA: Guide Dogs of the Desert will be the beneficiary of proceeds raised during Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day, from Noon to 8 p.m., Tuesday, April 16, 2024, at The River in Palm Desert.
Guide Dogs of the Desert staff and volunteers will be on hand to answer questions throughout the day, with guide dogs in training and plenty of puppies for the public to meet and learn about.
Guide Dogs of the Desert relies on volunteers, called Puppy Raisers, to help raise the puppies during their first two years of life. With support and training from the Guide Dogs of the Desert Puppy Trainers, volunteer raisers are supported throughout the process and learn the skills necessary to get the dogs ready for their formal guide dog training. In the next few months, the organization will need 30 more puppy raisers, making this a crucial need for the organization.
In addition to prizes and give-a-ways from Ben & Jerry’s, there will be Celebrity Scoopers from the local community appearing throughout the day, and a special appearance by FUEGO, CV Firebirds Mascot for a meet and greet.
Guide Dogs of the Desert matches customer-trained Guide Dogs with visually-impaired people, ensuring that the Guide Dogs can navigate around obstacles, changes in elevation (such as stairs or curbs, buses and trains), and determine safe paths for their handler, the person who is blind. With the use of a Guide Dog, travel and mobility can be improved for people who choose to use them. Students travel from around the country to participate in Guide Dogs of the Desert’s 28-day program to learn how to work with a Guide Dog before bringing the dogs to their home environments.
Founded in 1970, Guide Dogs of the Desert has helped pair hundreds of these teams over the last fifty years. Proceeds from this fundraiser will go to support this continued work. To learn more about Guide Dogs of the Desert, you can visit
www.gddca.org or contact Tom Tarr,
ttarr@gddca.org.
About Guide Dogs of the Desert
Our Mission: Guide Dogs of the Desert provides mobility, companionship and independence for people who are blind or visually impaired blind with custom-trained guide dogs, at no cost to the individual.
Founded over 51 years ago, Guide Dogs of the Desert adheres to the premise that every person who is legally-blind or visually impaired should have the opportunity to utilize a guide dog, including those with multiple disabilities. Because of this commitment, class sizes are small and focus on the individual needs of each client.
Many clients lost their sight at birth, through a life altering accident, or have progressive eye diseases. Acquiring a guide dog can be life changing, providing a renewed sense of freedom and confidence, and the ability to partake in everyday activities that many take for granted.
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