[nfbmi-talk] just a nice story

[joe harcz Comcast]

Donations Allow Blind Man To Keep Aging Guide Dog. By MICHAEL SCHWIRTZ. For over seven years, Cecil Williams and his guide dog, Orlando, have been inseparable

companions, the dog leading his master onto buses and subway cars and through the everyday flood of pedestrians along the streets of New York. When Mr.

Williams, who is blind, fell with Orlando onto the track bed at a Harlem subway station on Tuesday morning, the dog stayed with him, even as an uptown

express train rumbled into the station and over them.. Both had only minor injuries, and Mr. Williams, 60, later credited the dog with helping to save

his life. But with Orlando scheduled to retire from service next month, Mr. Williams worried he would be unable to afford to keep him without insurance

subsidies. On Wednesday, Mr. Williams learned that he and Orlando, an 11-year-old black Labrador, will be able to remain together indefinitely. Guiding

Eyes for the Blind, a Westchester County organization trained Orlando, announced that it had received enough donations for Mr. Williams to afford to keep

his dog as a pet after he retires. Choking back tears with Orlando lying by his wheelchair, Mr. Williams called the news a 'blessing' and a 'miracle. 'The

spirit of giving, Christmas and all of that, exists -- it's in New York,' he said in a news conference at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, where he

is convalescing. 'I think it's a time to rejoice. Mr. Williams and Orlando were paired in August 2006, in part because both preferred to walk at a rapid

New York pace, said Michelle Brier, a spokeswoman for Guiding Eyes for the Blind. But it was their docile, laid-back personalities that seemed to seal

the bond between them. 'He's a gentleman; he's a gentle soul,' Mr. Williams said. 'Me and him are similar that way. As the two traversed the city's streets,

Orlando's job was to guide and protect, and he would typically cut in front of Mr. Williams before he could step into traffic or off a ledge, Mr. Williams

said. The two companions were waiting at the 125th Street subway station at St. Nicholas Avenue in Harlem when Mr. Williams, who is diabetic, felt faint.

When he began to fall, he said, Orlando tried to tug him back from the ledge. Both fell into the track bed and managed to escape being crushed by a train

by crouching in the trench between the rails. Orlando, whose black fur has started to turn somewhat gray around his mouth, has shown signs of slowing down

in the last few months, his trainer, Jessy DiNapoli, said. Guide dogs typically work until they are 8 to 10 years old, though they frequently serve beyond

that, Ms. Brier said. Mr. Williams is scheduled to be released from the hospital on Thursday, and in a few weeks he will meet his new guide dog. Orlando,

meanwhile, now has a new challenge: learning how to be a pet. 'He's a senior citizen,' Mr. Williams said. 'He's looking forward to enjoying life now. PHOTO:

Cecil Williams, 60, and his guide dog, Orlando, 11, at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center on Wednesday. The day before, they survived a fall onto the

tracks at a subway station in Harlem. (PHOTOGRAPH BY MICHAEL APPLETON FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES).