[Ohio-talk] author seeking guide dog stories

[Sammons, Elizabeth]

All,



I received this from Scott Lissner of OSU and wanted to pass it on for those interested. You in turn may also feel free to share as appropriate





Sincerely,

Elizabeth







Dear Guide Dog Friends:



As some of you may know, I've been blessed by the opportunity to write a book about Guide Dogs for Simon and Schuster. The aim of this book is to tell the story about what guide dogs are, but more principally, to relate the human-canine stories that we all live every day as guide dog alums and staff-each of us has been transformed in amazing ways by our work with guide dogs and by all the love they bring into our lives.



Because I'm in part a memoirist, I've been writing some preliminary chapters about how I came to get a guide dog but, good as these chapters might be, my sense is that this book should be about people who are not me. So I have a deep need for your collective help.



I need your stories--stories about learning to work with a dog for the first time; about trusting a dog for the first time; about being surprised by what your dogs can do; about how the world changed around you because of working with a guide dog or because of your pairing with a dog; about the comedy and even the sad things that go with a life with guide dogs. Above all else, this books is aimed at demonstrating what a dog can do and what the people who love the can do.



But I need stories. Lots of them. No story is too big or too small! No story is too sublime or ridiculous.



I've asked my wife Connie (who some of you may remember as having been both a trainer and the admissions guru at Guiding Eyes) to help me by being my "go to" coordinator for this story collection project. Please forward this message widely and send me stories that can go into what I think will be a beautiful and timely book about the school we love and the movement we cherish. BTW, stories from alums of other schools are entirely welcome.



Connie can be emailed at: Ckuusisto at yahoo.com<mailto:Ckuusisto at yahoo.com>



Please feel free to write me at: stevekuusisto at gmail.com<mailto:stevekuusisto at gmail.com>



Please feel free to phone me at: 614-286-0155



Please feel free to send me additional ideas about people whose stories should be in this book.



All my canine joy to each and every one of you!



Steve Kuusisto

(Author of the award winning book "How to Pull Hair out of Your Head")



Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission - www.rsc.ohio.gov<http://www.rsc.ohio.gov/>
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