[nagdu] Blind Lexington athlete making history with dog

[Steven Johnson]

Sami Stoner, a junior runner at Lexington, competes with her guide dog,
Chloe, at the Galion Cross Country Festival this fall. Stoner is believed to
be the first high school athlete in Ohio to run cross country with a guide
dog. / Submitted photo 
Written by
Rob McCurdy 
News Journal


Filed Under
News
Local News
WHAT IS STARGARDT DISEASE? PILOT DOGS

Founded by Stanley Doran, Charles W. Medick and Everett R. Steece in 1950 in
Columbus, it is a private, nonprofit organization that trains guide dogs for
the blind.


Recipients must be at least a junior in high school and able to care for the
dog, plus document their medical history and need through an extensive
interview and screening process.


Puppies are raised by foster families to socialize them to deal with people
of all sorts, large crowds, traffic and other animals. After about a year,
the dogs are returned to Pilot Dogs, where they undergo six months of
specialized training to help the needs of the blind.


Recipients must spend four weeks living at Pilot Dogs on West Town Street in
Columbus learning to work with their dog. From four students in 1950, Pilot
Dogs now pairs up to 150 students with dogs each year. Among the breeds used
in the program are golden retrievers, Doberman pinschers, German shepherds,
Labrador retrievers, standard poodles, boxers and vizslas.


No government dollars support Pilot Dogs. Funding comes from membership
drives, the Lions Club and donations. The program is free for the blind.


For information, visit Sites.Google.com/site/ pilotdogs or call
614-221-6367.


It is an inherited form of macular degeneration that starts in childhood or
teen years. It affects about one in every 10,000 children and leads to legal
blindness.


It is a progressive loss of central vision, though peripheral vision is
often retained. The disease was first reported in 1901 by German
ophthalmologist Karl Stargardt.


There is no cure, and very little that can be done to slow its progression.





Source: American Macular Degeneration Foundation 

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LEXINGTON -- Sami Stoner has yet to cross the finish line in first place,
but she has won over fans while trying.

In the process, she's become a champion for teens with challenges.

Stoner, who is legally blind and a runner on the Lexington girls cross
country team, is believed to be the first high school athlete in Ohio to
compete with a guide dog.

"How could anyone in cross country complain when you look at what she is
doing? It's powerful stuff," Lexington head coach Denise Benson said.

Yet, that powerful example almost wasn't allowed to happen.

Historic precedent
As with anything pioneering, Stoner's quest was initially met with
resistance.

"We had a hard time getting her approved through the OHSAA," Lexington
assistant coach Anne Petrie said. "(Athletic Director) John Harris went
above and beyond to get Sami a dispensation."

In order for Stoner to compete in events sanctioned by the Ohio High School
Athletic Association, a waiver was needed. Harris made the phone calls to
the organization's Columbus office and was denied.

"Initially they thought they couldn't do anything like that because in other
sports it would be hard to compete with a Pilot Dog, as you could imagine in
a sport like soccer, for example," Harris said of the OHSAA's concern about
precedent.

But he wasn't going to be denied. Harris continued to appeal to Dale Gabor,
the director of cross country and track and field for the OHSAA, each time
hashing out ways to safely allow Stoner to run.

"To be very honest and be what the OHSAA stands for, we want to accommodate
any kids with disabilities," Gabor said.

When OHSAA commissioners told Gabor it was his call, it didn't take him long
to search his soul.

"As I told John, she already has a handicap. She doesn't need another one,
so let her run," Gabor said of the decision made in September. "We have to
do what's best for kids, and we either stand with them or we don't."

Gabor's waiver came with conditions. Stoner has to wait 20 seconds after the
start of the race before she can run. That's to assure the dog doesn't get
spiked or inadvertently knock another runner over. Stoner can pass other
runners, but she can't impede them with the dog. She is to be a non-scoring
competitor, and if finish chutes are deemed too small, she cannot cross the
finish line with the dog for the same reasons she can't start with the
field.

"We agreed full-heartedly," Harris said. "What's happened to her isn't fair,
but she's such a positive example for everyone, and it motivated me to get
this done."

Gabor, who has been around the sport for decades, believes Stoner is a
trailblazer, possibly the first blind cross country runner to compete with a
guide dog. He thinks she exemplifies the purpose of interscholastic sports,
which is to broaden horizons and teach life lessons.

"The example she sets for those kids is phenomenal," Gabor said.

The funny thing is Stoner didn't set out to be a role model, just a runner.

"I don't run for time or place or anything. I run because I love it," she
said.

Running with blindness
Like dozens of kids at Lexington, Stoner ran cross country in junior high,
and she enjoyed the sport. However, in eighth grade, her vision began to
worsen.

"When she started having eye problems, I thought that part of her life was
over," her father Keith Stoner said. "It took eight or nine months to get
the diagnosis, and as you can imagine, the Internet is a wonderful thing and
a scary thing."

Stoner and his wife, Lisa, were trying to figure out what the problem was
and what kind of future lay ahead for their daughter. When they finally got
the diagnosis, it was a worst-case scenario.

Sami had inherited Stargardt disease, a juvenile form of macular
degeneration that robs children and teens of their central vision. She would
soon be legally blind, although she retains some of her peripheral vision.

"I was devastated. You have hopes for your kids, and a lot of it has to do
with the things you see. It was a tough time for all of us," her father
said.

Stoner's only question for doctors was whether she'd ever get to drive a
car.

"She was pretty down," Keith said of the answer she received. "She was 14 at
the time. She's now 16 and a lot of her friends are getting licenses and
it's hard. She has a lot of wonderful friends and they are so good about
picking her up and including her."

One thing Stoner could do is run.

"When she ran in ninth grade, we wondered how she would do it," Benson said.

Stoner ran with a companion runner. Hannah Ticoras became her guide, telling
Stoner to watch for this root or that rut as they ran side-by-side.

The two became so close, members of the team began referring to them as
Hami, a good-natured combination of Hannah and Sami.

But Ticoras graduated in 2010 and Stoner's eyesight continued to fade,
leaving many to wonder if she had a future in running competitively.

Enter Chloe
In the uncertainty arose an opportunity.

"Sami mentioned it to me as early as last spring," Keith Stoner said. "She
had a man come up from Columbus to work with her and he recommended her for
a guide dog, and they're pretty restrictive about that."

Founded in Columbus, Pilot Dogs has been training guide dogs for the blind
since 1950. It's a private, nonprofit charity that requires a recipient to
undergo an extensive screening process.

One of Stoner's first questions was whether she could learn to run with the
dog.

"There are individuals that do it and have run marathons. It's her dog, but
we caution against it," Pilot Dogs director Jay Gray said. "The concern is
not every individual is capable of it. It is very rare."

Stoner had to spend four weeks this summer living full-time at Pilot Dogs,
learning how to use her guide dog, a golden retriever named Chloe.
Fortunately, Stoner's and Chloe's trainer was an avid runner.

"Her and Sami hit it off and they worked closely together," Keith Stoner
said. "They didn't run enough because they had a lot to learn, but they did
run."

Stoner needed to work her way up to run distance races, and so did her
year-and-a-half old compatriot. Chloe ran up to a mile for a week, then up
to two miles for a week-and-a-half, then the three miles for cross country.

"It took a while for Sami and the dog to get conditioned to run that far,"
Harris said. "I had complete faith that Chloe could function in this. My
concern was with Sami and her safety and well-being. If you see them
compete, they are basically one runner, and it's hard not to get emotional."

Benson was ecstatic for Stoner.

"I coached her for three years, and I could see how hard it was getting for
her (to see), so I was excited about the opportunity Chloe would give her as
an athlete," the head coach said. "I was counting down the days until they
could get back home together."

When they did return, practices could be trying for Stoner. The dog is
trained to come to a stop at all curbs, which makes running in town a
difficult process.

There were other rules that had to be followed. Benson printed out a list of
do's and don'ts with the dog and gave them to the team and parents. Chief
among the rules is no one is allowed to pet or address Chloe while the
harness is on.

"At first it was a little awkward, but now it's just a part of Sami and it
is how it is," Benson said.

Running with Chloe
Running cross country for a sighted runner can be harrowing. The ground is
uneven and any number of sticks, ruts, roots, stones and bumps can knock a
runner out of a race with an injury.

"It's scary," Stoner admitted. "You have to have a lot of trust, and good
ankles help, too."

It's one thing coaching a runner with two legs, but what about one with
four?

"We had to teach Chloe a certain gait," Petrie said. "If you watch Sami and
Chloe run together, you'll see Chloe almost trot. What's interesting is Sami
is guiding the dog, really. The dog is following Sami's commands. The dog is
not pacing Sami; Sami is pacing the dog."

At times, Stoner looks as though she's running with her eyes closed, but
she's really using what's left of her peripheral vision to see her next
step. Meanwhile, Chloe looks straight ahead to make sure all is clear in
front of the duo.

"I'm just trying to stay focused to keep her focused," Stoner said. "I
thought she would go toward the people cheering, but she barely looks to her
sides. She just keeps amazing me."

Cross country races can be chaotic, with fans crossing the running path,
people yelling and other dogs brought by spectators running about, but Chloe
just runs, and so does Stoner.

"I think she's geared toward racing now, which is very cool," Petrie said.

Cross country courses aren't always marked well, so it's important that they
get a trial walkthrough before a race.

"She kind of gets a feel for how the course goes," Stoner said. "While we're
running, she leads me around roots and stuff, and when she turns, I can feel
it in the harness so I can just kind of follow her so she can find a clear
spot.

"It looks a lot harder than it really is."

It looks uncomfortable for Stoner as she hangs onto the harness across the
dog's back with her left hand and holds a leash with her right hand, so
she's essentially running with little arm movement.

"Anyone who thinks it's helping her needs to try to run with one arm while
holding onto a dog. It's hard to run with a dog," Benson said.

But Stoner has adapted.

"In the last race her paw got scuffed up, so I didn't do the cool down with
her. I was running by myself, and I thought I was going to fall over. I felt
so off balance. It's just something you get used to," Stoner said.

Last year while running with her companion runner, Stoner ran a 31:19 at
Ontario. A year later with Chloe, that time dropped to 30:24 while giving
away 20 seconds at the start. Stoner may have started last, but she didn't
finish last, passing seven runners on the course at Marshall Park in late
September.

"It's a very good feeling," Stoner admitted through an aw-shucks smile.

A champion
Chloe has become not only an accepted member of the team, but of the school.

"She just sleeps through all her classes," Stoner joked. "I'm a little bit
jealous, but it's all right."

Harris said the dog goes unnoticed, lying by Sami's side until it's time to
switch classes. In the hallway when it's busy, Chloe acts as a wedge between
the crowd and Stoner to make sure no one inadvertently bumps into her.

Stoner is enjoying the high school experience. Petrie and Benson, who taught
her science and math respectively in that trying year as an eighth-grader,
marvel at her spirit.

"She's just an incredibly brave young lady," Petrie said. "She gets great
grades. I also coach her in Destination Imagination, a creative problem
solving group. It's more of an academic team, and I've coached her for four
years in that. She is so creative. She writes songs. She acts. She's very
modest and won't tell you that."

In the early stages of the disease, teachers would make special copies for
Stoner with enlarged high-contrasting print. Now she works exclusively off
an iPad.

"She does the same things as any student. She's just doing what she can to
equalize the playing field," Benson said. "She's such a wonderful young
lady, and she's not letting her disabilities dictate who she is."

And that's been the case in cross country.

"Each and every day, that's what my job is -- to coach," Benson said. "She
doesn't want to be treated any less. She has goals for the race.

"She is able to do this sport, and that's what is so great. Sami has
ability. And I think she can get to 24 minutes."

Stoner admits this is a learning year with Chloe.

"We're just hoping to keep on racing and hopefully keep breaking our times.
We're just trying to do our best. Hopefully, next season we can just keep
getting better," she said.

Keith Stoner, who is a member of the Lexington school board, is grateful to
Benson and Petrie for all their work with his daughter and her dog. He
appreciates Harris for his tenacity in getting her waiver and the OHSAA and
Gabor for granting it. Most of all, he's thankful for everyone's acceptance
of Sami and the school's understanding of her plight.

"It's a great message," he said. "She's never going to be up front getting a
medal, but as far as my wife and I are concerned, she wins every race.

"I'm thankful that puppy was brought into our lives."

That puppy turned a teen-aged girl into a champion.

rmccurdy at gannett.com
419-521-7241

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not
seen." Hebrews 11