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Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani hosted a Gracie Mansion reception this evening in honor of Guiding Eyes for the Blind - an organization committed to assisting people who are blind and the visually impaired. Since its founding in 1954, Guiding Eyes for the Blind has provided guide dogs at no cost to thousands of blind people throughout the world. The organization raises and trains guide dogs, provides training for recipients and their guide dogs, and offers a lifetime of follow-up support.
Joining the Mayor for the reception were Guiding Eyes Chief Executive
Officer William D. Badger; three-time graduate of the Guiding Eyes training
program Curt Landtroop; Actor Dominic Chianesi from "The Sopranos;"
and former Guiding Eyes guide dog, now Giuliani family dog Goalie.
"Since 1954, Guiding Eyes for the Blind has done enormously valuable
work for people who are blind or visually impaired," Mayor Giuliani said.
"The more than 5,700 dogs that have been trained through Guiding Eyes
have brought freedom, independence and happiness to so many blind people throughout
the world. I want to thank every one of you who have made Guiding Eyes'
remarkable generosity possible through volunteer work and contributions.
"I can personally vouch for the quality of the dogs provided by Guiding Eyes - my beloved dog Goalie is a former guide dog trained by this wonderful group," the Mayor added.
Guiding Eyes for the Blind is dedicated to providing visually impaired men and women with the freedom to travel safely, thereby assuring them greater independence, dignity and new horizons of opportunity. Guiding Eyes for the Blind operates solely from individual, corporate and foundation support. Additional information is available from the organization's website at www.guiding-eyes.org.
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