I was born with a birth defect in my shoulders that progressively deteriorates as I get older. Throughout my life, I have had several surgeries to correct the problems. However, each surgery has produced both positive and negative results. Two years ago I had a complete reconstruction of the bones and muscles in my right shoulder. The hope for this surgery was to restore more function to my shoulders, while decreasing the chronic pain caused by this condition. Finally my shoulders were level and looked normal. However the pain never decreased, and I was not able to regain the function that was hoped for. To make a long story short: I still live with chronic pain, and I am no longer able to physically pursue my trained profession. I have returned to school in order to train for a profession that will be more suited to the physical limitations of my body.

I was researching the idea of obtaining a service dog when Molly came into my life. Molly is a service dog specially trained to serve individuals with mobility disabilities. Molly will be able to assist me with tasks that are difficult or impossible for me to accomplish without help. Her assistance will allow me to finish school faster, therefore allowing me to reenter the work force sooner. Molly's assistance will help me manage my pain and energy levels more efficiently by allowing me to spend more time on the tasks I am physically capable of doing for myself, while she does those things for me that I cannot do.