Last Monday all the pupils in Years 7, 8 and 9 spent an afternoon with Ms. Ioanna-Maria Gertsou and Mei, her guide dog, from the Lara Guide Dog School. Our incredible guest was able to tell the pupils of her own experiences living as a blind person in Athens with great clarity, emotion and sincerity. She showed them how she trains these dedicated working dogs by doing a demonstration with Mei. All the pupils were in awe of Ms. Ioanna-Maria’s great resilience, her passion for animals and her strong determination to make the most of every opportunity in life; they had so many interesting questions to ask her! This visit really gave our pupils an insight into the huge role that working dogs can play in the lives of people with disabilities. Pupils were also pleased to donate 420 euros, that they had fundraised through a bake-sale, to the Lara Guide Dog School. This donation will be used to purchase a guide dog puppy that will hopefully pass the training to be able to give another blind person in Greece a more independent life. If you would like to read more about the role of this worthwhile organisation or may even like to be a guide dog puppy walker please find out more at http://www.laraguidedogs.gr/en/index.php.
