Dear GDUI Members and Friends,
In our announcement this week, we are sharing several pieces of exciting news. At the same time, we are worrying about all our members and friends who may be coping with wild fires in California, as well as the extraordinary measures implemented by California energy companies in an effort to prevent fires. We want to remind you about our Disaster Assistance and Preparedness Program (DAPP), which can help with any guide-dog-care-related expenses arising from a catastrophe , such as a wild fire. Remember to visit this page on our web site for information and instructions for reaching out to GDUI for assistance: https://guidedogusersinc.org/resources/disaster-assistance-preparedness-program-dapp/. You may also call GDUI’s toll free number to request disaster-related assistance: 866.799.8436. Thank you to Dixie Sanderson, Chair of our DAPP Committee, and her committee members for always being available to help and for all that you do to assist our members and our guide dogs. Please stay safe and know that we care about all of you who may be enduring an over-abundance of smoke, who may need to evacuate, who are overwhelmed or simply concerned about the safety of friends and relatives and members of the community and planet that we all share.
Exciting news: The GDUI Juno Report is back! And, you will love our October program, which debuted last week on ACB Radio Mainstream.
This month’s episode features the luncheon presentation from the 2019 Guide Dog Users Inc. convention. Learn about GDUI Treasurer Lynn Merrill’s lifelong dream to climb Maine’s highest peak, Mount Katahdin and how she did exactly that, with the help of her guide dog, her family, and an instructor from Fidelco Guide Dog foundation. This is a presentation you won’t want to miss even if you can’t envision yourself and your guide dog ever setting forth to conquer a mountain top! Lynn’s presentation, which features a film documenting the adventure she shared with her Fidelco guide dog, Libby, which was aired on her local NBC-affiliated television station, is just fabulous!
The Juno Report for October also includes some announcements, and highlights of the GDUI awards presentation from our 2019 convention.
The GDUI Juno Report airs on ACB Radio Mainstream on Thursdays at 4:00 AM, 7:00 AM, 4:00 PM, and 7:00 PM (eastern).
It also plays on Sunday at 9:00 PM and Monday at 12:00 AM, 9:00 AM, and 12:00 PM.
Beginning today, October 13, you can listen to the October GDUI Juno Report as a podcast, and to podcasts of subsequent monthly programs if you subscribe.
A direct link to the podcast feed is:
To subscribe in iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gdui-juno-report/id1107836850
We are excited about the return of our well-received GDUI Juno Report. We encourage everyone to listen, subscribe, and share this good news with friends and family members who are interested in the guide dog life style! Thank you so much to our Second Vice President and all-things-ACB-Radio guru, Deb Lewis for bringing our Juno Report back, and to Jeff Bishop and the ACB Radio team for helping our program to return.
If you would like to help with production of our GDUI Juno Report, by making suggestions, providing content, or simply adding feedback or commentary, we know that Deb would love to hear from you. Contact Deb Lewis atmailto:vp2@guidedogusersinc.org
An informative program, sponsored by Golden State Guide Dog Users, explores: Just how well do New Technologies like Accessible GPS and AIRA, mix with guide dog travel? You’re invited!
Steve Hoyt from Pilot Dogs and Greg Steinmetz from Guide Dogs of America will share their professional expertise on mixing new technologies with guide dog travel. Greg Steinmetz, manager of Admissions and Graduate Services at Guide Dogs of America, will share his first-hand experience and talk about how he integrates guide dog travel and technology, and O&M specialist, Steve Hoyt, will provide valuable insight based on what he’s learned and observed over the years.
Date: Monday, November 4
Time: 7 to 8:30PM, Pacific Time
Using Zoom, dial: 408.638.0968/
ID: 158236260
Smartphone or online Zoom:
If you have questions for Steve and Greg about guide dog travel and tech, please send your questions by Monday, October 28 via e-mail to GSGDHI Programs Committee chair, Mail George at
Speaking of accessible GPS, here’s a new possibility to check out! Google has announced a new detailed voice guidance feature in Google Maps to help people with visual impairments. According to the online description, the feature which is now incorporated into Google Maps, makes frequent announcements similar to what you might hear at crosswalks or on a bus. Right now, it’s available in English in the United States and Japanese in Japan, with support for additional languages and countries on the way. To turn the feature on, go to your Google Maps settings and select “Navigation.” At the bottom of the list you’ll find the option to enable “Detailed voice guidance,” beneath the “Walking options” heading. Google Maps can be downloaded, free of charge, from the App Store, and the app is available for both IOS and Android.
Visit this link for more information:
If you and your guide dog try the app, please review your experience with all of us on our GDUI-Chat list, in PawTracks, or via the GDUI Juno Report! To submit an article to PawTracks, send your article, via e-mail to PawTracks Editor, Andrea Giudice, mailto:editor@guidedogusersinc.org. To share your experiences with GPS – or anything else! – with GDUI Juno Report listeners, contact Deb Lewis at mailto:vp2@guidedogusersinc.org. Let them know in the subject field, the purpose of your e-mail! And don’t forget about GDUI-Chat – where everyone loves to talk about everything guide-dog-related! To subscribe to the GDUI Chat list, visit this link: gduichatlist-subscribe@guidedogusersinc.org
If you missed our September 21st GDUI board meeting, you can easily access the meeting recording. Date: Sep 21, 2019 12:51 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Meeting Recording:
https://zoom.us/recording/share/EXmuSTFQcKv2TJNEceYFB5jw7negp9rvr4QF5B3xuJywIumekTziMw
Thank you to Maria Kristic for managing the Zoom aspects of our meeting and for making the recording available.
It’s almost Blind Americans Equality Day (formerly White Cane Safety Day). However you and your guide dog choose to celebrate, make sure you get out there in public view and strut your stuff! Equality, after all, is what we are all striving for, what we deserve, and, one day, what we will all achieve!
Fall seems to have finally arrived in our mid-Atlantic region of the world, and Willow and I are enjoying the crunch of leaves underfoot and looking forward to all of the holiday events that are coming up quite soon. We wish all of you and all of your guides happiness and safe travels during this season of frosty mornings and shortening days. Thank you for your friendship and support.
Sincerely,
Penny Reeder, President
Guide Dog users, Inc.
mailto:President@GuideDogUsersInc.org
Maria Hansen, First Vice President
Guide Dog Users, Inc.
mailto:vp1@GuideDogUsersInc.org
Visit our web site: https://www.guidedogusersinc.org/
Call us, toll-free, at 866.799.8436
Our Facebook page can be accessed at
https://www.facebook.com/GDUInc/
, our Facebook group can be accessed at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/GDUINC/
, and our Twitter timeline can be accessed at https://twitter.com/gduinc
Download or subscribe to the GDUI Juno Report pod cast here: http://acbradio.org/gdr.xml
Support GDUI when you use this link to shop at Amazon.com:
http://smile.amazon.com/ch/52-1871119.
SUPPORT GUIDE DOG USERS, INC GROUP #999969764 when you purchase candles and other decorative items from the Yankee Candle Store here: https://www.yankeecandlefundraising.com/store.htm.
To join the GDUI-Announce List, visit this link: http://www.acblists.org/mailman/listinfo/gdui-announce
To subscribe to the GDUI Chat list, visit this link: gduichatlist-subscribe@guidedogusersinc.org
To subscribe to the (members only) GDUI Business list, visit this link: