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Thanks again!

Press Release

Can you imagine living life with your child like you're walking on eggshells everyday? That's how it seems when you have a child who has emotional, social and neurobiological disorders.

Andrew, my 9-year-old son, was diagnosed with Bipolar and ADHD at age 3. Along with that also came Separation Anxiety, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, and Social Dysfunction. Allot of big words for such a little child. His day-to-day life is not like other kids his age at all. He struggles to stay focused on even the smallest task, struggles to relate to his peers, and meltdowns so severe that he's damaged things and left marks on his family.

People think he can control it and he's just a bad kid, but in reality he can't and he isn't. He can't stop the mood swings that run his life. He can't sit still long enough to read DR Suess, let alone a book he should be able to read at his age and grade level; not because he doesn't want to, but because he's psychologically incapable of doing such a thing.

He's struggled for years with sleeping problems. At 9 years old he still spends most nights sleeping in his sleeping bag on the floor of my bedroom because he doesn't want to be alone. What is the solution to this type of problem? Medicine and therapy help, yes, but there is yet another type of help that could greatly benefit my son. What is it, you ask? It's a dog. No, not just any dog. It's a trained and certified multipurpose service dog. A dog would allow him the ability to not feel alone when I'm not in the same room as him. It would give him comfort and a constant, nonjudgmental friend. It would be trained in behavior modification and distraction, to help him change directions and calm down when needed, instead of getting aggressive. It would change his life!

There's an organization in Xenia, Ohio, called, "4 Paws for Ability" that raises and trains service dogs for children and adults. Some of the disabilities they train service dogs to assist with are Autism, mobility issues, seizure disorders and psychological disorders. These are only a few among the numerous problems these dogs can address. While most agencies won't train dogs for children, they will. Andrew has been approved to have a dog placed with him! It is, however, it's not cheap to raise and train these special dogs. Instead of being put on a 3-5 year waiting list we have agreed to raise $11,000 for this wonderful organization, who will then place a dog with Andrew that has been specifically trained for him.

I'm asking for everyone's help in making this dream come true. Tax deductible donations may be made online at www.4pawsforability.org or sent to: "4 Paws for Ability," 253 Dayton Ave., Xenia, OH 45385. Be sure to indicate "In Honor of Andrew Smith (2)" on your donation.