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Grand Island family raises funds for son's service dog
We all know the saying a dog is a man's best friend. And, the relationship between one little boy in Grand Island is evidence of that bond.
Alex suffers from a chromosomal disorder and Tourette's Syndrome, which can sometimes make life difficult. But he has one friend that won't leave his side; in fact, it's her job to stay right there. Meet Alex, a seven year old boy full of life. "Alex was born with a chromosome deficiency, 16 p, 11.3," said Alex's mother Kim Anderson. He also has a pervasive development disorder, Tourette's Syndrome, and falls under the autism spectrum. "He's blind in his left eye and he has a 25 percent hearing loss," Kim said. While there may not be a specific answer to Alex's difficulties... "There's nothing we can do for your son. We can try to treat and see him," said Kim. There is a solution. "And so the answer to me is medicine and CoCo," said Kim. Weighing in at 80 pounds, this one year old St. Bernard is Alex's best friend. One time Alex and his mother were buying cookies, she let go of his hand to rip off her check, and in an instant Alex was gone. "I was screaming and the lady in the SUV heard my screams because she couldn't see him he was so short And she slammed on her brakes but she still hit him. It was enough to knock him over, but he got up and laughed about it," said Kim. You see Alex can't feel pain. "I called the doctor and I said I can't do this anymore, somebody has to help me. Because he sticks keys in light sockets and it tickles him. He gets hit by cars and it's okay he laughs about it," Kim said. That's why he needs his guardian CoCo by his side. "She's always aware of where Alex is at. If he's being rough or being mean she goes right there. But right now she doesn't know what to do," said Kim. That's because CoCo needs training. The problem is it costs $7,000 to send CoCo to California for training to be a therapy dog. But Alex's family only has $2,000. "We try to budget for things and something always happens. a medical expense happens that can't be avoided," said Kim. Alex sees his specialist again in Florida this June and needs to have CoCo's training completed by then. "Where there's Alex, there should be CoCo." You can help Alex and his family by making a donation at Five Points Bank. Also a pancake feed will be held at the First Presbyterian Church in Grand Island this Sunday. There's a savings account set up at Five Points Bank and a donation jar at Casey's convenience store at 420 N. Broadwell, GI. A freewill donation can be made for peanut butter/honey/oatmeall dog biscuits at the Family Pet Clinic in Grand Island. For more information you can call Kim Anderson at 391-0310. |
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