Marion Gwizdala is the president of the National Association of Guide Dog Users, a division of the National Federation of the Blind. Marion has been involved with the NFB since 1984 and has been a guide dog user since 1987. Marion is in private practice as a Life Coach and hypnotherapist in Brandon, Florida. He is a published author, lecturer, and workshop facilitator on such topics as stress management, behavior modification, the body-mind connection, psychosocial aspects of disability and blindness, and legal issues of guide/service dog use.

California is the only State in the Union with a State Guide Dog Board. This Board is the licensing agency within the Department of Consumer Affairs which licenses California’s three guide dog schools and their instructors.
On or about the year 1948, we had 21 so-called guide dog schools in California. At that time, blind persons could get guide dogs through the mail and with Braille manuals for training purposes. Some of our pioneers in the blindness movement sought legislation to create this much needed Board.
The Board cut the schools down to three which we have today.

Participants:

Keith McGregor, Director of Canine Training and Special Needs at Leader Dogs for the Blind will give an overview of Leader Dog’s Deaf-Blind guide dog program including a brief history of how and why the program was developed. Keith has been a guide dog mobility instructor for over 27 years and has trained more than 60 people who are Deaf-Blind to use a Leader Dog.
Keith will answer questions from listeners about Leader Dog’s guide dog program related to people who are Deaf-Blind, those with multiple disabilities, or those who are strictly visually impaired.