Appalachian Trail Thru Hike for CCI
Donation protected
My name is Megan and this is Whoopi in the photo. Whoopi is a 4 year old hearing dog that was matched with me in the spring of 2013 by Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) in Santa Rosa, California. The reason why we were matched is because I was born hearing impaired with moderate to severe hearing loss in both ears. I must wear hearing aids to function as "normal" as possible, but it still is a struggle to understand or know what's going on around me. This is where Whoopi comes in. Whoopi assists me by alerting me by pushing me with her nose to my alarm going off, my phone, the timer, the stove timer, doorbell, my name being called, and so on. I am also able to watch her body language to help me figure out if there is something going on around that I may need to pay attention to. She has helped me to be aware of people walking by behind us, other dogs nearby, trucks backing up, forklifts at the hardware store, etc.
CCI and the wonderful volunteers that help to train dogs like Whoopi are providing independence to those of us who are handicapped, and they do so at no charge to graduates. CCI does what they do purely by donations and volunteers.
Whoopi and I are striving to raise $20,000 for CCI to help pay it forward to them and to others as it can take up to $50,000 to raise and train one CCI working dog. The fundraiser will occur throughout this year leading up till when Whoopi and I will be thru-hiking the 2,183+ mile Appalachian Trail for six months next year (2016) for CCI. The purpose of this GoFundMe is to help us offset the costs of necessary supplies (Whoopi has a food allergy so has to eat a specific type of food that is not availabe on the trail), postage, lodging, transportation, and emergency replacement gear in order for us to complete the fundraiser and hike. It is estimated that the trail can cost up to $5000 or more just in food/supplies, lodging, replacing failed gear, and transportation along the trail. This does not however include the costs for bills that still have to paid at home that I still have to save for since I will obviously be unemployed during this time. I am currently on track to save enough funds to hike half of the trail, and that's why I am reaching out to the community through GoFundme for help. Any remaining funds raised here not used for the trip will be donated to CCI.org.
Any amount will help us get that much closer to being able to hike the trail. If you're interested in donating to Canine Companions for Independence directly - you can do so at CCI.org or on our donation registry page at Contour and Whoopi's CCI Registry Page.
Thank you for your time and donation!
If you have any questions at all or would like to follow us on our journey - please follow us on our blog at www.ContourandWhoopi.com.
CCI and the wonderful volunteers that help to train dogs like Whoopi are providing independence to those of us who are handicapped, and they do so at no charge to graduates. CCI does what they do purely by donations and volunteers.
Whoopi and I are striving to raise $20,000 for CCI to help pay it forward to them and to others as it can take up to $50,000 to raise and train one CCI working dog. The fundraiser will occur throughout this year leading up till when Whoopi and I will be thru-hiking the 2,183+ mile Appalachian Trail for six months next year (2016) for CCI. The purpose of this GoFundMe is to help us offset the costs of necessary supplies (Whoopi has a food allergy so has to eat a specific type of food that is not availabe on the trail), postage, lodging, transportation, and emergency replacement gear in order for us to complete the fundraiser and hike. It is estimated that the trail can cost up to $5000 or more just in food/supplies, lodging, replacing failed gear, and transportation along the trail. This does not however include the costs for bills that still have to paid at home that I still have to save for since I will obviously be unemployed during this time. I am currently on track to save enough funds to hike half of the trail, and that's why I am reaching out to the community through GoFundme for help. Any remaining funds raised here not used for the trip will be donated to CCI.org.
Any amount will help us get that much closer to being able to hike the trail. If you're interested in donating to Canine Companions for Independence directly - you can do so at CCI.org or on our donation registry page at Contour and Whoopi's CCI Registry Page.
Thank you for your time and donation!
If you have any questions at all or would like to follow us on our journey - please follow us on our blog at www.ContourandWhoopi.com.
Organizer
Megan Gray
Organizer
Charlotte, NC
