My autistic daughter recently lost her service dog, Charlie. As a mother, I'm heartbroken to see her in so much pain. Her sweet dog was only 5 years old and had no prior health issues, so she was not prepared financially for the cost of getting a new service dog.

I'm creating a fundraiser to help with the cost of getting a new dog that she will train to be her service dog. My daughter struggles with sensory processing disorder, and having a dog specifically trained to help her regulate her nervous system by doing deep pressure therapy has helped her tremendously. I honestly don't think she would be able to live on her own, let alone a thousand miles away from me, if it weren't for the help of her service dog.

I'm asking my friends and family to help by donating anything they can to cover the cost of a new puppy that will be specifically selected for her and her needs as a service dog.

Every donation will mean so much for her and will help take some of this burden off of her shoulders as she grieves the loss of her best friend.

Read Alyssa's story about the day she lost Charlie below:

On Saturday, May 17th my service dog, Charlie and I were making the long journey home after spending 3 weeks in southern California visiting my family. It’s a drive we have made together a dozen times since moving the the PNW. As we entered Oregon, the road curved high above a forest and I saw the most stunning full rainbow kissing the treetops. As I admired its beauty and described its detail to my Charlie bear in the back seat, I was so happy to be heading home to Washington to be among the trees that make my heart feel at peace. I felt immense gratitude to always have my best friend by my side to experience this life with. We continued our drive a few more hours, when I decided to take one final break at a rest stop just before entering Portland. I opened the back door to find my healthy, 5 year old companion unresponsive. A vet tech heard my earth shattering screams from across the parking lot and ran over to investigate. She attempted CPR but it was too late, he was already gone. The veterinary hospital could not give me an exact reason for his passing but told me that it was most likely a heart attack. Layers of dried and remoistened tears are permanently stained on my cheeks. My heart is broken and the constant physical pain in my chest takes my breath away when I least expect it. I have been blessed with loving a few dogs in my lifetime, however I have never experienced such a deep bond and profound love like I shared with Charlie. We were so in sync with one another from spending all day, everyday together and he is the reason I was able to make such huge strides in my growth as an autistic woman trying to navigate adulthood. Charlie was pure joy who never met a stranger, and now my personal sunshine is void. It still doesn’t feel real and I am so not ready to live this life without him.

I am incredibly grateful for the humans that surrounded me and held me up with love, compassion, and kindness. Tomorrow, I fly back to Portland to finish the drive to an empty house that will no longer feel like a home. Walking into a scene, frozen in time, filled with dog toys and reminders of a life when my soulmate still graced this world with his unconditional love and excitement to live each day to the fullest, will be extremely difficult. I hope to find solace in the garden that we planted together before we left. I will seek comfort in knowing that he spent his final days with all of the humans who made his tail wag the hardest. Rainbows have been my favorite thing to see and experience since moving to the PNW and it brings me peace to know that the most magical one I’ve seen yet, was the one that was calling my fur baby home. I know with every fiber of my being that he is surrounded by my loved ones who are no longer earth side, and that there will come a time when we are reunited once again. Until then, my days will be much dimmer without his golden smile, always excited to greet me when I walked into the room. But I look forward to catching glimpses of new rainbows that will momentarily reconnect our souls in space and time.