Support Ivan's Journey with a Service Dog

I am working and writing on behalf of a very special young man with autism. His name is Ivan, and he lives with his mother and brother in Manhattan. He loves animals, especially dogs! He is comforted and soothed by dogs and horses through Hope Ranch.

After two years of prayer, the family heard that they have been chosen to receive a service dog through Cares, Inc. in just two months!!! This is an unbelievable gift for them, and as much as individuals with autism are so important to me, I offered to try and help the family raise funds for Ivan and his therapy dog.

His mother stated the following:

One in a million that's my son Ivan. A

young man who has overcome so much

in his 20 years of life. He is a man of

God who lives with autism. To know him

is to love him. He has a heart of gold and

the innocence of a child, his smile is

infectious and lights up room. Ivan is a

joy to be around and a blessing to all

who know him. He loves animals, dogs

and horses especially, he is so soft and

tender it is truly amazing to watch him

interact with them. Ivan started Equine

Therapy 8 years ago and has gone

above and beyond what I ever dreamed

he would be able to do on a horse. He

truly amazes me everyday.

Ivan lives in Manhattan with his mom

and his brother and although he is high

functioning he does require daily care

and support. He needs reminders about

daily self-care and hygiene, chores, food

choices

and time cues to name a few. He also is

a bit clumsy and struggles with balance

and shaking at times, especially if he is

anxious or nervous. Ivan has dealt with

anxiety, depression, panic attacks, low

self-esteem and confidence issues for

many years now but in the last few years

it's gotten worse as he has come into

adulthood. His peers are seemingly

moving on through life, working, dating,

going to events with ease... He wants to

be able to join in so badly and we want

to help him to live the fullest life possible

despite his disability. That's where a

service dog comes in. Ivan is 20 years

old now and a service dog is something

I've been praying about for the last few

years. I know in my heart that he needs

this support and that it is the right time

for him. A service dog would provide him

the ability to start taking the next steps

into living life to its fullest potential.

Being responsible for his service dog

would give him a much needed sense of

responsibility and purpose. Having that

bond would allow him to safely become

more independent and building self-

esteem and confidence while still being

supported. For instance, Ivan struggles

with being overwhelmed by people at

times and this can trigger any number of

physical and mental responses that are

terribly difficult and embarrassing for him.

Once triggered it creates a vicious cycle

that can be very hard for him to break

free from. This is one of the many areas

of support his service dog would be

trained for. They are even trained to

sense when an episode is coming on.

The weight of the dog itself offers

compression therapy which is a huge

part of helping Ivan through these

events. For Ivan, physical touch is very

healing and grounding and the thought of

being alone is very unsettling. When he

is having a hard time, you will always

find him cuddling with our family dog or

holding a hand… hugs are always a

comfort.

So after years of prayer, I applied for a

service dog for Ivan. 2 months ago he

received his letter telling him that he had

been selected to receive a service dog.

He was overjoyed to say the least. With

tears of joy and relief on his face he gave

all glory to God! It was truly a moment I'll

never forget. He was put on the wait list

and we were told it would be

approximately 2 years before he would

receive his dog. Well God had other

plans and yesterday I received a call that

some things had come about and that

they had a dog that's been trained for

Ivan's needs and an opening in their

August class that they would like to offer

Ivan! August as in the 4th of August just