Guiding Eyes for the Blind
What a pleasure to visit with Andrea Martine, a Guide Dog Mobility Instructor from Guiding Eye’s for the Blind based in Yorktown Heights, New York, about the innovative ways they are training canines to support people who are blind and deaf/blind. Andrea’s enthusiasm for her work is infectious as she shares how Guiding Eye’s gets to know each person and their specific needs and how they can match the perfect dog to their needs and interests. Their graduate teams live exhilarating lives as runners, travelers, entrepreneurs and leaders in many fields! Andrea also tells us about her personal journey to become an advanced trainer and how you can you can create your path.
BIO:
Andrea Martine is a certified Guide Dog Mobility Instructor at Guiding Eyes for the Blind, based in Yorktown Heights, NY. She began her 30-year association with Guiding Eyes for the Blind as a puppy raiser. Following such a positive experience raising her puppy, she left her work teaching communication to DeafBlind developmentally disabled adults with behavioral problems to begin her apprenticeship with Guiding Eyes for the Blind in 1995. She was an instructor, Support Instructor, Supervisor, and Regional Guide Dog Mobility Instructor before joining their Specialized Training Program in 2005. Now, Andrea trains dogs for and works with individuals who have a disability in addition to being blind. She is a specialist in training dogs for and working with DeafBlind individuals. She also looks forward to continued inspiration from the ever-evolving world of our relationship with dogs.