Path to a Guide Dog Series
Welcome to Guide Dogs for the Blind’s Path to a Guide Dog E-Series!
Get the facts straight from the dog’s mouth on a variety of topics about the guide dog lifestyle! Join hosts Jane Flower, Youth Outreach Specialist and Jake Koch, Community Outreach Specialist at Guide Dogs for the Blind (GDB) for this three-part online series.
This event is intended for individuals who are blind or visually impaired, (including family members/friends) and blindness professionals interested in exploring the guide dog lifestyle. The Path to a Guide Dog E-series is recommended for ages 14 and older.
Topics include:
- Day 1: Overview of GDB, a discussion about the differences between white cane and guide dog mobility, how to determine guide dog readiness, and GDB’s youth services.
- Day 2: Application path and criteria to GDB’s guide dog program, and a description about the Orientation and Mobility Immersion program.
- Day 3: Client training options, and Guide Dogs for the Blind’s suite of follow-up services.
All sessions are held from 10:00-11:30 A.M. Pacific time (U.S. and Canada).
- November 8-10
- December 14-16
Registration Required. RSVP to the Path to a Guide Dog E-Series by emailing Jake Koch at: [email protected]
Be sure to include the session dates that you would like to attend in your emailed RSVP.
The Path to a Guide Dog E-Series will be held via the Zoom platform. A Zoom link/call-in details will be provided a couple days before the event to all participants who RSVP by email to [email protected]
Questions? Get in touch via the email address above, or by calling 1 (800) 295 4050
Jake Koch is the Community Outreach Specialist with Guide Dogs for the Blind. He travels with a seven-year-old Black Labrador guide dog named Forli.
Jake’s role at Guide Dogs for the Blind includes facilitating educational opportunities about the guide dog lifestyle to people who are blind or visually impaired and blindness professionals. He also consults with agencies and businesses about accessibility best-practices for people who are blind or visually impaired and supports corporate and service organization giving/philanthropy efforts for Guide Dogs for the Blind. The organization receives no government funding and provides all services free of charge.
In addition to Jake’s work with Guide Dogs for the Blind, he serves on the Disability Advisory Board with Alaska Airlines. This interdisciplinary board of experts is tasked with providing airline executives and staff with current best-practices for serving travelers with disabilities.
Jake graduated with honors from Eastern Washington University, where he majored in Public Relations, and minored in Journalism and Organizational Leadership.
In his free time, he enjoys traveling, stand-up paddle boarding, hiking, playing musical instruments (drums and ukulele), and spending time with family and friends.
Jane Flower worked with older adults in the field of low-vision for over 12 years before taking her position at Guide Dogs for the Blind in 2013. Her previous role as Program Supervisor with Dayle McIntosh Center’s Aging with Vision Loss Program in Southern California afforded her the opportunity to share her personal and professional knowledge on such topics as Daily Living Skills, Assistive Technology, Braille Reading and Writing, and Self-Advocacy Training. Jane was born legally blind, and at the age of 8 was diagnosed with a retinal degenerative eye disease called Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis (LCA). Because of her personal life experience with vision loss, she was also able to provide peer support to the older adults she assisted.
Jane is so blessed to be a part of the Guide Dogs for the Blind family. She received her current and third Guide Dog Pilaf in November of 2017. In her current role as Youth Outreach Specialist, she and pilaf travel throughout the U.S. and Canada sharing the mission and vision of Guide Dogs to perspective Guide Dog users and their families, and professionals in the field of low-vision. Outside of work, Jane and her husband Wayne live with her retired Guide Dog Anya, their pet dog KC, and of course little Pilaf. They love to travel, hike, go for long walks with their dogs, camping, and spending time with friends and family.