Littleton Elks Veterans Committee Awards Freedom Service Dogs of America $1,000 Freedom Grant Spark
LITTLETON, September 5, 2023 – The Littleton Elks Veterans Committee was honored to award Freedom Service Dogs of America (FSD) the $1,000 Freedom Grant Spark. The funds are intended to assist with training, food, shelter, and other needs for the service dogs.
FSD provides custom-trained service dogs to assist veterans who have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury, and loss of limbs or mobility due to combat-related injuries.
The highly skilled service dogs can assist veterans who have PTSD by waking them from nightmares, interrupting flashbacks, creating space around them in public places to reduce anxiety, and providing devoted companionship.
For veterans with mobility challenges, FSD service dogs can help with everyday tasks, such as turning lights on and off, opening doors and drawers, retrieving dropped items, and more.
With a Freedom Service Dog at their side, veterans and active-duty service members can experience greater independence, self-confidence, happiness, and hope.
Littleton Lodge has been promoting volunteer opportunities for members to assist the organization with experiences like puppy training and foster weekends.
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About Freedom Service Dogs of America: Freedom Service Dogs of America (FSD) transforms lives by partnering people with custom-trained assistance dogs. Our clients include veterans with PTSD, children and teens with autism and other neurocognitive disabilities, and individuals with physical challenges resulting from conditions such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, and traumatic brain injury. We also provide professional therapy dogs to serve as partners for clinicians, therapists, law enforcement, and more. Since being founded in 1987, Freedom Service Dogs has graduated hundreds of client-dog teams and provided lifetime support to nearly 200 active teams, at no cost to our clients.
About the Freedom Grant Spark: The Freedom Grant Spark supports individual organizations that focus on one of these five areas: employment, homelessness and housing, military families, health, or educational support. Learn more about the Freedom Grant Spark.