‘Pay less’ event for autism awareness
AN event is being organised by a woman from Wexford aimed at raising money for the support organisation Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland.
Tina Gill, from Kilbraney, Newbawn, along with Anne Kennington is organising a ‘Pay Less for the Dress’ event in Greenway Manor Hotel, Waterford, on Thursday, November 22, at 7 p.m.
The cost of entry will be €10 and the organisers are encouraging as many people as possible from across the south east to attend.
Speaking to this newspaper Mrs Gill highlighted how having an assistance dog has benefited her and her husband, Liam, as one of their daughters, Anna, was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) when she was 3-years-of-age.
Despite her parents putting her name on the waiting list for an assistance dog at that stage it was seven years before Anna, who is now 10, got her dog, Dougal.
Significantly, Dougal is the only dog of his kind in Co Wexford from Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland, however, according to Tina Wexford also has the highest rate of child autism in the country - yet it only has one dedicated medical professional to deal with those children.
She said there are currently 151 children under the age of six diagnosed with ASD in Wexford while there are 780 children and teenagers aged between 6 and 18 diagnosed with the condition.
Tina said there are 222 adults in the county already diagnosed with a number of others still awaiting confirmation.
‘Wexford also has the slowest rate of diagnosis,’ she said, highlighting that here, on average, it takes two-and-a-half years to receive a diagnosis.
‘In some other counties it takes just six months,’ said Tina.
‘Our life was very different before Dougal,’ said Tina.
‘Anna has very little understanding of safety so we didn’t bring her to places that put her in any danger,’ she added.
For the Gills those places are locations that other people would regard as ordinary such as walking down a street or strolling through a city.
‘Anna could bolt and run away,’ said Tina.
However, Dougal has made a very positive impact on the lives of the entire Gill family.
‘Now with her new friend she can walk safely,’ said Tina.
‘We command Dougal to do what we want in order to keep her safe,’ she added.
‘It has made the simplest of trips a dream. Anna now has a chance to integrate with her community and see things that she wouldn’t [otherwise] have.’
Tina gave the new board-walk in New Ross as an example of a lovely location that would have been a nightmare to visit without Dougal.
‘A simple example is the new boardwalk in New Ross,’ she said.
‘This would have been a nightmare before as the river would have been a huge worry and we would need two adults to walk by her side,’ she added.
Such is the positive impact that Dougal has made on their lives that the Gills committed themselves to fundraise for the AADI so it could help other children like Anna get their dogs.
There are very high costs involved in training dogs to become suitable for autism assistance and Tina highlighted that it costs €23,000 to buy and train a dog.
‘They spend the first year and a half of their lives with a foster family,’ said Tina.
The dogs receive their training routine from AADI and then leave that family for intensive training with a dog trainer. After that the dogs are matched to a suitable child.
For the Gills the positive affect the work of the AADI has had on them is immeasurable and that was one of the reasons why Tina decided to help organise the forthcoming fundraising event.
‘We could never thank [the AADI] enough,’ said Tina.
The Pay Less for the Dress event will raise money for the organisation and Tina said it will feature barley worn dresses that have been donated from all over the country.
Expressing gratitude for the donations she said they have at least 500 dresses that will be sold at knock down prices.
Highlighting the importance of the night in terms of raising money to help the AADI with its work Tina encouraged people from all over Co Wexford to attend.
‘We need to make this night a success and it can only happen if people turn up,’ she said.
The cost of entry will be €10 and there will be a cheese and wine reception. There will also be tea, coffee and treats on offer as well as door prizes and a raffle.
A number of musicians will also perform on the night.