Joann Herman of Columbia with her guide dog, Valora, a yellow labrador retreiver

Joanne Herman graduated recently with a yellow labrador retriever guide dog named Valora at her side. The duo completed a month of intensive training at Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., in San Rafael, CA September 3.

Herman is a full–time professor of nursing at USC. Valora is Herman’s first guide dog and will be joining her husband Wayne back at home.

Graduates of Guide Dogs harness the incredible power of the human– animal bond. These remarkable canines offer warm companionship, safe mobility, and foster confidence and independence.

During the course of training, skilled guide dogs and their new partners learn to negotiate stairways, elevators, overhead obstacles, crowded sidewalks, and busy streets. The dogs are trained to avoid distractions and disobey commands to cross a street if traffic is approaching.

Guide Dogs for the Blind is more than a school – it is a community dedicated to providing people who are blind with the opportunity to experience what a powerful partnership with a guide dog can mean – not only to mobility, but to quality of life. It is the only school in the country that has built its program around both the functional and personal aspects of a guide dog partnership.