ABOVE & BEYOND: A SEPTEMBER TO REMEMBER

What started with an ambitious goal ended with an incredible show of generosity.

Throughout September, in celebration of National Guide Dog Month, a generous individual donor pledged to match gifts to OccuPaws dollar for dollar, up to $30,000. We challenged our community to help us unlock the entire match—and you answered in a BIG way.

Together, you gave $32,368.52. With the full $30,000 matching gift added, an incredible $62,368.52 was raised for OccuPaws!

Our OccuPaws community answered the call—and surpassed our National Guide Dog Month goal.

The momentum built throughout the month. Gifts of every size came in from individuals, families, community organizations, and supporters across Wisconsin. Then, with only days remaining, an extraordinary $10,000 individual gift pushed the campaign beyond $26,000 and put the $30,000 goal within reach.

And our community didn't stop there.

By September 30, you had not only unlocked the entire $30,000 match but also exceeded our fundraising goal by more than $2,300 in additional gifts.

Behind that number are countless people who believe in what a guide dog partnership can make possible. Every gift helps OccuPaws raise and train exceptional guide dogs, provide personalized client training, and offer ongoing support at no cost to the people we serve who are visually impaired.

Behind every working guide dog is also an entire community willing to invest in a puppy long before anyone knows whose life that puppy may someday change. Puppy raisers, trainers, volunteers, donors, businesses, community organizations, and supporters all play a part.

To our generous matching donor, to the individual who stepped forward with the remarkable $10,000 gift, and to every person and organization who donated, shared our campaign, or helped spread the word—THANK YOU.

$30,000 was the challenge. You unlocked every dollar—and then kept going.

Because of you, $62,368.52 will help advance our mission of greater independence, confidence, and mobility for people who are visually impaired.

ADVANCING INDEPENDENCE TOGETHER

We’re excited to share that OccuPaws Guide Dog Association is a 2026 Green Bay Packers Foundation grant recipient!

This generous support will help us continue doing what we do right here in Wisconsin—raising, training, and placing exceptional guide dogs at no cost to Wisconsinites who are visually impaired.

We are incredibly grateful for the continued generosity of Placon Corporation and their commitment to the OccuPaws mission.

Some partnerships go beyond a single gift. They grow through continued support, shared values, and a genuine commitment to making a difference. We are fortunate to have that kind of relationship with Placon.

A heartfelt thank you to the Lions Clubs International - Oregon & Brooklyn, WI for their generous $250 gift to OccuPaws.

But in September, their generosity went even further.

Thanks to our generous individual matching donor, that $250 was doubled to $500—turning one act of kindness into twice the impact for our mission.

THE OCCUPAWS ONLINE SWAG STORE IS LIVE!

Swag with Purpose. Wear the Mission.

One of the simplest ways you can support OccuPaws? Wear it.

Throw on an OccuPaws tee, sweatshirt, hat, or other favorite swag and take our mission with you—to work, the gym, your kid’s game, the grocery store, or just around town.

Every time you wear OccuPaws, you help put our name in front of someone new, spark a conversation, and introduce more people to our mission of providing guide dogs at no cost to people with visual impairments right here in Wisconsin.

Because awareness matters. The person who notices your OccuPaws shirt today could become tomorrow’s puppy raiser, volunteer, supporter — or someone who needs a guide dog.

Wear the logo. Start a conversation. Spread the mission.

DON'T MISS THESE UPCOMING EVENTS!

Where community and purpose come together.

CLIENT'S HIGHLIGHTS

Every new team is a story of trust and independence

MAUI HAS MY BACK:

MEGIN'S JOURNEY TO GREATER INDEPENDENCE

For Megin, living with visual impairment has always meant finding ways to navigate the world around her.

Growing up, her mom would sometimes grab Megin’s backpack to help guide her. As Megin’s eyesight worsened after college, she received orientation and mobility training and became proficient using a white cane.

Then, during a train trip, someone stole her cane.

Police became involved to make sure Megin could safely return home. The experience became a turning point.

“That was when I decided I needed a guide dog.”

Megin was eventually partnered with Maui, a white Standard Poodle who has transformed not only how Megin travels, but how confidently she approaches everyday life.

Maui can guide her to Starbucks, the grocery store, and many other destinations. At the store, she can even help Megin locate familiar items. When asked to find something, Maui can point her nose directly toward items such as grapes or cream cheese.

But Maui provides more than navigation.

“I am autistic. I do not feel alone when I am with my dog,” Megin shared.

Their connection has revealed another remarkable ability. Megin has Type 1 diabetes, and during one of Maui’s first days with her, Maui appeared to alert her to low blood sugar—something she was never trained to do.

Megin checked her blood glucose monitor, and Maui was right.

Since then, Maui has continued to respond when Megin’s blood sugar drops. While working in harness, she may stop, turn around and nudge Megin with her front paw. Megin says Maui often notices the change five to ten minutes before her monitor alerts her.

Their journey together hasn’t always been easy. Near the end of their initial training, Maui became ill and had to return to Wisconsin for several weeks to recover.

“It was so heartbreaking to almost complete training and suddenly have no guide dog.”

Thankfully, Maui recovered, and the two were reunited.

Since then, their world together has continued to grow.

During their second year as a team, Megin attended a convention where she had the opportunity to meet one of her favorite actors. Maui guided her through the convention center, helped her find her place at the table and gave Megin the confidence to enjoy the experience.

Before Maui, Megin says she would never have done something like that using her white cane.

Most importantly, she remembers simply having fun.

“I had no worries,” she said. “Maui has my back.”

That confidence carries into everyday adventures, too. At an annual Jack-O-Lantern festival at the zoo, Maui learned that the unfamiliar statues weren’t real. And if Megin becomes separated from family members while exploring, she can ask Maui to find her mom or sister—and Maui leads the way.

Today, Megin describes Maui as “smart, confident, and a little goofy.” She is excited about what comes next, especially traveling together.

And she knows OccuPaws will continue to be there for both of them.

“No matter the time or day, I can send an email or call and someone always responds,” Megin said. “I feel that I am an individual. Everyone cares. I am not a number.”

For Megin, Maui has opened the door to greater independence, confidence, companionship—and experiences she once might have avoided. Together, they are ready for wherever the journey takes them next. Because when Maui is by her side, Megin knows someone always has her back.

COULD YOU HELP RAISE THE NEXT MAUI?

Megin's story is a reminder that every guide dog partnership begins long before the harness. It begins with someone saying “yes.”

Before Maui confidently guided Megin through a busy convention center, before she helped her find familiar items at the grocery store, and before Megin could say, “Maui has my back,” Maui was simply a puppy learning how to navigate the world herself.

She had to learn the basics. How to behave in public. How to remain calm around distractions. How to experience new places with confidence. Behind those lessons were puppy raisers who gave Maui their time, patience, and love, preparing her little by little for a job whose importance they could not yet fully know.

As an OccuPaws puppy raiser, you'll experience the joy of watching a puppy grow, learn, and discover the world. There will be adventures, laughter, plenty of puppy antics, and countless heartwarming moments. But beyond the fun is something even greater—the knowledge that one day, the puppy you've helped raise could transform someone's life, just as Maui has transformed Megin's.

The best part? You won't be doing it alone. OccuPaws provides the training, veterinary care, supplies, and ongoing support you need every step of the way.

What you provide is just as important: your time, your patience, and your willingness to say "yes." The typical commitment is just 4 to 6 months, but the impact can last a lifetime.

Help raise the next Maui. Help change the next life. Become an OccuPaws puppy raiser today.

You live your life. They learn how to navigate it.

Raise a puppy. Change a life.

Visit occupaws.org or call (608) 772-3787 to learn more today.

GUIDE DOG IN TRAINING SPOTLIGHTS

From eager pup to future partner — one milestone at a time.

FIVE PAWSOME MILESTONES!

We have some exciting news from our GDiT crew! Lisbon, Lumen, Maddie, Norma, and Ozzy have all PASSED their harness training evaluations!

This is a big step forward for these five. Their evaluations put to the test the skills, focus, confidence, and decision-making they’ve been developing throughout their training — and they showed they’re ready to keep moving forward.

It takes a village to get a Guide Dog in Training to this point. A huge thank you to the puppy raisers, puppy sitters, Paws Forward handlers, trainers, volunteers, and everyone along the way who helped shape and prepare these dogs for this milestone.

Five dogs. Five passes. One BIG step closer.



Their journey isn’t finished yet—but today, we’re celebrating just how far they’ve come!

Become an OccuPaws Puppy Raiser! You’ll get plenty of puppy cuddles, kisses, goofy moments, and oversized paws along the way—but you'll also play an important role in helping a puppy like Zinnia grow, learn, and prepare for a future of changing someone’s life as a guide dog.

The cuddles are pretty great. The purpose behind them is even greater.

Timber the opportunity to practice staying calm, confident, and focused—exactly what a future guide dog needs to learn.

A big thank you to Deputy Chief Karnitz and the Cedarburg Fire Department for welcoming Timber and turning an unexpected stop into a valuable training experience!

OccuPaws is powered by volunteers, and we’re always in need of people willing to share their time, knowledge, and experience. Puppy raisers and Board members are essential, but so are the many behind-the-scenes helpers whose unique skills keep our programs strong.

Supporting OccuPaws has never been easier. Make a secure online donation and help support the training and placement of life-changing guide dogs. Thank you for making independence possible!

OccuPaws relies on generous supply donations to help raise and train our future guide dogs. Shop and ship directly from our Amazon Wish List, or contact us to arrange a pickup. Every donated item helps prepare our puppies for the life-changing work ahead. Thank you for your support!

OccuPaws is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to providing

fully trained guide dogs at no cost to visually impaired adults across Wisconsin.

Your donation is tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

Learn more about OccuPaws using the links below.

info@occupaws.org | (608) 772-3787