History of Guide Dogs for the Blind

The year was 1941. It was on a California Street in downtown San Francisco that Lois Merrihew remembers first hearing that the United States would enter World War ll. Years before, she had decided to pursue her childhood dream to train dogs as guides for the blind. An East Coast school told her that women were not hired as trainers. They were not considered physically or emotionally fit for such work. That response solidified her resolve to become a dog guide trainer. She joined with dog trainers Don Donaldson (formerly of The Seeing Eye) and Hazel Hurst as an administrative assistant and fund-raiser to form the Hurst Foundation in Monrovia, California. With the support and backing of D. M. Linnard, formerly a Hurst Foundation director, they lectured, demonstrated guide dog activity and promoted the idea of a Guide Dog School for the Blind in Northern California. America's involvement in the war brought the realization that blinded veterans would be returning to San Francisco. Lois and Don offered their expertise to the American Women's Voluntary Services (AWVS). With the help of AWVS Director Mrs. Stanhope Nixon, San Francisco Chair Mrs. Nixon Tucher, and others, Guide Dogs for the Blind was born. The school was incorporated on May 27, 1942, and operated from a rented house in Los Gatos, California, until it eventually moved to its present location in San Rafael, California, in 1947. The first class consisted of two students, Mr. Lemoyne Cox of Oakland and Mrs. Marjorie Cosgrove of San Francisco with "Lady" and "Vicki," both German Shepherd Dogs. The third class in October 1942 included World War II veteran Sgt. Leonard Foulk, who at the age of 26, had lost his sight when his binoculars were hit by sniper fire at the battle of Attu. He graduated with Lois' original publicity dog, "Blondie," a female German Shepherd that had been rescued from an animal shelter. Lois later became the school's Director of Training. Lois was the first woman to become a licensed dog guide trainer. Today, Guide Dogs employs 10 women who are licensed instructors, and 13 in the three-year apprenticeship program. Today, over 6,500 dogs have followed in the steps of "Blondie" and have taken up careers as Guide Dogs at the sides of blind men and women. Our dogs are everywhere--in offices, classrooms, concert halls, courthouses, homes, and shops. We have graduates in each of the continental United States, as well as in Canada. We have dogs guiding their partners on subways and buses, across frozen roads and busy streets.

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