GUIDING LIGHT VOLUNTEER HELPS LIFT DARKNESS.Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY Dennis McCarthy may refer to:
When her country needed her, Florence Mast raised her right hand and enlisted in the Navy. She spent much of World War II in the hospital corps, sitting by the bedsides of young men coming home from war without a limb or their eyesight. Talking them through the fear and pain. ``The toughest ones for me emotionally were the young men who lost their sight,'' says Florence, now 84 and living in Burbank. ``They'd come around our barracks bar·rack 1 tr.v. bar·racked, bar·rack·ing, bar·racks To house (soldiers, for example) in quarters. n. 1. A building or group of buildings used to house military personnel. with their buddies, and talk to us through the window - trying to tell from our voices what we looked like. ``They'd say, 'I bet you're blond and blue-eyed.' They were so sweet, but also so scared. It would tear me up. I always wished there was something more I could have done for them.'' There was, but Florence would have to wait 40 more years. By then, she had already buried the two men in her life she loved and married. She was a 64-year-old widow, without the children or grandchildren GRANDCHILDREN, domestic relations. The children of one's children. Sometimes these may claim bequests given in a will to children, though in general they can make no such claim. 6 Co. 16. so many seniors lean on for love and support. Then one day 20 years ago, she picked up a newspaper and saw a blurb blurb n. A brief publicity notice, as on a book jacket. [Coined by Gelett Burgess (1866-1951), American humorist.] blurb v. asking for volunteers. It wasn't her country that needed her this time, but it was a cause close to her heart. Guide Dogs of America needed volunteers to care for the puppies and guide dogs in training at its Sylmar kennels ken·nel 1 n. 1. A shelter for a dog. 2. A pack of dogs, especially hounds. See Synonyms at flock1. 3. An establishment where dogs are bred, trained, or boarded. 4. . Florence had found her something more. ``We had a small staff, and needed volunteers on weekends to socialize so·cial·ize v. so·cial·ized, so·cial·iz·ing, so·cial·iz·es v.tr. 1. To place under government or group ownership or control. 2. To make fit for companionship with others; make sociable. the puppies, take them for walks, things like that,'' says Rhonda Bissell, development coordinator for Guide Dogs of America. A few dozen people answered that ad 20 years ago, but only one stayed. ``Everybody else fizzled out after a while, except Florence,'' Bissell said. ``Rain or shine she'd show up every Saturday to be with her puppies. We've never had anyone that dedicated.'' Florence was one of the first volunteers at the kennel and now she is the last. All the people working in the kennels now are paid staffers. Today, they will all pay tribute to Florence with a special luncheon. After 20 years, the Years, The the seven decades of Eleanor Pargiter’s life. [Br. Lit.: Benét, 1109] See : Time woman fondly known as the TLC TLC total lung capacity; thin-layer chromatography. TLC abbr. 1. thin-layer chromatography 2. Tech at Guide Dogs of America, is finally retiring. And nobody's going to miss her more than the dogs, says Angela Rice, kennel manager. ``Those dogs know when it's Saturday because they're lined up in their kennels waiting for Florence to arrive,'' she said. ``I swear it was like they were all looking forward to seeing her.'' They were, because the first thing Florence did when she showed up was let them out of those kennels. ``I'd spring the locks, and take them all for a walk with a pocketful of cookies,'' she said, laughing. The injured dogs - those that had undergone surgery - got even more TLC, especially one dog. ``He had just had eye surgery, and his face was covered in bandages. He was shaking like a leaf. Imagine how scary that would be for a dog, lying there in the darkness.'' So Florence did what she did 60 years ago for so many scared, young men coming home from World War II to a world of darkness The World of Darkness (or WoD) is the name given to three related but distinct fictional universes. The first was conceived by Mark Rein-Hagen, while the second was designed by several people at White Wolf Gaming Studio, which Rein-Hagen helped to found. . She sat beside that dog in the kennel for hours, singing softly to him. Petting him gently until the shaking stopped. She's going to miss her Saturdays with the all the guide dogs. ``The old ones, the young ones - I loved them all,'' she said. Dennis McCarthy, (818) 713-3749 dennis.mccarthy(at)dailynews.com HOW TO HELP --A golf tournament will be held Aug. 29 to raise money for Guide Dogs of America, a nonprofit organization Nonprofit Organization An association that is given tax-free status. Donations to a non-profit organization are often tax deductible as well. Notes: Examples of non-profit organizations are charities, hospitals and schools. that has placed more than 2,500 guide dogs in the community. For information about playing in the tournament, to be held at Robinson Ranch in Santa Clarita Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, , or becoming a sponsor, call (818) 362-5834, Ext. 300, or log on to www.gdafoundation.org. CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: Florence Mast of Burbank, shown with guide dog Shiloh, is retiring from her volunteer work after 20 years of service. Alex Collins/Special to the Daily News Box: HOW TO HELP (see text) |
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