Canine Partners for Life fundraiser set May 11

To raise funds for Canine Partners for Life, local resident Carla Boynton will be selling raffle tickets from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, May 11, in front of Concord Pet Foods and Supplies on Coastal Highway, Rehoboth Beach.

Canine Partners for Life is a nonprofit that raises and trains service and companion dogs for the disabled. Raffle prizes have been donated by a number of local businesses, and proceeds will go to the nonprofit.

Any cash donations at the event will help Boynton defray the costs of attending a multi-week training with her new service dog Ilya  at the Canine Partners for Life campus in Cochranville, Pa. Canine Partners has already provided two amazing service dogs to Boyton, Bonz in 2005 and Uncle Ed in 2014. The cost of attending and bringing a new service dog home is estimated at about $6,550.

Ilya will assist Boynton with activities of daily living, balance and momentum, picking up objects, retrieving and carrying items, getting dressed, opening and closing cabinets, doors and the fridge, turning on light switches, pushing buttons, managing laundry and much more.

Raffle tickets are $5 each or five for $20. Winners will be drawn Monday, May 20, and will be notified by phone and email that day. 

Boynton needs the assistance of a service dog due to disability from a rare neurological pain disorder called chronic regional pain syndrome.

Ilya has undergone years of training to become a service animal. Ilya was matched with Boynton based on her needs, and his skills and temperament.

For more information, email cblight1@gmail.com or go to k94life.org.

To donate to defray the costs of training, go to gofundme.com and search Carla Boynton's Service Dog Fund for Team Training expenses.