Dunannie pupils raise funds for Petersfield based charity Hounds for Heroes
About Bedales
Dunannie pupils raise funds for Petersfield based charity Hounds for Heroes
09/01/2012
Pupils at Dunannie, Bedales pre-prep school, have recently adopted the Petersfield based charity Hounds for Heroes, and kicked off fundraising support by raising over £200 from The Great Dunannie Bakeoff.
Year 2 Dunannie pupil Jonty Oldham saw Gulf War veteran ex-Royal Navy Chief Petty Officer Allen Parton and his assistance dog EJ (Endal Junior) whilst shopping in Petersfield. Jonty thought his fellow pupils should hear about this charity and came back to school with information.
Allen and EJ recently visited the school to collect the proceeds of the sale of cakes baked by Dunannie children, parents and staff. The children were fascinated as Allen, who was seriously injured in the Gulf War, told them of all the things that EJ can do to help him including getting his socks out of the drawer and his hat out of his bag, turning lights on and off, operating pedestrian crossings, retrieving items from supermarket shelves and operating a cash machine. Allen also told them the story of Endal, his first assistance dog and EJ’s predecessor, who in 2002 was awarded the PDSA Gold Medal (the canine equivalent of the George Cross), which recognises animal bravery and exceptional devotion to duty.
Hounds for Heroes is a relatively young charity founded in February 2010 which provides specially trained assistance dogs to injured and disabled men and women of both the UK armed forces and civilian emergency services, providing them with help and practical support leading to an enhanced quality of life.
Jo Webbern, Head of Dunannie, commented “We are delighted to be helping such a worthwhile local charity and I am very proud of the children for all their hard work to help others. We have events planned over the coming months to continue to raise money for Hounds for Heroes and we hope to invite Allen, EJ and the new puppies back to see us in the near future.”
