Grantham Freemasons give their backing to Support Dogs charity

Freemasons in Grantham have given their backing to a charity for support dogs.

The Doric Lodge recently presented the charity, Support Dogs, with £500.

At a meeting of the Lodge, Towcester the support dog, was a special guest with her owner Sarah Henson, who accepted the cheque on behalf of the charity which is committed to providing, training and supporting registered assistance dogs.

Support Dogs works across England, Scotland and Wales and provides all of its services free of charge to its clients.

The charity, which relies solely on voluntary donations and receives no government funding, specialises in three areas:

• Assistance dogs for children with autism, trained to provide safety for the child and reduce stress in social environments
• Seizure alert dogs for people with epilepsy, trained to provide a 100% reliable warning up to 50 minutes prior to a seizure so their owner has time to find a safe place
• Assistance dogs for people with physical disabilities such as MS or cerebral palsy, trained to perform tasks specifically tailored to make their owner’ lives easier and more independent.

Doric's Worshipful Master, WBro Keith Harrison, presented the cheque to Sarah, assisted by WBros Peter Brooks, David Pickup (Charity Steward) and David Sprawson.

Sarah said: “I know I speak for all at Support Dogs that we are extremely grateful to you. It’s hard to convey in a few words just how much our dogs mean to us and the positive difference they make to our lives."

More information on the charity can be found at www.supportdogs.org.uk