LAKEWOOD, Colo. (KMGH) — July is Disability Pride Month, but an organization near Denver celebrates all year.
Domino Service Dogs opened in Lakewood, Colorado, almost ten years ago. The owner, Barbara Henry, first got the idea when her daughter Caitlin, who had acquired a spinal cord injury at a young age, made a request.
"She said, 'Mom, you know, I need a service dog. That's what I need to make my life better,'" recalled Barbara.
However, for many reasons, Caitlin didn't qualify to receive a service dog from national nonprofits, and adopting your own can get very expensive. That's when Caitlin started training their dog, Badger, all by herself.
"[Badger] gave Caitlin her independence," said Barbara.
Badger spend six years by Caitlin's side before transitioning to retirement.
During the training process, Barbara and her daughter started hearing from other folks who were encountering the same issue. Barbara says it became apparent the community needed an organization to step in and offer an affordable two-year curriculum for anyone to train their own service dog.
"It was her dream that people with disabilities would have access to service dogs, even if they couldn't afford to pay," said Barbara.
Sadly, Caitlin passed away in 2017 at age 18, but she earned the respect of Colorado's highest officials just before passing.
"She worked on a bill that specifically made it illegal to represent misrepresent yourself as a person with a disability," said Barbara.
All eight of her bills passed.
"I'm sure she was excited, but I don't think she was overly excited. She was like: this has to be done," said Barbara.
Caitlin's legacy may live in those bills, but really more so in the hundreds of dogs that come through the doors of Domino Service Dogs.
Of course, it can get hard for Barbara to still come there every day.
"It's meaningful, and some days it breaks my heart," said Barbara.
However, she's proud to carry out her daughter's dream.
