Husband, wife recognized for organizing annual fundraiser for Guide Dogs of America
By Carissa Marsh cmarsh@theacorn.com

Photo courtesy of Joe Scavo GUIDING LIGHTS—Simi residents Larry, Pam and Debbie Silverman are flanked by Debbie Sands, far left, and Jay Bormann, president of Guide Dogs of America, far right, during a recent event to honor those who have given their time and energy for the organization. For the past 15 years the Silvermans have organized a community square dance to raise money to help pay for guide dog training.

Over the past 15 years, Larry and Pam Silverman have helped give the gift of a seeing-eye dog to those with sight impairments by raising donations for Guide Dogs of America.

Their secret: Bring a little country-western fun to the heart of Simi Valley.

Every year since 1993, on the first Saturday of June, dancers have filled the allpurpose room at the senior center for the Boots & Slippers Square Dance, an event put on by the local Boots & Slippers club and organized by the Silvermans.

Because the club picks up the expenses, and the callers—who instruct the dancers—donate their time, 100 percent of the proceeds go to GDA.

To date, Larry Silverman said the dances have raised in excess of $100,000.

"It started small, but it's grown to where we raise $8,000 to $10,000 in a three-hour stint," the 65-year-old Simi resident said.

The idea came about when the Silvermans' daughter, Debbie, was working to get accepted into the Exotic Animal Training and Management program at Moorpark College.

Part of the application process was to show involvement in animalrelated community service projects, so Debbie, now 40, became a tour guide at GDA and proposed a plan to do a fundraising dance with the Boots & Slippers club, which she and her parents belonged to.

That first dance brought in less than $1,500, Larry Silverman said, but the family decided to make it an annual event. What began as a one-time service project for their daughter became something the family didn't want to let go of.

"As we got more involved with the organization and felt so strongly about what they were doing, after a couple years there was never any thought of not continuing it," Larry said. "We got some people behind it, and it's still going strong."

Because of their years of dedicated, two-stepping volunteerism, the Silvermans—including their daughter Debbie—were honored last Saturday at GDA's third annual Partner's Award dinner, held at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles.

Silverman said he and his wife and daughter were honored to be recognized but noted they are just a few among hundreds of people who support the organization.

"We just looked at ourselves as helping where we could help," he said. "We represent the whole square dance club, the whole square dance community, because without them, we wouldn't be doing much at all."

According to Debbie Sands, dinner chair and sponsorship coordinator for GDA, the Silvermans are the first people to be honored at the fundraising dinner who don't actually raise puppies. Sands said the reason the Silvermans were chosen for the award is because of their steadfast commitment to GDA.

"They haven't been touched by blindness in their family, but they are just touched by what we do," she said. "It's just been this wonderful commitment that they do."

Celebrating 60 years, Guide Dogs of America is a nonprofit organization located in Sylmar that provides guide dogs at no cost to the blind and visually impaired.

Sands said the efforts of families like the Silvermans are so crucial to GDA because the organization doesn't receive any government funding and relies solely on volunteer donations to breed, raise and train guide dogs.

As one of the top fundraisers in the area, the Silvermans' annual square dances have sponsored 14 puppies and helped fund one fully trained guide dog for Simi resident John Faitro.

"They're the sweetest family, but they don't toot their own horn, and they should," Sands said. "They don't do it for themselves; they do it for the organization, so that's why we are so honored to give them the award this year."

Silverman said he is proud of the good the dance has accomplished over the years, adding that what makes GDA special is seeing your money being put to good use.

"There are a lot of charities where you raise money, you know the charity does well, but you don't really see how your dollars are utilized," he said. "Here, we can see how the money sponsors a couple puppies; we can watch the puppies grow and see them trained.

"To see that and to understand that you've given somebody the ability to have self-respect and not be dependent on somebody else, it's just a very warm feeling," he said.

For more information, visit www.guidedogsofamerica.org.