Meet R.C. & Lu Lu
R.C. praises Lu Lu as she finds the steps, with a trainer watching near by.
When R.C. Christie’s first guide dog, Esther, retired after eight wonderful years, he immediately returned to Southeastern Guide Dogs from Chattanooga, Tennessee for a successor dog. Lu Lu, his second guide, is a lively, motivated, and smart yellow Labrador who works hard and loves her playtime.
R.C. was blinded in a 2002 car accident when he was only 18. Despite the depression and hard times that followed, he believes it was the best thing that ever happened to him. “I didn’t appreciate things as much as I needed to,” he says. “After I went blind, I started appreciating my family a lot more, and the friends that actually stuck around.” He has met many beautiful people, including his Southeastern Guide Dogs class and trainers, who inspired him to have fun, be optimistic, and give back to others.
A new wife, a promotion in his job as an assistive technology instructor at Signal Center A/T, and a new guide dog meant lots of changes, and when R.C. left our campus, he was ready to introduce Lu Lu to his music, snow skiing, rock climbing, hiking, and especially water sports such as whitewater rafting and water skiing. “I have a lot of faith and trust in ‘us,’” he said.
R.C. and Lu Lu stand under the arches of the United States Post Office in Tampa, FL.
