Meet Tim and guide dog Rondo
Tim kneels with his black Labrador, Rondo, in a park.
Just a few years after Tim Ermes joined the basketball team for Louisiana Tech in the 1970’s, a car accident, coma, and a long recovery changed his life. His family’s Irish setter visited him in the hospital, and Tim never forgot the comfort a dog could bring. The accident left him with permanent vision loss, and now Tim has rediscovered the comfort of a dog in the four friendly paws of an amazing black Labrador named Rondo, his new guide.
After a long career in the restaurant business, including 23 years at the Crow’s Nest Marina Restaurant in Venice, Florida, Tim left work to care for his aging parents and now lives in Sarasota.
“In 2008 I had to leave work because mom and dad needed my help. My younger brother passed in ’07 and my older brother passed in ’93. So I was the only one left. I took care of them until mom died in 2013 and dad died a year and a half later in 2014.”
Years earlier, his ophthalmologist recommended a guide dog but caregiving kept him too busy. With the passing of his parents, Tim found himself alone, ready, and able to care for a guide dog.
“I said, ‘You know what, I think maybe I’m ready for a guide dog.’ I’ve been blessed with Rondo. This guy is awesome. He is going to allow me to get out more,” Tim said. “We walk so well together and I love him!”
Rondo licks Tim’s chin.
