San Antonio – Aimee Hansen has tried everything possible to help her son Xander have a normal life at school and church. Now, she’s trying to raise money to help the family get a service dog to help him with his autism.
“We have tried all of the traditional therapies,” she said. “The dog will be able to help better when he’s transitioning from one class to another, one place to another, from home to school. The dog will be able to help Xander have a constant with him.”
The Hansens are a military family, and they move around a lot, which can be difficult for Xander.
The family wants to purchase an autism therapy dog, which will cost them about $20,000. They have done other fundraisers, but the latest one is a dual purpose.
The family hopes to collect gently used or new shoes through a drive. They are working with the organization Funds2Orgs.com to collect the shoes. The organization takes the shoes collected by organizations and provides them to people in developing countries. The organization then also provides funds for Xander’s dog fundraiser. His family has been doing other fundraisers as well.
He’s collected 1,800 shoes so far and has 500 more to go by mid-January.
Here’s the flyer with the locations where you can donate.