Imagine Mental Health Matters has donated $5,000 to a family in St. Adolphe for the purchase of a service dog for their daughter with autism.
When Nadine Huberdeau’s 11-year-old daughter Leia was diagnosed on the autism spectrum, the family noticed that loud noises made it difficult for her to go out in public. Leia’s anxiety and sensitivity have given her panic attacks that make it hard for her to even go to school.
After seeing how the presence of the family pets helped her stay calm, Huberdeau made the decision to secure a service animal for Leia.
Despite having acquired a suitable puppy for training, Huberdeau says that this dog suffered unforeseen health challenges and now they are back at square one.
For Huberdeau, it was a huge disappointment. She admits that the situation is taking a toll on the entire household and she has had to stop working to care for the needs of her children.
“Leia has a lot of struggles, for sure, and she’s not the only one in our household going through a mental health journey,” says Huberdeau. “As a mother, it’s a lot.”
Mona Stott, founder of Imagine Mental Health Matters, saw Leia’s story featured in The Citizen and immediately felt a connection to the story, since she is also working on training her dog to be a service animal to assist with her anxiety.
“Service dogs meet a lot of needs,” says Stott. “Mine is an emotional service dog for anxiety and working through my depression.”
Stott decided to connect with Huberdeau. That’s when she learned that the family was looking to secure a dog through St. John’s Ambulance, this time a dog that is already fully trained—which comes at a substantial cost.
“It can be up to $20,000,” says Stott. “The cost of the dog, the training, the grooming has to be impeccable. It’s amazing what you can teach these dogs to help you with, for whatever ailment you’ve got, but it comes with a price tag.”
That’s when Stott realized that she could help. Imagine has $10,000 left in the bank since they halted operations in 2019. And when COVID-19 hit in early 2020, the team felt it was a sign.
“Imagine in the past had put on events to defeat the stigma surrounding mental health, and we have given bursaries to different schools and things like that,” Stott explains. “Imagine is no longer operating in that way and we are trying to deplete the funds this year entirely. But it has to go toward things that would fit our mission. People entrusted us to do the work of decreasing stigmatization, and this meets the bill.”
Stott feels that the conversation around service dogs helps to continue the conversation of why mental health matters. It also strikes a chord with her as a mother.
“Mothers just want the best for their children, and I want the best for this family,” she says. “If this helps [the Huberdeaus] in any little way, it’s money well spent, on behalf of everyone who’s given to Imagine.”
Huberdeau says they have a $20,000 fundraising goal, adding that the donation from Imagine came as a surprise. It is, she remarks, a huge gift.
In addition to the funds from Imagine, Huberdeau is organizing other fundraising efforts to cover the cost of her daughter’s service dog. The family is holding an online auction starting February 28. They are also planning more events to take place this summer.
Stott is issuing a challenge to local businesses to contribute either by donating to the online auction or to make a donation directly to Huberdeau.
“I would like to put out the challenge to other businesses who are looking to make a donation before their financial year end,” says Stott. “Do it. The money is just sitting there and someone can benefit from it. Why not Leia? Let’s get this girl her dog.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION
If you’d like to contribute to the fundraiser to get a service dog for Leia, you can get more information on Facebook, GalaBid, or GoFundMe.
