A gift for generations to come.

Guide dogs have been part of Kate and Gareth’s life for decades. From the beginning, they’ve seen the freedom, independence and joy a guide dog can bring, and wanted more New Zealanders with vision loss to have a chance to get out and enjoy a full, happy life.

Kate’s journey began over 18,000 km away in 1972, when she raised and trained her very first puppy in the UK. Guide dogs quickly became Kate’s life calling – so when she moved to New Zealand, Kate became one of Aotearoa’s first puppy breeders and raisers.

When she arrived, she had to carry written permission just to take a guide dog into a shopping mall. “People could be quite abusive,” she says. But that didn’t stop Kate visiting schools, clubs and public spaces, training puppies while changing the public’s perception of guide dogs.

Almost every puppy Kate raised and trained went on to give someone the chance to get out and about, to work and to live life on their own terms. Over five decades and 30 consecutive years, she has given that gift again and again. Gareth and Kate have shared their hearts and home with generations of dogs, building a connection to the cause that remains deeply personal.

Kate’s legacy lives on in every guide dog she raised and trained. Gareth’s legacy is written into his Will – a significant gift to Blind Low Vision NZ guide dogs, that reflects a lifetime of devotion and care. He’s so devoted to the cause, there’s even a guide dog in training named Gareth, too! “We’ve had Labs in our home since the 80s…they have become a part of the household, a part of the family,” says Gareth with a smile.

“Choosing guide dogs as a beneficiary was a no brainer,” Gareth continues. “We’ve seen how having a working dog as a companion makes such a huge difference to people’s lives.”

Thanks to people like you, and extraordinary gifts like Kate and Gareth’s, more Kiwis with vision loss can get out into the world now, and for generations to come.