Marisa’s health journey with seizures began when she was just five years old, after experiencing her first seizure on Christmas Day. Over time, her seizures became more frequent, yet despite testing, she remained undiagnosed for several years. When Marisa was nine, she had a seizure at her doctor’s office, prompting immediate further evaluation, including an MRI. It was then that she was diagnosed with focal cortical dysplasia. As Marisa has grown older, her seizures have continued to increase in frequency. She now takes two medications twice a day to help manage them, but she still experiences breakthrough seizures and has had as many as ten in a single day. While she can sometimes sense a seizure coming and safely sit down, this is not always possible, which puts her at risk for falls and injury. We are raising money for a service dog to help ease Marisa’s anxiety, provide support during seizures, and hopefully prevent further falls. We truly appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read Marisa’s story, and please know that 100% of all donations will go directly toward providing her with a service dog. 

Training a service dog to meet our child’s requirements can be very costly. On average it costs between $40,000-60,000 to raise, train, and place a service dog at 4 Paws for Ability. While 4 Paws for Ability fundraises to help cover a significant portion of this cost, families are tasked with raising $20,000 of that amount or $23,000 if receiving a poodle, doodle or papillon. We hope that we can receive assistance from our beloved family and friends to help make our service dog dream a reality.