Assistance Dogs Australia Over the past year we have presented the following: 1. Naming of the first two Assistance Dogs "Maddie" and "Alfie" 2. Presenting a cheque for $50,000.00 to Assistance Dogs Australia in Forrest Chase Perth to commence the training of "Maddie and "Alfie" 3. MAD Charity Dinner - Grant Thornton Australia kindly sponsored the naming of our third assistance dog called "Gertie" 4. Unfortunately our first assistance dog "Maddie" did not make it through the first year of training and was kindly replaced by Assistance Dogs Australia. Cimeco Pty Ltd kindly sponsored the naming of our new assistance dog called "Penfold" Justin Langer (Patron) presents the keys to Jason McLean and his family Justin Langer, Patron of Make a Difference WA (MAD) proudly presented the keys to a brand new modified vehicle to young Jason McLean and his family on Tuesday 7 June 2011. At the age of 18, young Jason McLean suffered a tragic accident at the beach that left him a quadriplegic and took away his ability to live an independent life. Jason was a talented up and coming young cricketer and during his rehabilitation in Shenton Park and some time in SCGH, Justin was a regular visitor and mentor over that period. Following his rehabilitation, Jason completed a degree in Finance and Accounting at ECU and works part-time for Disability Services in the Finance Department. The family has struggled with an old converted van for a number of years to transport Jason around during his many visits for rehab, hospital and general daily life. This vehicle has now become really uncomfortable and unreliable for Jason and his family. Make a Difference WA was more than happy to fund a new modified vehicle for Jason and his family giving them an improved quality of life and more importantly a reliable vehicle. MAD is a not-for-profit organisation that raises significant funds through various projects to "make a difference" to the lives of those in necessitous circumstances, thereby improving the overall quality of life across various Western Australian communities. This includes one of the Foundation's charity projects for 2011 to fund a specially modified vehicle for young Jason McLean and his family. For further information please contact Ron Conway, Chief Executive Officer, Make a Difference WA on 9409 1067 or Mob No. 0402 148 599.

Assistance Dogs Australia

What we do
Assistance Dogs Australia (ADA) provides daily assistance to hundreds of Australians through the use of canine support. ADA is a non-profit organisation that trains Labradors and Golden Retrievers to help enhance the quality of life and imporove the level of independence for people with physical disabilities. As a result of the ADA program these highly trained dogs allow recipients to have a greater mobility, gain confidence and have a higher self-esteem.

How we are funded
ADA currently operates without ongoing Government Funding and relies heavily on volunteers and sponsorship. It costs $25,000 and takes two years to train each puppy. The ADA service is offered to beneficiaries at no charge. Recipients include autism, diabetes, quadriplegia, cerebral palsy and paraplegia.

Who needs Assistance Dogs Australia (ADA)
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 1998, 15% of the population (2.8million people) were restricted in one or more core activities. Core activities include self-care, basic mobility and effective communication. To the majority of us it may appear that most people are able-bodied, these figures clearly that this is not the case. For many Australians the situation is dire. A good proportion of our dogs are placed with people that have lost all use of motor skills or live with severe disability.

The Make a Difference Foundation WA thanks you for joining us in partnership with Assistance Dogs Australia to make a difference for these very special people who would be forever grateful to receive one of these dogs and long term add greatly to their quality of life.
Thankyou for Making A Difference

Asialee Blair

The Make a Difference Foundation WA (MADFWA) latest charity project is to give support to an inspirational little girl called Asialee Blair who lives with cerebral palsy and is undertaking an ongoing innovative treatment called G-Therapy. The Make a Difference Foundation received the following letter of thanks and appreciation from Asialee’s family for the foundation’s support of young Asialee’s treatment.

“Before we approached MADF(WA) Asialee was non-verbal, making only a few indecipherable sounds. She had limited access to expressing her needs, inquiring about her environment (either verbally or physically as she can not sit, stand, walk or talk without equipment and aids), and limited access to exploring her environment, and interacting with her peers and little brother.

We wish to inform you that since receiving the Make a Difference Foundation funds for Asialee’s G-Therapy, Asialee has become very vocal. She is showing obvious signs of verbal turn taking, cognitive development, responds to yes/no questions, and has mastered “talking” in sentences with the aid of a PODD communication book and a helper and indicating yes/no to
word sequences”.

As a result of the therapy (and thanks to Make A Difference Foundation) she is making rapid progress. Recently, Asialee has been using a special walking aid but her own therapists didn’t think she’d be able to walk. However within 1 week she was able to take 10 steps!!
What a wonderful gift the Make A Difference Foundation has given our precious little girl in not only a voice but she has her freedom and mobility! This gift is far reaching and has inspired so many of her non-verbal peers”.

Esther Foundation - Community Bus

Esther House is a women’s health and development program that operates seven residential premises in South Perth, housing more than thirty young women and their children. The program is full-time and offers extensive support and assistance to young women in a safe and structured environment.

The broadly structured program facilitates specific group and individual counseling for the following concerns faced by young women; substance abuse, sexual and emotional abuse, domestic violence, teenage pregnancy, self harming, suicidal ideation, eating disorders, family breakdown, depression and mental illness.

The next project for Make A Difference Foundation will be to provide a bus for Esther House to assist the organization in transporting the young women as they complete the program. At present they are transported via volunteers cars, with a convoy of up to 7 cars sometimes needed to get to certain locations. A medium size bus will make a significant difference to this organization and help with other elements of the program, creating a positive impact on an important area of our community.

Guy Wallace
The foundation’s inaugural project is to build a house for an incredible young West Australian called Guy Wallace who suffered a tragic horse riding accident at the NSW Equestrian Centre whilst chasing his Olympic Dream. This sadly left Guy physically disabled at the early age of 26 and now he needs specialist care and a specially adapted residence to continue his life. The Make a Difference Foundation made the decision to raise the funds to build Guy his new home and give him a better quality of life.