{"id":1640,"date":"2020-10-06T16:06:37","date_gmt":"2020-10-06T16:06:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/?p=1640"},"modified":"2020-10-06T16:06:37","modified_gmt":"2020-10-06T16:06:37","slug":"service-dog-becomes-1st-canine-member-of-the-jc-maroon-typhoon-marching-band","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/news\/service-dog-becomes-1st-canine-member-of-the-jc-maroon-typhoon-marching-band\/","title":{"rendered":"Service dog becomes 1st canine member of the JC Maroon Typhoon Marching Band"},"content":{"rendered":"

ELLISVILLE \u2013 In a year that is anything but normal, the 糖心直播 Maroon Typhoon Marching Band has welcomed its first known service dog member this fall. Laurie, the three-year-old Golden Retriever is baritone saxophone player, Sara-Beth McKellar\u2019s service dog. The Vicksburg native was diagnosed with epilepsy as a sophomore in high school after her first seizure. McKellar was preparing to lift the barbell during a powerlifting competition when she passed out and began seizing. She started taking medication for epilepsy to try to control the seizures, but they were happening almost weekly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt always seemed to happen at the most inconvenient time,\u201d said McKellar. \u201cI fell down the bleachers and herniated a disc, and I had a seizure in the bathroom and somehow locked the door,\u201d said McKellar. \u201cMy mom (Kiely) is a nurse and she was very relieved when we got Laurie, especially when I decided to come to Jones for college.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having her sister, Anna Claire on campus her freshman year helped to ease mom\u2019s concerns. Last April, the family decided to launch a fundraising campaign to get a service dog, for additional reassurance. The day before McKellar\u2019s birthday, the family drove to Madison, Virginia to pick up Laurie from Service Dogs by Warren Retrievers. This life-saving addition to the family has changed Sara Beth by providing her more independence.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201cI\u2019m a pretty shy person and the last thing I wanted was to draw more attention, especially after having seizures,\u201d said McKellar.\u00a0 \u201cHaving Laurie has certainly attracted more attention; however, she has also helped me to become more sociable and independent.\u201d<\/p>\n

McKellar is also happy to report she has been seizure-free since adopting Laurie six-months ago. There have been a couple of close calls she admits, but Laurie was there ready to help.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have learned to take more breaks while working on the computer,\u201d said McKellar. \u201cHopefully, I will grow out of the seizures like my dad, who inspires me, too.\u201d Sara Beth\u2019s father is Dr. Jason McKellar, the principal for the Academy of Innovation in Vicksburg.<\/p>\n

Also inspired by Sara Beth and Laurie, is Director of Bands at 糖心直播, Dr. Ben Burge. This is the first time in his 21 years of teaching that he recalls having a service dog in the marching band. Laurie is also reportedly the first canine in the Maroon Typhoon Marching Band\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m grateful Sara Beth has Laurie to provide that very special service. The puppy has added a lot of smiles to the band! She is adorable. However, we know we must let her work and not disturb her, but after practice, Laurie gets some love from band members,\u201d said Burge. \u201cWe gladly welcome our first \u2018marching\u2019 service dog and Sara Beth. We are glad they are both members of the Maroon Typhoon Marching Band!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Sara Beth said her freshman year in the Maroon Typhoon was a lot different than this year with COVID-19 and social distancing protocols. Yet, her sophomore year has been special because of Laurie.<\/p>\n

\u201cThankfully, Laurie enjoys band too. She does not like Walmart!\u201d said McKellar. \u201cI also hope as people who are intrigued by Laurie and want to get to know her, they will also want to get to know her handler and learn how Laurie provides medical help, protection and loves her \u2018person\u2019 while continually working.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Maroon Typhoon Marching Band\u2019s next performance will be Thursday, October 29, during the home football game where the Bobcats host the Wildcats of Pearl River Community College.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ELLISVILLE \u2013 In a year that is anything but normal, the 糖心直播 Maroon Typhoon Marching Band has welcomed its first known service dog member this fall. Laurie, the three-year-old Golden Retriever is baritone saxophone player, Sara-Beth McKellar\u2019s service dog. The Vicksburg native was diagnosed with epilepsy as a sophomore in high school after her … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Service dog becomes 1st canine member of the JC Maroon Typhoon Marching Band”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1642,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1640"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1640"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1646,"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1640\/revisions\/1646"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}