Kate Eifrig (via K94K8)
Have you heard about this extraordinary fundraising effort for Twin Cities actress Kate Eifrig?
According to http://K94K8.com:
“Kate has a condition called refractory/resistant major depression, complicated by severe anxiety. While most major depressive episodes last anywhere from two weeks to six months, Kate is now in her 4th year of an episode. After years of doctors, drugs and therapies that did little to help Kate’s condition improve, she recently began seeing a new psychiatrist who asked if there had ever been anything that helped her depression. Kate hesitantly replied, ‘A dog,’ expecting the doctor to dismiss her. Instead, without even looking up from his notes he replied, ‘I’ve prescribed dogs for people.'”
Long story made short, Kate has been accepted into a program through Heeling Allies, a Seattle-based non-profit organization that trains mental health service dogs for people across the country. She is working to raise funds for one of these dogs, an enormous step toward returning to a full, productive life. But like service dogs for any disability, the training of a mental health service dog is expensive. Kate is currently unable to work; and her years as a successful actor, while rewarding in many ways, have not left her in a position to take on the financial burden that is required.
A small but devoted group of friends and colleagues have stepped up to help Kate raise the necessary funds for this service dog. Please visit the website they’ve set up, http://K94K8.com, to learn more about Kate and make an online donation. You can also read her story in the Star Tribune. We’re inspired by Kate’s courage and persistence, and by the love and support her community is embodying.