Got this today from Guiding Eyes for the Blind in Yorktown Heights.
Proving that vision impairment does not deter guide dog users from pursuing their careers, Guiding Eyes for the Blind will present a wine tasting led by Amy Dixon on Sunday, Sept. 12 from 3:15 to 5:30 pm at its Yorktown Heights campus at 611 Granite Springs Road. Tickets are priced at $100, $150, and $250 and may be reserved by calling 914-243-2249.
Event proceeds will support the nonprofit guide dog school’s programs for the blind and visually impaired, as well as its Heeling Autism program, in which dogs are trained to work with autistic children.
Amy Dixon will be joined by her Guiding Eyes dog Elvis. The program begins with tours of the school’s kennels and puppy training demonstrations. Amy will lead guests on a tour of eight fine wines, accompanied by an assortment of light appetizers.
Amy is the Fine Wine Buyer for Stew Leonard’s, one of the Northeast’s most famous food store chains. During her 16 years in the business, she has traveled around the world, surveying the world’s finest vineyards and returning with wonderful “finds” for her discerning clients. Her main area of expertise is the wines of Burgundy, Rhone, Spain, and Germany.
Amy’s journey into blindness began with a rare diagnosis, a combination of auto immunity and Uveitis, a disease of the eyes. Doctors in Philadelphia, NYC, and Boston told her that she was one of 28 patients in the United States with this pairing of conditions.
Amy has been an animal lover all her life, and remains an active equestrian. So it was only natural that she decided to use a guide dog to enhance her mobility and assure her independence. Guiding Eyes for the Blind’s fine reputation led her to chose the school over others, and its Home Training Program enabled Amy to continue working while she and her Guiding Eyes’ dog Elvis learned to work together.
Amy and Elvis continue to travel the world, hunting for fabulous wines to bring back to the United States. Amy credits Guiding Eyes for giving her back the life and career that she had worked so hard to establish.
Amy’s career began while working as a sommelier for various restaurants. She then became the Northeast Regional Sales Manager for Boisset America, France’s third largest wine exporter. Amy is well known in New York and Connecticut for her informative, and often amusing, wine tasting events, and she donates much of her time helping charities raise money by providing them with lively lectures and tastings.
Amy writes a monthly wine blog, “The Blind Sommelier” and is in the process of writing her first book about wine, which is due in bookstores next winter.
