DAVID Blunkett joined other guide dog owners to celebrate 75 years of Guide Dogs for the Blind.
Among the hundreds of owners at the Isle of Dogs event last Thursday was 57-year-old Paulette Obee, of Mayfield Avenue, Orpington.
Ms Obee is an active campaigner on behalf of blind and partially sighted people.
She said: "It is important to bring the work of Guide Dogs to the attention of the public.
"It is not only mobility but also the confidence my dog Briar gives me. For me it is a genuine confidence boost."
The launch event for the year of celebrations took place at the Museum in Docklands, Isle of Dogs, London, on January 26.
British guide dog training started in 1931 in Wallasey, Cheshire, when four German Shepherd dogs, Flash, Meta, Judy and Folly, were trained as the first four guide dogs.
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