Mother starting epilepsy support group

Three years after her son was diagnosed with epilepsy, Minden resident Marlene Collins has started a support group, and hopes to expand it to Douglas County.

"My son was diagnosed in 2005," she said. "It just came out of the thin blue air. There's no family history or anything. It kind of caught us off guard."

When they went looking for help, there wasn't any in Douglas County.

"We couldn't find anything in Douglas, from doctors to support groups to anything," she said. "We tried to find other people in Douglas, but trying to find others has been next to impossible."

The family traveled to a national epilepsy conference in Washington, D.C.

"It was the first time Jesse ever talked to another person with epilepsy," she said.

Jesse, a Sierra Crest Academy student, copes as well as he can.

"He can be just like any other 15-year-old," she said. "He snowboards and rides his bicycle."

Meetings of the Reno support group are held 6 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month at Renown South Meadows Institute of Neuroscience, 10085 Double R Blvd. Registered Nurse Lisa Jonkey at (775) 982-7354 is the contact. Anyone with seizures, or who's caring for someone with seizures, is welcome at the meetings.

Jesse will be participating in a walk next month in Washington. Anyone interested in supporting him can visit www.walkforepilepsy.org/goto/jessebuchanan.

I got a visit from Pfc. Matt Boyd last week, who graduated from Marine Corps boot camp on Jan. 30.

Matt is home for a couple of weeks on leave and recruiter duty before reporting for Marine combat training at Camp Pendleton. Then he's off for training as a motor transport driver at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri.

The 2008 Douglas High School graduate said the 12-week basic training was a lot of work.

"It was very demanding, but I was happy to do it," he said.

Matt is the son of Valdis "Ma" Boyd, who has two other sons in the service. Marine Cpl. Christopher Boyd is serving in Iraq. Sgt. Michael Boyd was injured when his Stryker straddled an improvised explosive device on July 18, 2007.

Oregon dog expert Ian Caldicott will be in Fish Springs this weekend to present two herding workshops.

"He is one of the best border collie trainers in the U.S.," said Kathy Givens of the Australian Shepherd and Border Collie Rescue of Northern Nevada, which is sponsoring Calidcott's visit. "I went to his place in Oregon, and he is very resuce friendly."

Caldicott's workshops will show how a dog can be controlled from a distance using just whistles.

Givens said sheep and goats will be available for herding at this weekend's event.

"It's pretty cool," she said. "On Saturday and Sundy, if people have an interest in auditing the course, they will get as much from listening and auditing. A lot of people are just kicking the tires and want to see what the options are."

Givens said just watching the herding can tire a dog out. The Johnson Lane resident said she purchased sheep so she could test the dogs.

"I had to buy sheep, because you have to test the dog," she said. "You don't want to put a high-drive dog in a home that's got low energy owners."

Cost for one day of training is $120. The audit cost for owners who want to bring their dogs to watch and receive aptitude testing is $50. Both prices include lunch and instructional material. For more information or to register, call Givens at 267-4068.

Gardnerville resident Georgette Twain, a 2007 inductee of the Four-String Banjo Hall of Fame, will join more than 60 banjoists and fellow riders from the third annual Banjo Snow Train to Reno 6:30 p.m. Feb. 25 to jam and sing in the Hobby Horse Room located on the second floor of Harrahs East Resort.