Eighteen-year-old Emily Martell of Baldwinsville has suffered from debilitating anxiety for as long as she can remember, but the pressure and work she put into her freshmen year at the University of Rochester really took a toll on her mental health. In hopes of reducing her constant fear and anxiety, Emily was recently accepted and matched with a psychiatric service dog. Now she is running an online fundraising campaign through RedBasket.org, a free crowdfunding website, in hopes of raising the $10,000 needed for the dog’s training.
While she was still at home, Emily was able to manage her anxiety with medications, weekly life coaching, and the comfort of her animals. Despite requesting special living accommodations in order to reduce her anxiety in college, Emily’s condition grew exponentially worse. Her fear grew to where she would miss classes, lectures, and would not eat because of how afraid she was to enter the dining hall. Her panic attacks became more common and violent, and it was clear that she could no longer handle her condition on her own.
Emily met with a psychologist who diagnosed her with obsessive-compulsive disorder, major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other social phobias. However, even with new medication and therapy choices, Emily continued to struggle. The only time she felt better was when she volunteered at the local animal shelter. Whenever she felt overwhelmed or stressed, she would go, sit with a dog, and simply talk. It was then that her doctor recommended she look into getting a psychiatric service dog.
Emily was recently accepted and matched to receive a psychiatric service dog, Scout, through a local service dog provider, Canine Helpers for the Handicapped. Scout is being trained to recognize and perform tasks to reduce her anxiety and stress.
Emily is now hoping to raise $10,000 through Red Basket to offset the cost of Scout’s training. Every penny donated to Emily will go directly to her. No fees are charged when giving through Red Basket.
To support Emily with your tax-deductible donation, visit RedBasket.org/970.
About Red Basket
Red Basket is a free crowdfunding website where individuals can share their story, recruit volunteers and raise money for personal emergencies or community improvement projects. Red Basket, a 501c3 public charity, was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. Red Basket is fully supported by WoodmenLife which covers Red Basket’s administrative costs in their entirety so 100% of donations are directly passed thru to the individual or cause. To learn more about Red Basket, visit Redbasket.org.
What makes Red Basket different from other crowdfunding websites:
- No fees, not even credit card processing fees
- Non-profit organization
- Verification process to ensure complete transparency in donation process