MIDDLESEX TWP — A kickoff fundraiser aimed at getting a service dog for a local boy will be held next month.

The Lab for Liam project is being coordinated by Donna Connelly, the mother of 5-year-old Liam Connelly, who was diagnosed with Down syndrome at birth and autism at age 2.

Connelly is trying to get a Labrador retriever trained by Perfect Fit Canines. Because of their specialized training, the dogs cost between $10,000 and $20,000 each.

Connelly said Liam seemed to be progressing well as a young baby, playing and laughing with his siblings.

“Then a year or two later he regressed and didn't do anything,” she said. “I never thought he'd become nonverbal.”

Connelly said in one case, a boy with autism who received a service dog said the dog's name, which was his first word in seven years.

“I have so much hope,” Connelly said. “I'm hoping Liam will bond with the dog, and the dog will help Liam come out of his shell.”

She said Liam tends to wander, and a service dog specially trained in working with an autistic child would be able to find Liam within a 4-mile radius.

“They also help with sensory and behavioral issues,” Connelly said.

If Liam gets a service dog, he and Connelly will meet the dog after it is trained at their home. The pair will then train with the dog at Perfect Fit Canines for two weeks before bringing the four-legged family member home.

Connelly predicts that Liam will ignore the dog in the beginning.

“I think with the dog, he'll just look at him at first,” she said. “But eventually, they'll click.”

Jim Wagner, the co-founder, autism specialist and director of development at Perfect Fit Canines, said he uses only English labradors because of their size, strength, agility, loyalty and intelligence.

“I love all breeds,” said Wagner, “but I find that with the type of work we do with autism and other disabilities, the English labs work the best.”

He said a handful of eligible dogs will be released with Liam, and the ones that don't approach him will be removed. He will continue taking the remaining dogs away and re-releasing them with Liam until one dog remains. That is the dog that will be trained for Liam.

“The dog will pick him,” Wagner said.

He said the dogs are trained in his facility in the North Hills. So far, Perfect Fit Canines has placed 10 to 15 dogs in its seven years of existence.

Connelly is hoping for a large turnout at her first fundraiser, which is a spaghetti dinner and basket auction from 2 to 6 p.m. April 23 at Willees Tavern, 11150 Babcock Blvd., Gibsonia. A 50/50 raffle also will be held.

She said she has been impressed by the response of her friends and neighbors, as well as strangers alike, as she has worked to coordinate the fundraiser.

“It's gotten bigger and bigger,” Connelly said.

Basket items are still being accepted, as are monetary donations.

To donate a basket item, call 412-580-5557 or e-mail LabforLiamFund@gmail.com.

Monetary donations can be sent to First National Bank, 540 Northpoint Circle, Seven Fields, PA 16046. Checks should be made out to “Lab for Liam Fund.”