Florida lawyer guides blind U.S. Navy veteran through a California marathon.

The last thing U.S. Navy Lt. Brad Snyder saw was that he had no missing limbs after he stepped on a bomb hidden in a farm field in Afghanistan that burned his face.

Shortly after the explosion on September 7, 2011, everything went black. Though doctors were unable to restore his sight, Snyder refused to let blindness rob him of quality of life.

One year later, on September 7, 2012, Snyder won a gold medal in swimming at the Paralympic Games in London. He took home an additional gold and silver medal earned in other swimming events from those Paralympics.

That was after earning several medals in swimming and running events in the 2012 Wounded Warrior Games, where he served as torchbearer. He is now training for the 2016 Paralympic Games.

When Danielle Zemola of Ft. Myers learned of an essay contest to serve as a guide runner for Snyder at the California International Marathon, she jumped at the opportunity.

As an alumnus of Delta Gamma, Zemola began volunteering and promoting the women's fraternity's philanthropy, Service for Sight, which supports the blind and visually impaired.

Equally enthusiastic about running and giving back to military veterans, Zemola was the right person to guide Snyder, said Mark Lucas, executive director of the United States Association of Blind Athletes.

"Her essay was just over the top," he said. "She has such passion for improving people's lives, and she wanted to give back to someone who served our country."

Zemola, who pratices with Goede, Adamczyk & DeBoest, could hardly contain her excitement when she learned she'd won.

"I was jumping up and down like a little girl, in my office, like I'd won the lottery," she said.

Leading up to the race, Zemola got to know Snyder and practiced guide running.

Working with a mobility coordinator at a local Lighthouse organization, she completed runs while blindfolded and while guiding another blindfolded person.

"For me, being a guide is more stressful than being the blinded runner because the person is solely relying on you as his guide," Zemola said. "I'm responsible for him, making sure there's not a crack or rock or he doesn't run into someone, which is a very dangerous thing in a marathon because people don't always look and might stop right in front of you."

Additionally, Zemola set a goal of raising $5,000 for Service for Sight and USABA in 50 days. Through several fundraising events she organized in her area and donations, she exceeded her goal and raised $7,000.

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