If you are a criminal on the lam or just want to stay lost, then you probably shouldn’t contribute to the latest fund drive in Orange.
The Pioneer Junior Women’s Club started fundraising about three weeks ago for a new K9 for the town’s police force, continuing a 30-year-old tradition of financially supporting the department’s K9 team — a highly trained dog and its full-time officer-handler-partner.
The town’s last police dog, Matte, died on April 6, four weeks after being diagnosed with lung cancer. The German shepherd became a member of the police force in October 2007. Officer Clay Rushford, who has been the town’s K9 officer for years, said Matte continued to work every day in his final weeks, once tracking a suspect for a mile.
Orange’s residents have come to appreciate and support their police dogs over the years, and now, it seems they can’t imagine going on without one.
So various community organizations have come forward once again, led by the Pioneer Junior Women’s Club, to raise money for a new dog to take on Matte’s responsibilities. American Legion Post 172 has pledged $10,000 and the Junior Women’s Club started fundraising two weeks ago, having already collected $4,300, according to President Brenda Taylor.
Officer Chris Bisceglia, who is replacing Rushford as the department’s K9 handler, said he and Rushford are weighing their options for a new dog, which will likely cost between $7,500 to $11,000. Bisceglia said all donated money exceeding the purchase cost will be used for the dog’s food, gear, training and veterinary care.
Bisceglia said he marvels at the public support for the department and its K9 program. Over the years, whenever the police dog needed some piece of gear, like a bulletproof vest, the women’s club has stepped up.
“It just goes to show that the community, when there’s a need, they pull together,” said Bisceglia.
Bisceglia said a police K9 serves many purposes, including detecting narcotics, helping to find missing people and tracking fugitives. He also said the department sometimes brings its dog to schools for kid-friendly demonstrations of police work.
And that help isn’t confined to Orange, as the towns in the Franklin County area share their K9 officers’ talents wherever they are needed, which meant that Matte and his predecessors would often found themselves pressed into duty in neighboring communities.
About the Orange K9 program, Taylor noted recently that “It’s just worked out very well, so everybody wants to keep it in town, keep the K9 program going … Dogs are special.”
Clearly, the people of Orange agree.