Announcements

Class of 2011 to Break Ground on PCSO K-9 Kennel

At the county jail on Criminal Justice Day, the Class of 2011 was inspired by stories of some of Pasco’s most dedicated law enforcement professionals.

Of course, there were the deputies. But what sparked the class’s attention were the nine dogs who make up the K-9 unit and their work, from finding elderly parents who wandered off and young children who’d been missing for hours to crawling through swamps and woods to track criminal suspects.

“We all thought about our families and friends, and how crucial the dogs and their handlers are to keeping Pasco safe,” said Skip Miller, class president and a SunTrust banker. “When we learned how a dedicated space could help the K-9 unit become an even more valuable asset to our community, our class knew we were looking at an opportunity to make an impact.”

That day, the class began raising money and working on plans to build a 1,186-square-foot building on the Pasco County jail property in Land O’ Lakes, next to the new helicopter hangar. With groundbreaking set for March, the new facility is expected to be occupied this year and will provide short-term shelter and basic amenities for the dogs and their handlers, as well as training space that will be used by law enforcement agencies countywide.

Frank Rygiel, a senior project manager with Batson-Cook Company and member of the Class of 2011, is managing the construction of the kennel, which is estimated at $120,000 and will include a wash area, kennel boarding space, a training area, shower facilities and other amenities for the officers and dogs. Batson-Cook is donating construction management services and is working with several local subcontractors for construction. Spring Engineering is donating design services.

More than $9,000 has been raised for the project, with leadership sponsorships from SunTrust Bank and St. Leo University. Donations of $500 or more will be recognized with an engraved brick paver installed in a walkway at the site; Leadership Pasco alumni have the exclusive opportunity to be recognized for gifts of $100 or more.

The PSO K-9 unit — seven German Shepherds, one Belgian Malinois and one Bloodhound — is tasked with building searches and evidence recovery, tracking suspects and finding missing persons, detecting drugs and explosives and a heavy schedule of public education. The team is one of the region’s best, boasting in 2010 nearly 700 deployments and success locating eight missing children, three missing or endangered adults and 138 criminal suspects. It currently has no formal office or operations space at the central facility. As its success has outpaced PSO’s ability to construct a kennel, the unit is housed in an 8x10 office in New Port Richey.

Deputies say a new kennel in Land O’Lakes will be a boon for the unit because of its central location and provision for shift activities such as short-term boarding, bathing and training. The central location will also put the unit within 30 minutes of almost any call in Pasco County. When deputies take vacation they will be able to board their dog at the PSO kennel, where another trained handler can properly care for the dog; now handlers often find dogsitters among family or friends, who aren’t trained to care for police dogs. Shower facilities at headquarters would also boost the dogs’ and handlers’ comfort because, with many chases going through waterways and swamps, a dog may spend several hours waiting in the officer’s vehicle (safely, of course) before the team can access shower facilities

And construction of a new kennel might also help promote marital bliss among the force.

“We don’t have wash room facilities for the dogs at headquarters, so the dog is usually washed at home — its hard for a dog to not track dirt into the house after running through mud in a forest,” said Sergeant Brian Brosnan, the unit’s supervisor who has worked with the K-9 unit for all but two of his 27 years with PSO. “My wife doesn’t like two of us tracking dirt through the house. Sometimes I have to shower outside with the hose.”

HOW YOU CAN HELP

• Make a cash gift and be recognized with an engraved brick at the kennel site. Leadership Pasco alumni will be recognized with an engraved brick paver at the kennel site for gifts of $100 or more.
• Contact Skip Miller at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or (352) 573-7322.
• Plan to attend the Taste of Pasco on April 30 at The Concourse. Leadership Pasco alumni will be treated to complimentary admission. Advance-purchase tickets are available for $20.
• Contact Frances Werner-Watkins at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or (727) 514-6932.
• Enter a restaurant or beverage company into the Taste of Pasco.
• Contact Angie Gardner at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or (727) 808-4517.
• Donate construction materials or other in-kind services.
• Contact Frank Rygiel at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or (813) 221-7575.

Leadership Pasco Class of 2011
PRESENTS
TASTE OF PASCO
Saturday, April 30, 2011
3:00 - 7:00 p.m.
The Concourse
http://www.lp2011.com

Leadership Pasco alumni will be treated to complimentary admission. Tickets for paying guests can be purchased in advance for $20 or at the door for $25.

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