FROM THE DAILY JOURNAL YOUR GENEROSITY WILL HELP PROTECT OUR K9S VINELAND – Pennies for Puppies, a community campaign to purchase body armor for police dogs, added up to a whole lot of protection for the citys K9 units — and then some. Within a month of Petway Elementary School pitching in with The Daily Journal to help launch the fundraiser, Pennies for Puppies collected the $2,550 in donations needed to purchase vests for three Vineland police city K9s that lacked the safety gear. The campaign also resulted in some pay it forward bonuses. An additional $2,500 raised through community donations will fund even more safety equipment for the seven-dog Vineland K9 department. And, through a contact The Daily Journal made during the campaign, two Millville Police Department K9s also will receive the lifesaving vests. Capital K9, a nonprofit organization based in Trenton, is making that donation, which will result in vests for Rio and Chase, partners to Millville police officers John Butschky and Michael Calchi, respectively. Police chiefs from both cities thanked donors for helping their departments get the safety equipment that had been deemed too expensive to include in their spending plans. This is something we wouldnt have been able to prioritize this year as a budget item, Vineland Police Chief Timothy Codispoti said. I appreciate everyone thats contributed to this endeavor. When the public learned three Vineland K9s — Agir, Pikke and a rookie pup scheduled for training at the K9 academy in the spring — did not have the lifesaving vests, donations flooded in. More than 55 people sent checks, some from as far away as Florida, to support the community campaign. To our 4-legged law enforcement officers, stay safe and thank you for all you do, Kay Capelli of Vineland wrote on a note she tucked in with her contribution. Some residents stopped police officers around town to ask how they could help. Daily Journal readers streamed into our Oak Road lobby carrying coins to donate. Every penny counted. Petway Elementary School kindergartner Angelo Conte tapped his piggy bank to help the police dogs. They are very cute and help catch the bad guys, he said. Vincent DiBiase, a retired Vineland officer, sent a contribution to purchase a vest. He recalls days working alongside the first generation of the police departments K9 officers including Harvey Shaw, the father of Pikkes handler, Adam Shaw. Its a good cause, DiBiase said. Thats a sentiment also shared by Newfield National Bank President and CEO John Borelli Jr., who wrote a $1,000 check to the campaign on behalf of the bank. Officer Louis Platania recently stopped by the banks Landis Avenue branch so Agir could showcase his new vest.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Dec 2014 19:37:06 +0000
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