On August 17, 2015, Sergeant Chris Boyd will be retiring from the Madison Police Department. With her departure, our Department will be losing a valuable asset and ambassador of the Madison Police Department K9 Unit. Sergeant Boyd has been the supervisor of the K9 Unit for the past ten years. Under her leadership, the K9 Unit has developed into a valuable resource to all of our officers and the community. Her leadership and determination was also instrumental in cultivating community relationships that lead to the formation of the Capital K9's Foundation.
Since 2004, the City of Madison Police Department has had a community partnership with the Capital K9's organization. They have been a valuable contributor to the critical funding necessary that has helped our K9 Unit become a leader in the State. Their funding has also enabled the Department to expand our K9 roster to seven K9 teams which allows for more coverage in our community.
Capital K9's sponsors two events on a yearly basis to help support the Madison Police K9 Unit. The K9 CSI event was held on July 9th. This offered community members an opportunity to view a reenactment of a recent MPD case and also observe the K9 teams in action in various scenarios. This year's event received rave reviews from those that attended. The next fundraising event will be the "Dog Paddle 2015" which is scheduled for September 13th from 10am-4pm. Members of the community will be able to bring their dogs to the Goodman Pool for a swim on the last day of the pool season. This is truly a fun event for all and you will have a chance to meet members of our K9 Unit. We encourage you to come out for the activities.
Sponsorships are another way for Capital K9's to cultivate support. Sponsorship of a K9 team is a significant cost. It includes the acquisition, training, and equipment for the dog/handler team. A press conference was held recently to introduce MPD's newest K9 team, Officer Eric Disch and K9 Jagger. His name was chosen by his sponsors, Karen Walsh and Dr. James Berbee.
Fundraising is vital to our success. Please visit the Capital K9's website for additional information (www.capitalk9s.org ) on how you can help. The Madison Police Department is appreciative of our partnership and work with Capital K9's.
We also say good-bye to another long-standing member of our K9 handlers. Officer Teresa McKenzie, along with her K9 partner Josh, retired in July of this year. Officer McKenzie served our community with pride and distinction for 29 years. We wish both Sergeant Boyd and Officer McKenzie well-deserved retirements!
This blog was authored by Lt. Trevor Knight.