The Dade City Police Department is getting a new K-9.
- Dade City PD set to buy new K-9
- K-9 Ryko retired earlier this year
- New K-9 costs about $10,000
The department raised so much money to purchase a K-9 that the agency decided to form a new foundation that will also help pay for safety equipment and catastrophic events in officers lives, according to Chief Ray Velboom.
“We decided that was the best way to do it,” said Chief Velboom. “That way there’s some tax relief there.”
Velboom said after his K-9 Ryko retired earlier this year, there wasn’t any money in his budget to purchase a new dog. That’s when Velboom said he turned to the community and raised thousands of dollars over the past few months.
“In a short period of time, I raised $24,000,” he said. “The word just started buzzing around the community.”
The police chief said the new 501 C-3 will be called the Dade City Police Foundation and will have its own board of directors that’ll control how the donated money is spent.
“It’ll be a constant funding source and whoever’s the next chief after me won’t have to go out and worry about raising money,” he said. “There’ll be some longevity to that and that money will be coming in.”
Velboom said the money will be spent on dogs, safety equipment and catastrophic events for members. The agency is interviewing K-9 handlers this week and hopes to have a team in place by next month. The police chief said a new K-9 along with equipment costs about $10,000.