In honor of K-9 law enforcement units everywhere, a 5-year-old German shepherd and Marion County Sheriff’s Office deputy named Drago will potentially be featured on his very own license plate. The license plate is for the non-profit K9s United, which help fund equipment and purchases for K9 units across the country.
K9s United is hoping to get the required 3,000 pre-orders of the license plate featuring Drago next to his Belgian Malinois K9 pal Ryker from the St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office. On the license, resting above the heads of the two furry friends read the words: “Because my service matters.”
Drago, the retired police dog. Courtesy, K9s United via Facebook
Founded by Debbie Johnson, the K9s United mission began after hearing about the death of K-9 Baron in St. John’s County and learning about budgetary needs among K-9 units. “We help fund whatever the need is that’s not being met within their budget,…We’ve donated anywhere from a dog to a harness and everything in between, whatever the equipment is, whether it’s training equipment, whether it’s a heat alarm for the vehicle,” said Johnson.
In addition to budgetary funding, K9s United has provided training classes in response to many requests from police K-9 units. In October, the organization held a training workshop for over 70 local, state and international law enforcement units at the Southeastern Livestock Pavilion in Ocala.
These special K-9 license plates can be purchased at the Department of Motor Vehicles or k9sunited.org for $33, with $25 of that and the annual renewal fee all donated to help K9s United in its efforts. “Even if we just sold the 3,000, that would be an annual $75,000 coming into the org so we can continue to do what we do,” Johnson said. “We’re all volunteer. We don’t have any paid staff.”
The license plates aid a wonderful mission to support the dogs who protect our human police officers and communities and recognizes the work they put in. If you’d like to support K9 United in other ways or become a member of the K9 Corps, you can visit their website.
LMA Newsletter of 11-15-21
