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K9 Veterans Day: Sunday, March 12, 2023

Please plan to join us for Wisconsin’s 9th Annual K9 Veterans Day ceremony at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 12, at the American Legion Banquet Center in Fort Atkinson!

If you love working K9s and if you want to honor them and their handlers, we encourage you to join us for this special event!

Link to PDF of invitation to the 2023 K9 Veterans Day Program

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

This year’s program will be exciting. Our featured speaker is SGM Viridiana Lavalle, Office of the Provost Marshal General, U.S. Army Military Working Dog Program Manager, and an experienced veteran K9 handler.

Link to 3-minute video — Why I Serve:  Provost Marshal Sergeant Major Lavalle

PROGRAM

We will honor the K9 handlers and their K9 partners who appeared on Wisconsin’s Assembly when March 13 was officially proclaimed K9 Veterans Day in 2015.

The recipient of the inaugural Terry Beck Protective Services scholarship will be recognized as he continues to pursue his degree in fire protection.

Also honored will be fallen K9s from the past year and retiring working K9s.  All K9 handlers—active and retired—in attendance will be recognized. All K9s in attendance will also receive a special treat.

WREATH-LAYING CEREMONY

Prior to the event at the American Legion location, there will be a wreath-laying ceremony at the K9 Veterans Memorial in Fort Atkinson’s McCoy Park at 12:30 p.m.  Immediately following that, participants will gather at the American Legion.

McCoy Park is located at 1100 Old Madison Road (across from Salamone’s Italian Pizzeria, 1245 Madison Avenue) and the American Legion Banquet Center is located at 201 S. Water Street East, both in Fort Atkinson, WI.

HOTEL RESERVATIONS

A block of 15 rooms has been reserved at Fort Atkinson’s Holiday Inn Express for the nights of March 10th, 11th, and 12th. Special rates apply and there will be an additional charge for guests with canines.

Link to Holiday Inn Express room block information

Link to Jan. 27, 2023 article on FortAtkinsonOnline.com

Link to Mar. 8, 2023 article on FortAtkinsonOnline.com

Link to more about the K9 Veterans Memorial

Link to more about the Terry Beck Memorial Scholarship

Link to page about K9 Veterans Day Events

New Titles Honored

Heather - OpalMany KCFA members compete in a variety of dog sports, and several dog-handler teams earned new titles during 2018.  These teams were honored at the recent KCFA Annual Meeting held at Sammy’s Place restaurant.  Titles earned range from Canine Good Citizen to Trick Dog to Rally, Agility and Hunter titles.

Visit our Join the Fun page to see photos.  Click on a thumbnail photo to enlarge it, and use the browser’s “back” button to close the photo and return to the page.

Congratulations to all our new title holders!

Service Dog Tales

Come join us on Saturday, July 28, at 1:00 p.m.,
to meet working service Cadence pushing door buttondogs and their handlers, and to listen to their stories of teamwork and transformation.  Learn about the functions of service dogs, how they’re trained, and laws that apply to them.  The presentation will be held in the Community Room of Dwight Foster Public Libary, 209 Merchants Ave, Fort Atkinson.  Admission is free and the public is invited.

Amber Marzahl, a member of the Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson,  will anchor the presentation with her service dog, Cadence.  Gulf War veteran Warren Demmin and his PTSD service dog, Loki, will add their own remarkable story to the presentation, and Katie McDonald, with her service dog, Zyko, will talk about what it takes to train a service dog and what functions they might perform.

Topics will include:  What is a service dog?  Who can benefit from a service dog?  What public access rights do service dogs have?  What are a business owner’s rights with regard to them?

The growing problem with “fake” service dogs will be discussed.  These are dogs that don’t perform services other than providing companionship, but are purported by their handlers to be service dogs in order to gain access to housing or public venues where dogs aren’t usually permitted.

Time will be allowed for questions from the audience, as well.

Here’s a poster you can print and post to help us spread the word about this event:    Service_Dog_Event_Flyer