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PrintOfficials in Ellwood City have been working for weeks to put together a really special birthday party. The whole town on the Lawrence-Beaver county line is invited to the Sept. 23 bash, where the guest of honor will be a 5-year-old dog.
"Let's honor Jozek for all that he has done and for what he means to our community," says the invitation, which includes a picture of a German shepherd gazing intently at the camera lens. He wears a vest that says "police" and a badge dangles from his collar.
MORE PHOTOS » "We just love this dog," said Dom Viccari, whose duties as Ellwood City borough manager recently expanded to include the planning of a dog birthday party.
After reading the July 17 Pet Tales column about Allegheny County Deputy Sheriff Maria Watts and Bobby, her K-9 partner, Mr. Viccari said he decided to combine Jozek's fifth birthday party with a "K-9 Appreciation Day."
"Ellwood City Borough will be honoring K-9 dogs and their handlers from police departments throughout the area. They are truly our heroes and our friends!" says the invitation.
Invitations have gone out to dozens of police departments and K-9 dogs, including Bobby, who patrols courtrooms on Grant Street in Pittsburgh. Yes, the K-9 dogs are expressly invited to come to the party from 1:30 to 3 p.m. outside the front entrance of the municipal building at 525 Lawrence Ave., Ellwood City.
Mayor Anthony Courts is also involved in the party planning, and is unabashedly effusive in his praise of Jozek.
"He has been a godsend for us. Jozek is the epitome of what we are trying to do here. Everything he does is correct," Mr. Courts said.
The mayor and the dog work in the same building so Jozek "visits me frequently. We have gotten very close. He is our first K-9 and I love him."
So do the people of Ellwood city, especially the children.
"When he goes to school assemblies, the kids go nuts," Mr. Courts said.
In the past three years, Josek has done 71 demonstrations at schools, churches and social organizations.
What else has he done for his town? Officials keep track of his stats. His 222 deployments includes 37 apprehensions, 23 building searches, 85 narcotics searches and 26 tracking assignments finding and apprehending suspects who had fled the scene. Also, Jozek's keen nose led to the seizure of 294 grams of cocaine, 969 grams of marijuana, 2 grams of methadone, 93 pills and 91 pieces of "drug paraphernalia."
"Combined efforts of the police and the K-9 have resulted in 111 persons being criminally charged, the seizure of two vehicles and over $12,000 in cash confiscated," says a news release.
Mr. Viccari was on city council when elected officials spent two years discussing whether they should get a K-9 dog. Elwood City has fewer than 9,000 residents and just 10 police officers. They'd never had a dog in the police department, and they didn't have the money to buy one.
Fund-raisers were held and local residents contributed $17,000 to buy a dog from the Czech Republic and pay for his training. Jozek was teamed with police officer Mike McBride "and they are made for each other," the mayor said.
During Jozek's first year on the force, officials organized a birthday party for his second birthday. About 150 people came bearing gifts. They donated dog toys and money to buy the things a dog needs, including a bullet-proof vest, veterinary care, life insurance and dog food.
Josek really is the "people's" dog. Major contributors to his care include Apple Grove Veterinary Clinic, Shook Specialty Welding, Wal-Mart, Hazen Nationwide Insurance and Clark Studio as well as area churches, clubs and individuals.
"I was at the second birthday party and Jozek really enjoyed himself," Mayor Courts said. "He loves being the center of attention. He's kind of a ham. So I know he'll enjoy the party for his fifth birthday."
Free birthday cake will be provided by Loccisano's, Kimmel's, L&L Pastries and Giant Eagle.
Once again, the birthday party is a fund-raiser for the dog. As the caption says under his picture on the invitation, "Jozek will protect you. Will you help protect him?"
Police officers who plan to attend with K-9dogs should RSVP by sending e-mail to debramohr@inbox.com or by calling officials at 724-758-9935, ext. 19 for the mayor, or 724-758-7777, ext. 11 for the borough manager.
