The Manchester Township Police Department is pleased to announce the arrival of K-9 Lynk’s body armor on April 15, 2016. K-9 Lynk received the bullet and stab protective vest thanks to a charitable donation from the non-profit organization, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. The vest was sponsored by Joanne Wright of Manchester, NJ and is embroidered with the sentiment “In loving memory of Wayne T. Wright – Be safe.”
In addition to sponsoring the bullet and stab protective vest for K-9 Lynk, Joanne Wright also made a monetary donation in support of the Manchester Township Police K-9 Unit. Chief Lisa Parker accepted the donation from Joanne Wright at police headquarters, today, in the presence of Manchester Business Administrator, Donna Markulic, K-9 Unit supervisor, Lt. Vincent Manco, K-9 Handler, Ptl. Steven Wendruff and his K-9 partner, Lynk. “We, the members of the Manchester Township Police Department express our sincere gratitude to both Joanne Wright and the Vested Interest in K9s Organization for their generosity and support of our K-9 Unit,” Manchester Township Police Chief Lisa parker said.
Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. is a 501c (3) charity located in East Taunton, MA whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies throughout the United States.The non-profit was established in 2009 to assist law enforcement agencies with this potentially lifesaving body armor for their four-legged K9 officers. Since its inception, Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provided over 1,800 protective vests, in 49 states, through private and corporate donations, at a cost of over 1.6 million dollars. All vests are custom made in the USA by Armor Express in Central Lake, MI.
The program is open to dogs actively employed in the U.S. with law enforcement or related agencies who are certified and at least 20 months of age. New K9 graduates, as well as K9s with expired vests, are eligible to participate.
The donation to provide one protective vest for a law enforcement K9 is $1,050. Each vest has a value between $1,795 – $2,234, and a five-year warranty and an average weight of 4-5 lbs. There are an estimated 30,000 law enforcement K9s throughout the United States. For more information or to learn about volunteer opportunities, please call 508-824-6978. Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. provides information, lists events, and accepts tax-deductible donations of any denomination at www.vik9s.org or mailed to P.O. Box 9 East Taunton, MA 02718.