Foundation helps fund police canine
Published in the April 2-16, 2014 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Marty Cheek
Photo by Elizabeth Fierro
Morgan Hill police officer Santiago Fierro with his canine partner Sony.
Despite city budget limitations, Morgan Hill is one of the safest cities in Santa Clara County. One reason for its high level of public security is the help the city’s police department receives from the Community Law Enforcement Foundation. Started in 2006 to raise funds to reinstate the K-9 unit, CLEF has raised thousands of dollars over the years — especially with its popular Cops & Robbers Ball — to fund technology, programs and training for the MHPD not covered in the city’s budget.
“CLEF’s mission is to support public safety through community partnerships that provide resources that help the Morgan Hill Police Department perform at its highest level of service to the community,” said Sharron Daniel, president of CLEF. “CLEF believes that public safety is the most important service that the city government provides its residents, and supporting CLEF is a great way for the community to show its support for our police department.”
In 2008, funds raised by CLEF purchased the first dog for Morgan Hill’s K-9 unit. Members of the nonprofit organization soon started discussing how they would fund a replacement dog – the working life of a police K-9 is typically about five to seven years. The overall cost of a K-9 program can be more than $75,000 for the life of the dog. Many other police departments were struggling financially and having to cut their K-9 programs, so CLEF wanted to make sure that Morgan Hill would never be placed in that same situation. That’s when the idea for CLEF’s annual fund-raising gala event was born.
“After the first Cops & Robbers Ball, we earmarked funds for the replacement dog,” Daniel said. “Since then, we have continued to fund-raise towards the K-9 program and those funds will be used for the ongoing care and training of the dog.”
K-9 Sony, a German shepherd, and his handler Officer Santiago Fierro are now in training and expected to soon start patrolling Morgan Hill streets thanks to CLEF providing funds for the program.
CLEF has had many other opportunities to partner with MHPD, and one of Daniel’s favorites is the child identification kits given out at local public events. CLEF provides parents with a complete kit that contains their child’s fingerprints and DNA.
“We hope that that the kits are never needed, but in the unfortunate event a child does disappear, the parents have the necessary information to easily provide to police,” Daniel said.
Another noteworthy project was CLEF’s purchase of first-responder kits for all of the MHPD’s patrol cars. Officers now respond to all major medical calls and often arrive before the CalFire responders because they are already out on patrol. This year, CLEF will be enhancing this program by purchasing automated external defibrillators with funds raised at the Cops & Robbers Ball, which will be held May 3 at the Morgan Hill Community & Cultural Center.
This year’s event is the third that CLEF has hosted. The evening starts with a commemorative photo shoot of guests in front of a ’55 Oldsmobile police car and a self-tour of some of the department’s vehicles as well as public safety equipment, some of which was purchased with CLEF funds. This year’s Cops & Robbers Ball will have both a silent auction and a live auction featuring items donated by community businesses and residents.
“The event provides our citizens with a means to support the men and women of MHPD who dedicate their lives providing a safer community for all of us,” Daniel said. “Plus, this year we have a special surprise guest attending that is sure to wow the crowd.”
CLEF is a “key partner” in the MHPD’s strategies of proactive policing and community engagement, said Morgan Hill Police Chief David Swing, adding that CLEF’s work is directly aligned with the four outcomes of the department’s Outcome Based Plan for Public Safety which decreases incidents of crime and traffic collisions, increases community trust and confidence in the police department, increases the public’s feeling of safety, and increases the proficiency of the department’s staff.
“Through CLEF’s support we have rolled out new technology, such as license plate readers and predictive analytics, and sustained or implemented new programs that have made a positive impact on safety in our community,” Swing said. “The work that CLEF does is essential in two key areas. First, the funds raised by CLEF provide our officers tools that either increase their safety or help them keep the community safe. Secondly, the volunteer hours invested by CLEF also increase community engagement and help build positive relationships in the community.”
