Group working to improve site with more benches, shade structures
Published in the December 25, 2013-January 7, 2014 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Staff Report
Photo by Marty Cheek
Two dogs — with their human companions from left, Lance Truelsen, Chris White and Margaret McCann — say hello on a recent visit to the Morgan Hill Dog Park.
Morgan Hill is going to the dogs, quite literally. Thanks to the Morgan Hill Dog Owners Group, the city’s two-acre off-leash dog park located in the southern end of Community Park is ranked one of the top 10 in Northern California. And now the local nonprofit organization is working to make Morgan Hill a more “dog friendly” town.
The dog park is not actually for canine friends, insists Janis Wagner Truelsen, co-chair of the group. “It’s for the people. It’s more of a social thing,” she said. “A lot of people come here and network with friends (as they exercise their dogs). Nothing is funnier than watching a dog play.”
Some people bring their dogs to walk the dog park’s quarter-mile track to get exercise with their furry friends. Others are unemployed or have recently had surgery and come to the dog park to make them feel better or work on their physical therapy, she said.
“We get a lot of people from out of town who visit our dog park,” said Lance Truelsen, Janis’s husband who often brings their small dogs to the park for playtime. “There’s a lot of people who come here from out of town because of the dog park. It’s a much nicer dog park than in the surrounding areas like San Jose, Los Banos and Hollister. There are people who travel in recreational vehicles and stay at Thousand Trails or they’re passing through and they always stop here with the dogs. It’s a big draw for the city.”
The Morgan Hill Dog Owners Group was established as a nonprofit organization, primarily with the assistance of Councilwoman Marilyn Librers, to create a dog park as a community center. The park opened Jan. 20, 2007 and much of the material was donated, such as the chain-link fence from the Rotary Club of Morgan Hill.
An alliance of the Morgan Hill Community Foundation, MHDOG is now working to provide improvements to the dog park including four more benches and shade structures for users to sit under during hot days. It is collecting funds for these projects, and recently received a large donation from Johnson Lumber ACE Hardware in Morgan Hill.
Morgan Hill resident Margaret McCann enjoys bringing her golden Labrador Jill to the park for some fun playtime with other dogs.
“I absolutely love it. Getting Jill in here and being able to run off leash is the best thing there is for dogs,” she said. “I get a good walk in. I let her loose and then I walk round and round and round the track with my earphones on. It’s a good place for both of us to get a lot of exercise.”
Chris White, another Morgan Hill resident who is a member of the group’s board, brings her mixed-breed dog Edgar to the park and has found that it provides her with opportunities to meet new people. “I’ve made so many good, good friends since I’ve come here. And Edgar loves the park. He loves running with his dog friends,” she said.
A core group of MHDOG volunteers has formed from association with the dog park and meet on a regular basis for what they call “Yap, Lap and Dine” social sessions, White said. Once a month starting in March and ending on Halloween night, the group meets at the downtown Morgan Hill train station at 6:30 p.m.
“First we yap, then we take the dogs for a lap around downtown, then we go to a restaurant and have dinner and dine at their outdoor dining area,” she said. “We have a lot of fun together.”
