Blair County K-9 Officer Rik exits the new vehicle funded by local donations that will allow him and his handler, Cpl. Justin Bennett, to resume their duties. The Blair County Sheriff’s office unveiled the new 2019 Ford Interceptor at a ceremony Monday at Chimney Rocks Park to thank local donors for the $40,000 given to fund the K-9 program. Mirror photo by Gary M. Baranec

HOLLIDAYSBURG — Off-duty Blair County Sheriff Department K-9 Rik played fetch with people, including his handler, Cpl. Justin Bennett, at Chimney Rocks Park on Monday morning.

Rik hasn’t been working since late September because the designated vehicle for the K-9 operation had become unsafe and undependable for both K9 Rik and Bennett.

But thanks to $40,000 in donations, he’s back to work, available for criminal apprehension, to search for wanted people and to detect explosives.

On the first day back to work just two weeks ago, his presence lured a wanted person from her attic.

Unlike a pet, Rik is a military-trained police dog ready to take action in an instant.

When he’s being transported, he’s usually inside a cage that takes up space where the rear seat would be. And inside that cage, the K-9 officer can sit or stand on a flat surface with grips that Ott said help the dog maintain stability and avoid injury.

The vehicle also needed to be equipped with a temperature monitoring system, so if Rik stays in the car after Bennett gets out, the system will keep Bennett aware of the car’s interior conditions.

In the late summer, Blair County Sheriff James Ott had concerns about the future of its Department’s K-9 operation.

The designated vehicle had become unsafe and undependable.

The Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation drew the funds together from multiple contributors to replace the K-9 vehicle.

“It’s humbling to know how much everyone came together,” Ott said Monday at the park.

The whole K-9 program has been supported by fundraisers and donations, avoiding the need to use tax dollars. Money raised for the operation is managed by the Central Pennsyl­vania Community Foundation in Altoona.

“Today, we are honored and excited to announce that we received many generous donations from both private and professional organizations from across Blair County,” Ott said in a statement. “The amount of donations received was enough to make the purchase of a 2019 Ford Interceptor utility vehicle and required equipment. This will enable Cpl. Bennett and K-9 Rik to be safe and operate effectively in order to provide the best service to the Blair County community.”

Individuals and representatives of organizations who gave donations of $1,000 or more were personally thanked by Ott at the park where the new vehicle was shown off.

Among the donors were Stuckey Automotive, Mountain Top Sportsman’s Club and Joanne Tomb, a private donor.

Michael Ward, retired from Ward Trucking, and his daughters Andrea Ward and Kristen (Ward) Gill, were also donors.

“We saw in a story in the Mirror that the car was in bad shape,” Ward said. “So I talked to my daughters and we decided it would be an appropriate gift to the Blair County Sheriff’s Department. This is critical for Rik the service dog and his handler, Justin.”

Mirror Staff Writer Russ O’Reilly is at 946-7435.