Petland Charities awards grant to Heartland Canines for Veterans
This $18,000 grant will help cover costs for pets living with veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder
Petland Charities Executive Director presents $18,000 grant to Heartland Canines for Veterans Executive Director Jimmy Burgess. (Image courtesy of Petland)
Petland Charities announced it awarded an $18,000 grant to Heartland Canines for Veterans. The funds from grants like this help cover the costs of service dogs that help veterans living with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), such as veterinary care, training, equipment, kenneling, training, and administrative costs for the K9 team.
"Petland Charities focuses on supporting community-based programs that strive to create special connections between pets and people," said Ed Sayers, executive director at Petland Charities, in an organizational release.1 "Through our partnership with Heartland Canines for Veterans' 'One of Us' campaign, Petland Charities is making a difference in the lives [of] American heroes; providing them with a K9 companion that will be trained with specialized capabilities to meet the veteran's daily needs."
According to the release,1 the presentation of the grant was held in tangent with a K9 Veterans event that was hosted by Petland Joplin. Vern Marchington, a veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts, was present along with Bella, his new 6-month-old German Shepard companion. Bella is currently undergoing obedience training and will begin service dog training soon.
"Heartland Canines for Veterans is eternally grateful for its continued and lasting relationship with a caring organization like Petland," said Jimmy Burgess, executive director at Heartland Canines for Veterans, in the release. "Our sole mission is to provide service dogs to veterans who need them. We are fortunate to be partnered with an organization like Petland that also supports the wellbeing of our veterans."
Along with Marchington, other K9 and veterans were in attendance throughout the week for activities within the Petland store, including demonstrations and information about the training required for service dogs, with specialized capabilities to help assist veterans suffering from PTSD.
Reference
Petland Charities Funds Costs of Service Dog to Army Veteran. News release. Petland. March 7, 2023. Accessed March 7, 2023. https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/petland-charities-funds-costs-of-service-dog-to-army-veteran-301764750.html
