By Taylor J. Hale
Staff Writer

STEVENS POINT – Stevens Point Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus helped raise $1,225 for the Stevens Point Police Department K-9 Unit at their second annual brat fry held in late June.

“We were too busy,” recalled Gary Oudenhoven, member and event co-organizer. “I could not keep up with the food. The facility wasn’t big enough to serve as many people as we had, and that’s what we want.”

Members from the police department were in attendance at the brat fry and held a fundraising event in tandem with the Knights. The department raised over $1,500 in donations and proceeds from selling stuffed “puppies” and other unit-related items. Total proceeds from the day exceeded $2,700.

The Knights presented a check for the raised funds to Lieutenant Steve Spath at their meeting on July 10.

“We got the dogs in April of 2018, but they were gone for training for six weeks,” Spath explained. “So they hit the road in June of 2018. It’s really enhanced our department and our abilities since we got the dogs.”

Handler Austin Lee and his four-legged companion, Fala, visited the Knights’ clubhouse during the presentation and spoke to members about the role the dogs play on the force. Lee and Fala played an instrumental part in tracking down Semaj Amaru Gwyn, the man who robbed a Portage County Pizza Ranch last April.

“We’ve had a few good tracks already,” Lee said. “She was the dog that tracked the robber from Pizza Ranch earlier this year. We followed him for a little bit over a mile. We just kept calling out ‘this is where he is heading,’ and we ran the guy right into our perimeter.”

The Stevens Point K9 unit was established last year to combat the city’s surging methamphetamine and heroin problem. The department purchased two dogs, Fala and Luna, from a kennel in Indiana.

“We decided to go for two right away with the drug problems we have been having in Point, specifically with methamphetamine and heroin,” Lee said.

The dogs and their handlers underwent a six-week training program in Indiana for detecting methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and cannabis. The animals are also trained in scent tracking for apprehension work.

To learn more about the Knights of Columbus and their efforts, visit http://web.kccouncil1170.org.