AMES, Iowa – 4-H youth Erin Hunt’s love for dogs led her to a community service project that reached the Iowa State Fair and an appearance onstage with Bryan Karrick, meteorologist at KCCI, Channel 8 News during a Celebrity Showcase.
Karrick had volunteered to participate in a showcase put on by Iowa State University Extension 4-H Youth Development. The event allows high profile professionals to showcase 4-H youth and their project work on stage in the 4-H Exhibits Building at the fair.
Hunt shared with Karrick her exhibit entitled “K-9 InVESTment,” which detailed a project in which she raised over $1,000 to buy a vest for the local police dog. She thought of the idea after a police dog in Des Moines was injured; she knew the local police dog in her town wasn’t protected either.
Hunt contacted the Webster City Police and talked with the police dog handler. Together they came up with the idea to obtain a bullet-proof, stab-proof vest. Next would come money-raising efforts to pay the $1,000 price tag.
Karrick lauded Hunt for her determination to reach the goal, not having experience in public speaking. She started with small groups, but was up to the task when a large Kiwanis group asked her to speak at a 6:30 a.m. meeting. Karrick joked that he would already have been half way through his shift as he gets up at 2:30 a.m. and is on air from 5 to 8 a.m.
Raising money was fairly easy, Hunt said, describing the Webster City community as highly supportive.
“People had their checkbooks out and ready even before I finished talking,” she said, showing the new vest.
Karrick, a dog lover himself, has his own dog Chase join him on set every week. He told the young ninth grader that she has set an example for young people all over the state.
Karrick asked Hunt what other communities could do to provide protective vests for their police dogs. She said people first should contact their local police headquarters to make sure they have a police dog, next find out whether the police department is receptive to having a vest provided, and third, get the word out, making sure to have a place and a name to which people can send money.
Erin, the daughter of Lori and Larry Hunt, said that her communication skills and ability to raise money has soared with this 4-H project. Next year she hopes to do something similar.
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