COLERAIN TOWNSHIP — The Matt Haverkamp Foundation has donated its 100th K9 to the Colerain Township Police Department. A town that is close to their hearts.
“Colerain means a lot to us. Matt grew up in Colerain, went to Colerain High School, our family obviously lived in Colerain,” said Nancy Haverkamp, treasurer of the foundation, and Matt’s mother..
Matt was a K9 police officer. He died in a car crash in 2005. The non-profit was established four months after his death. It pays for trained K9’s for law enforcement agencies.
“We’ve bought over 100 K9s, protective vests, equipment for their vehicles, all totaling over $1 million dollars,” Nancy said.
“Just getting selected as a K9 in general was nothing short of amazing, but then on top of it to have Nancy reach out to say hey we want to make you our 100th dog it was a dream come true,” said Colerain Township Police Officer Andrew Morris.
Morris always wanted to be a K9 officer.
“I sat down in front of them two years ago now, during my interview they asked me where I saw myself in five years, and I said K9 handler,” he said.
Morris met his new partner in May.
“My dog’s name is Ghost. He’s a year and a half old. He’s a Dutch shepherd, German shepherd mix. He came over from Hungry,” he said. "He has a ton of energy. He keeps me going. He kind of has only one speed.”
Meet Ghost 👻
— Jessica Hart WCPO (@JessicaHartTV) December 2, 2023
The newest Colerain Township Police K9. He’s also the 100th K9 donated by the Matt Haverkamp Foundation. It buys trained K9s for law enforcement agencies. @WCPO pic.twitter.com/SGVOy4W20s
The dogs are bred overseas then are hand-selected to be brought to the United States. Days after Morris got Ghost the two started the academy together, a 14-week program.
“They hold the handlers to a very high standard, and the hold the dogs to even higher standard,” Morris said.
They graduated from the academy in September. Morris said the Matt Haverkamp Foundation made his dream come true.
“We’re one of the bigger departments in the county, and I don’t think we would be able to have two dogs if it wasn’t for them, so especially for the smaller departments in the county, I mean they are moving mountains for us,” he said.
The foundation has donated 105 K9s to 44 different law enforcement agencies in the Tri-State.
For the Haverkamp family this is a way to continue their son’s legacy. Matt started the K9 Unit at the Golf Manor Police Department.
“He decided having a K9 would really benefit his department and community,” Nancy said.
She said her son was serious about being a police officer and wanted to make a difference in the community.
The foundation relies on donations to continue their work to help police departments protect the community.
They will host their 5th annual Shop with a K9 on December 9th. Their host their 19th annual Matt’s 5K Pursuit on April 14th.
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