Hoping that something good can come from a tragedy, Ian and Angela Trefz made a $5,000 donation Monday in the name of their late son to a Greenfield Police Department K-9 fund with hope that others will join the cause.
With Monday’s donation, Greenfield Police Chief Jeremiah Oyer said about $7,500 has been raised toward the $12,500 needed to purchase and train a K-9 and officer to work with it.
One of the Trefz’s three children, 21-year-old Dylan, a 2014 McClain High School graduate, died June 28 of this year while serving with the U.S. Army in Texas.
“Dylan’s dream job was to be a K-9 handler,” his father said. “When he went in the Army he tried to get that military occupational specialty, but those are few and far between. So when we saw the story in The Times-Gazette about the K-9 fund, Angela especially felt compelled that we needed to do this for the city of Greenfield. The story really pulled at our heartstrings.”
Last week, The Times-Gazette published a story about a fundraiser Leonard Sines, a Greenfield reserve officer since 2004, is planning for the GPD K-9 fund on Oct. 8 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Greenfield Eagles. There will be a classic and antique car and motorcycle show, a parade of the vehicles through Greenfield from around 2-3 p.m., live music, food and raffles.
When Dylan passed away and then his body was flown home, local emergency responders provided a motorcade along U.S. Route 62 from Mount Sterling to Greenfield.
“For a city that’s given so much to us and really been there for us during the tragedy of Dylan’s death, we wanted to do this to give back to the community, and I think it can be really helpful,” Angela said.
Dogs were a large part of Dylan’s family as he grew up. His dad said they used to take the family dogs to the park, to swim at the Mitchell Park pond in Greenfield, and just spent a lot of time with them. Then about three years ago Dylan got his own German shepherd named Jet, who now lives with Dylan’s parents and siblings.
“The funny back story is that all the dogs in Jet’s family are all K-9 dogs and Jet never made the cut because he’s a big whinny baby,” Angela said.
Dylan absolutely loved dogs, according to his family.
“His ultimate goal was in the end that he would be a K-9 handler,” his mother said. “He worked at the Ross County Sheriff’s Office, too, and he had talked to them that he’d like to be a K-9 handler.”
Dylan served in the U.S. Army Foxtrot 232nd Medical Battalion and Alpha 3rd Battalion 10th Infantry. He was a former employee of the Greenfield McDonald’s, Greenfield Exempted Village Schools, Ahresty of Wilmington, and a corrections officer in Ross County. He attended Ohio University-Chillicothe where he played baseball. He was a four-year member of the McClain football team, three-year member of the baseball team, three-year member of the wrestling team, part of the symphonic, concert and show choirs at McClain, and also served as a McClain football defensive line coach and junior high wrestling coach.
“I think he’d be happy,” Ian said of the donation. “I know if he had the money he would have done it, too.”
“He knows the importance of the dogs and the impact they can make,” he mother added.
Anyone wanting to make a donation to the K-9 fund will be able to drop them off at a registration booth at the Oct. 8 car and motorcycle show. Oyer said donations can also be made during business hours at Merchants National Bank in Greenfield, where a fund is already set up. Donations can also be made at the police department.
One of the GPD’s current K-9s is struggling with health issues and can’t make it to work every day. It may be able to work a year or more longer, but it may not, Oyer said.
“I want people to know that they can make a donation, no matter the size,” Angela said. “If it’s just $5, if they can donate even a small amount, those add up. Our goal is to see Greenfield have a new K-9 in the very near future.”
Reach Jeff Gilliland at 937-402-2522 or [email protected].
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