Friends of Officer Phil is a group of citizens banded together to support K9 “Officer Phil” (Philomena) and her handler, Police Officer Peter Osowiecki of the Suffield Police Department. Officer Osowiecki started the department’s K9 program in 2003 while acting as the liaison to the local schools. You can read the story of the Suffield Police K9 Program elsewhere on this site.
A major setback for this program occurred in December 2005 when Officer Osowiecki’s donated K9 truck burst into flames as the result of an electrical short. Barely able to save Phil from the flames before the truck was fully engulfed, Officer Osowiecki lost all of his personal, departmental, and training equipment in the fire along with much of that used to support and care for Phil.
Because of the age of the truck, insurance did cover the depth of the loss, and the K9 program, which had made great impact in the area already, has had to start again from scratch.
NEWS FLASH! The generous donations to WheelsForPhil.org have enabled the Suffield Police to get a recent used truck for Officer Osowiecki and Phil! We'll post pictures of this new Ford Expedition soon! Thank you for your support! |