Written and photography by Debbie Hall
Beginning in California, an anonymous supporter of the Warrior Dog Foundation donated their Ford truck over Memorial Day weekend to be custom wrapped by Las Vegas Car Wraps and then to be donated to the Warrior Dog Foundation. The wrap will brand the truck with custom artwork donated from Damascus located in San Diego.
Cyndy Wasso, Operations Director for Las Vegas Car Wraps, took the call and after emailing the original quote, learned more about the Warrior Dog Foundation and was moved to help make an impact for the organization as well. When speaking with the person about the wrap, Wasso said the individual said they just wanted to express this message:
“It’s important to remember those who have served. Pay it forward. I hope this will help bring awareness to the amazing Warrior Dogs who are just as important as our men and women making the sacrifice for our freedom.”
The Las Vegas Car Wraps team decided to donate their labor and began work on May 31.
When the project was completed, the truck was then driven to Vail, Colo. to the GoPro Summer Mountain Games to surprise Mike Ritland, former U.S. Navy Seal, New York Times bestselling author and founder of Trikos International and the Warrior Dog Foundation. From there, the truck will be driven to a ranch in Texas to serve the Warrior Dogs.
The Warrior Dog Foundation is dedicated to serving the special operations community, families, and Special Operation Forces military dogs. The K-9s employed with these forces are of the top tier in the working-dog world. They are expected to work in the most austere of environments and face conditions that most human beings cannot survive. These are the environments in which these elite warriors operate. The K-9 units are vital in ensuring the success of every mission and operate in all conditions.
Warrior Dog Foundation helps to transition dogs from an operational environment into its state-of-the-art kennel facility. The foundation educates the public on the importance of K-9s in the combat environment, and showcases the level of sacrifice these dogs give in support of U.S. troops. The foundation cares for each individual SOF K-9 with dignity and grace, including both mental and physical rehabilitation for the rest of their lives.
Atos is a retired police K9 who was part of a large metropolitan area and served as a dual-purpose dog. He has been adopted by a family on
the East Coast who are counting days until his official arrival at their home.
Rocky was part of a DOD Elite unit. He arrived in Dallas during a severe ice storm with a completely destroyed shipping crate. Rocky has been doing a great job with transitioning, but at this point will be staying at the WDF facility indefinitely.
Richie is a retired police K9 with a sweet spot for extra treats. He was a dual-purpose dog and came into retirement based upon age. The foundation helped him embrace retirement and is pleased with his progress. He has been adopted by a very loving family which will be receiving him shortly.
For more information, visit www.warriordogfoundation.org.
Las Vegas Car Wraps offers more than 10 years of combined experience providing unique designs and superior wraps that are both visually dynamic yet environmentally friendly. Services offered include vehicle wraps, wall wraps, building wraps, color change, concept development, graphic design, wrap, graphic layout and specializing in same day digital paper printing
Left to right: Ryan Nelson, installer; Cyndy Wasso, Operations Manager; Laura Moegenbier, print tech specialist; Derek Johnston, owner and Victor Garcia, graphic designer. Not shown: Sean Dale, APN, laminator.
Las Vegas Car Wraps is located at 3535 W.Harmon Ave. Suite F, Las Vegas, NV, 89103. For more information, call (702) 735-9050 or visit www.lasvegascarwraps.com.