Posted: August 9, 2011, 3 a.m. EDT
Out of 329,000 votes for a total of 15 cities, Huntington, West Virginia, took the win with an overwhelming 87,854 votes in PetSafe's Bark for Your Park contest.
Huntington volunteers and organizations, including the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District and the Foundation for the Tri-State Community, have been working for the last two years developing plans for a local dog park. They seized the contest as an opportunity to make their hard work a reality.
After being named one of the 15 finalist cities, Huntington citizens, government officials, businesses, local media, and of course, pet owners worked tirelessly to “bark” for their park. They hosted community events, handed out fliers, wrote letters to the editor of the newspaper and much more.
“We could not be more proud or more thrilled,” said Kevin Brady, director of the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District. “This is an incredible victory for Huntington not only because we won $100,000 but because of how we rallied together as a community. We’re so grateful to PetSafe for providing us with this opportunity and the funding we needed. A dog park will serve as a place for community members to gather and meet their neighbors, a place for pets to exercise and socialize and a place that Huntington will be proud of for years to come.”
Huntington plans to break ground this fall on the park, which will be constructed in the city’s Lion’s Den area of Ritter Park.
For more information about the PetSafe “Bark for Your Park” contest,
click here.