Denise Ross and Marie Johnson have continued the proud history of Slippery Rock University alumni collaborating to make a difference in their own communities, but this tandem is making an impact with the help of their canine companions. Ross, ’13M, and Johnson, ’19, ’22M, are volunteers with Venango County’s Rocky Grove K9 Unit.
This small but mighty team helps track down missing people with the help of their dogs, Willow and Echo.
The team is part of the Rocky Grove Volunteer Fire Department’s new canine search and rescue unit, a group of volunteers, certified professionals, and dogs put together to fill the gap in the department and greater community’s operations for locating missing persons. The dogs are trained in such things as trailing, air scent and human remains detection for anywhere from a year to two years and often serve from six to eight years. The group also meets regularly to keep everyone’s skills sharp to ensure that they’re ready to help whenever they are called upon.
By day, Ross, who received a master’s in special education at SRU, is a reading specialist in a public cyber school. Johnson attained a degree in psychology from SRU before going on to graduate from SRU’s physician assistant program and is now working as a physician assistant through Meadville Medical Center. Both Ross and Johnson feel that the careers that SRU prepared them for have helped them in their work with the K9 unit.
“The reason I got involved with the K9 unit relates to my special education degree as well as my personal life,” Ross said. “I have an education background, but we also have a foster child on the autism spectrum who is also blind and has a seizure disorder, and my husband and I always worried — if he wandered off — how we could find him quickly. With that concern, we were led to the K9 unit.”
Johnson said that her backgrounds in psychology and health have given critical skills that have helped her understand missing people and how to care for them.
“I studied a lot of the behavior of missing people as an undergrad, so I understand the psychology of people in this situation, and we also deal with a lot of psychological issues when people are missing,” Johnson said. “My PA degree also helped me to be able to perform medical care in the wilderness, if necessary.”
Ross and Johnson were thrilled to find that they were both SRU alums once they met through the K9 unit.
“Any time I hear that someone is an SRU alum, it’s so nice to say, ‘Hey! I’m an alum too!’” Ross said.
Their shared affinity for SRU created an immediate connection between the two of them, adding a new level of meaning to their already critical work.
Ross and Johnson also shared some important tips regarding the pursuit of missing people.
“If you have a family member or friend who is missing, call 9-1-1 quickly,” Johnson said. “Not everyone in public safety has expertise in searches, so it’s important to call quickly and request those services. We work closely with law enforcement and fire departments and game wardens, so get in touch quickly and request us.”
“We want to bring closure,” Ross said. “Whether we find a loved one alive or deceased, we want to provide closure. But our goal is to find people’s loved ones alive, and an early response helps us to do that. We want to bring the lost home.”
