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K-9 Shadow meets Miller Elementary School kids
Huron police K-9 Officer Adrian Ljaljevic, poses with a classroom of first-graders who came up with the selected name for the department’s police Dog. His name is Shadow. (Photo courtesy of the Huron Township Police Department)
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Before leaving school for the summer, Huron Township police were determined to make good on a promise made to a classroom of first-grade students.

For just the second time in the department’s history, children from Brown and Miller Elementary schools, The Ferguson Center, and St. John and St. Stevenson schools were given the opportunity to submit names for the department’s incoming K-9 officer.

The final count showed 75 names were turned in for consideration.

It was K-9 Officer Adrian Ljaljevic who carefully went through each one of them.

In the end, one name stood out from the bunch — Shadow.

K-9 Shadow meets Miller Elementary School kids
Huron Township K-9 Shadow had a blast meeting the first-graders at Miller Elementary School who actually came up with his name, Shadow. The private visit was promised to the children and it was made earlier this month. (Photo courtesy of the Huron Township Police Department)

Children at Miller turned in the winning name and, as promised, officers and Shadow visited the school to spend some time getting to know each other.

Ljaljevic, along with Director of Public Safety Everette Robbins, spent a portion of the day with the children taking pictures with Shadow and asking the director and officer a slew of questions.

Robbins said they had to make good on that promise for a private visit.

Shadow spent the morning with teacher Corinne Pettry’s class and he instantly was given the royal treatment.

K-9 Shadow meets Miller Elementary School kids
Huron Township Director of Public Safety Everette Robbins said everyone had a good day at Miller Elementary School recently when the department brought the new police K-9 by to meet the students. (Photo courtesy of the Huron Township Police Department)

The children were quite generous with their show of appreciation for the visit and affection for the dog.

“He enjoyed lots of pets, treats, and love from the students,” Robbins said. “Officer Ljaljevic answered many interesting questions, handed out stickers, and educated the students about Shadow’s training efforts. We think we may have some future police officers in the class.”

Robbins went on to say that the outing made for a fantastic morning for the public safety department.

K-9 Shadow meets Miller Elementary School kids
Huron Township K-9 Shadow was the star of the day at Miller Elementary School recently. Students were treated to a private morning with the police dog. Shadow clearly was amused checking out the classroom. (Photo courtesy of the Huron Township Police Department)

“Hanging with them was priceless and appreciated,” he said. “A special thank you goes out to Principal Andrew Tomasek, secretary Julia Bordeau,  paraprofessional Ashley Lyp, along with Corinne Pettry. We couldn’t be who we are without the community’s support, so thank you.”

The K-9 is a jet black German shepherd and will specialize in narcotics and tracking, according to police.

K-9 Shadow meets Miller Elementary School kids
Huron Township Director of Public Safety Everette Robbins said he thinks the first-grade class he visited at Miller Elementary School with the department's K-9 officer just might have a few future police officers. The children were excited to get a personal visit from Robbins, the department's K-9 handler and K-9 Shadow. (Photo courtesy of the Huron Township Police Department)

He is specifically trained to detect the scent of illegal drugs and to follow a person’s trail by scent, making him a valuable asset for law enforcement in locating narcotics and apprehending suspects involved in drug-related crimes.

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