Ashland renames dog park after 9/11 search-and-rescue dog
ASHLAND, Mo. (KMIZ)
A dog park in Ashland now has a new name, honoring a local four-legged hero who served at Ground Zero following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
The city renamed its dog park Tuff Memorial Park in honor of Tuff, a chocolate Labrador retriever who worked as a search-and-rescue dog with Missouri Task Force 1.
Tuff deployed to Ground Zero after the attacks and spent 11 days searching through the rubble for survivors.
Volunteers with the Ashland Parks Board said they had been aware of Tuff’s story.
“We've had Tuff's story on our radar for a while and wanted to rename the park in her honor at some point,” Ashland Parks Board member Hannah Frevert said.
The idea gained momentum after Ashland resident Lex Long discovered Tuff’s story while visiting the 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York with his family in 2021.
“In 2021, me and my family visited the 9/11 Memorial Museum in New York and we saw there was a room dedicated to dogs who responded to 9/11,” Long said. “And there we saw Tuff, and we saw that she was from Ashland, Missouri. We were kind of surprised but it,"
Long joined Ashland Boy Scout Troop 134 about a year ago. Then, in June, he reached out to the Ashland Parks Department about the possibility of renaming the dog park in Tuff’s honor.
"I just wanted people to remember and know that we had a hometown here who responded along with all the first responders and the heroes, and rescued people when they needed them most," he said.
The Life Scouts raised $1,800 toward the bench, $600 short of their original goal.
“This bench is dedicated to Tuff, Tom Andert and to Missouri Task Force 1 and to all the military personnel and all the responders of 9/11,” Long said.
Long said the bench serves as a reminder of the people who lost their lives, those who served and those who sacrificed to help others following the attacks.
“We remember those who were lost, those who served and those who gave everything they had to help others,” Long said.
The sign currently marking Tuff Memorial Park is temporary. Parks volunteers said a permanent sign will be installed after the city finishes redesigning the park entrance, which they hope will be completed by the end of the year.
The renaming was part of Ashland’s annual fall festival Saturday, which ran from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
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