“One sunny, spring morning in April of 1995, everything changed for Barry and me. Heard 20 miles away in peaceful Norman, Oklahoma, the deadly explosion of the Oklahoma City Federal Building awakened us to a crucial deficiency.

In the years that followed disaster struck again, and we were made aware of this need over and over as, repeatedly, devastating tornadoes battered our neighboring community of Moore.

Finally, when the 9/11 terrorist attacks stunned our nation, we got the message loud and clear: Despite their crucial, life-saving role, our first responders and their highly trained rescue dogs are in critically short supply. We felt the deficiency could no longer be overlooked.

Now, here in the Heartland, we have not only the opportunity, but also the responsibility, to prepare an efficient and effective response to natural and man-made disasters like those Oklahoma has witnessed in recent decades.

Of course, first responders in our state face the same challenges confronted by others nationwide. To begin with, the average working life of a dog ranges from 8 to 10 years. And those dogs currently deployable are already approaching retirement. To compound the problem, a lack of qualified canines means those who train urban-search-and-rescue dogs cannot meet the demand.

But an urban search-and-rescue training facility, centrally located here in our state, could address this critical shortage of qualified dogs and also provide a place where first responders could hone their technical skills. This is how the vision for Ground Zero was born.”

There is a crucial shortage of canines suitable for these life-saving missions, not only because of the special traits a dog must already possess, but also because of the time and money it takes to transform one for search-and-rescue work.

First, before they can even be accepted into an urban-search-and-rescue training program, dogs are required to pass rigorous screening. Then, once trained, canines still require a sizable investment of time and money to be certified.

When disaster strikes and lives are at stake, emergency personnel will be the first on the scene. But have we done everything we can to equip them with the necessary skills?

Currently the U.S. has only a handful of facilities that can prepare these courageous people for the unique set of challenges they’ll face.

This, then, is Ground Zero’s mission: to train not only the dogs, but also canine handlers and other first responders for their life-saving mission.