While flipping through a stack of old newspapers, Nancy Bergen, Superintendent of the Recreation Department in Lawrence Township, stumbled upon an old article that caught her attention. The article, written by the late James Hewitt, a WWII veteran and a retired Lawrence Township police officer, was in the July 1995 issue of the Lawrence Ledger.
While stationed in the South Pacific, Hewitt was given an abandoned German Shepherd. The dog, previously trained by the Japanese to fight and protect soldiers in war, was named “Kiska” after the island he was found on.
At first, Kiska was hostile, but over time befriended Hewitt and his unit. They gave him a new name, Moose, and made him an honorary private, assigning him a serial number. Not only did Moose stand at all formations and go on night beach patrols as part of his duties, he also served as a morale booster for the troops.
After Hewitt’s unit left the South Pacific, Moose was sent to a new master and sent to fight in a forward combat zone. Although it was difficult parting with him, Hewitt was assured the dog would be returned to him when the war was over.
Shortly after Hewitt was discharged from the Army in June 1945, he received a letter from Major General H.T. Burgin that began with those dreaded words:
“It is with a deep sense of regret that I must inform you of the death of your dog Moose, who was killed on the 20th day of June 1945, in action against the enemy. While scouting an enemy-held village with his handler, Moose located and surprised two Japanese soldiers concealed in the grass, one of whom threw a grenade landing within two feet of his handler. Moose, knowing it to be a weapon, leaped on the grenade as it exploded, fatally wounding him, but saving the life of his master.”
After reading this article, Bergen, knew what she needed to do to honor Kiska/Moose’s sacrifice. The Hero Dog Park, located within Hamnett Memorial Park in Lawrence Township, will open to the public in spring 2024.
Kevin Nerwinski Esq., Lawrence Township Municipal Manager, says, “Nancy thought, wow, this would be a great idea to honor [Moose’s] story, but also all the hero dogs that help. You know, fire dogs, therapy dogs, any type of dog.”
Nerwinski continues, “We thought it was a great opportunity to put a dog park in the southern part of Lawrence Township. The field itself was already leveled, so it was almost…barking at us.”
With approximately 2,200 licensed dogs in the township, Lawrence currently has only one dog park located in the northern section of Village Park.
According to Nerwinski, beginning in June 2021, he and the township officials applied for various grants to fund the dog park, including the “2021 Bark for Your Park Contest,” but they were unsuccessful in securing outside funding.
However, the Recreation Department was ultimately able to use the township capital improvement budget to fund the park.
Nerwinski says, “We try to do these new capital improvements over time. Nancy and I, we want to make sure that we give attention to all the areas of the town and all the different cool little neighborhood parks like Colonial Lake Park, Eldridge Park and Veterans Park.”
With Hero Park opening in the Spring of 2024, local residents are ready to put it to use.
Siblings, Teressa and Thomas Bower, who were walking along Hamnett Memorial Park say, “We love it and are very excited for it to be in the neighborhood. We can’t wait to bring our dog Stella Marie here.”
Not everyone is excited about Hero Park though.
Alex Gorski, a Lawrence resident who lives near the park, has a different perspective. He doesn’t feel that the money spent on the park was a good investment.
“Use the money to fill the many potholes in our streets or something other than a dog park,” Gorski says.
For those who do plan on using the park, they will find two separate dog areas. The section for large dogs is approximately 100 ft x 200 ft and the small dog area is approximately 65 ft x 200 ft. Both have 5-foot-high fencing surrounding the perimeter.
New water lines were run for a water fountain and there is a pathway that makes it ADA accessible. There is also a pathway that surrounds both dog areas for people who would like to get exercise running, jogging or walking, while watching the dogs.
In addition, there is a basketball court, as well as a picnic area and a new children’s play area.
There are two final pieces that were added to memorialize the Hero Dogs. At the center of the two fenced sections for the dogs to play, there is a landscaped pathway leading to the paved circle with a flag pole, which will hold the U.S. Flag.
And, at the head of the large dog park is a plaque honoring Moose.
This article was produced as part of MCCC’s Community Reporting “J Lab” certificate program made possible by grant funding from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities and The New School: Journalism + Design. For more information about the J Lab contact Program Director Prof. Holly Johnson at johnsonh@mccc.edu.
