Proceeds from the Salem VFW Post 892 Golf Outing on June 8 will help to reunite U.S. Army Specialist Purvis and his overseas buddy Khandy through the No Dog Gets Left Behind program, a nonprofit which helps transport dogs to the United States from active war zones for the service members they’ve befriended. (Submitted photo)

SALEM –The Salem VFW Post 892 Golf Outing on June 8 isn’t about the golf — it’s about bringing home a service member’s best friend from overseas.

The event benefits No Dog Gets Left Behind, a nonprofit headquartered in Philadelphia, Pa. whose purpose is to reunite dogs from active war zones with their soldier friends from the United States.

According to the website at www.ndglb.org, “No Dog Gets Left Behind provides financial support to reunite military personnel with the stray animals they found and bonded with while at war – a $5,000-per-dog expenditure that includes vaccines, medical treatment, transportation and more. While the financial investment is high, the relief, comfort and joy this program provides soldiers is immeasurable. To date we have funded over 60+ soldier/dog reunions.”

For Salem VFW Post 892, this will be the sixth annual golf outing and the third soldier/dog reunion fundraiser, this time benefitting U.S. Army Specialist Purvis and canine Khandy, event organizer Nicole Ritchie said. All different mixes of dogs have been reunited with soldiers and come from an active war zone, where the two have bonded.

“They get a little bit of home with that dog over there,” she said.

The golf outing has 28 teams with 112 golfers participating and 34 hole sponsors at Salem Hills Golf Club on state Route 45 north of Salem with a noon shotgun start, but for non-golfers and members of the community who want to contribute, there’s a huge raffle basket auction featuring over 50 raffle baskets. A sheet of 25 tickets costs $10 and three sheets cost $25. There’s also a separate raffle for a whirlpool tub donated by American Standard and a cooler, with tickets costing $5 each.

Community members who want to take part in the raffles can come to the back door of the VFW on Arch Street from 1 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Friday to purchase tickets.

Monetary donations can also be sent by making out a check to VFW Post 892 Golf Outing and mailing it to VFW Post 892, 496 Arch St., Salem, Ohio 44460. Ritchie said the Louisville Eagles Auxiliary donated $1,000 to the outing.

For the golfers, there’s a golf trip to Myrtle Beach up for grabs for a hole in one on hole #3, sponsored by Prestige Motors of Salem. There are other prizes available, too, for any hole-in-one. Diehl of Salem donated golf towels for the event.

Participants are asked to bring Crown Royal bags filled with necessities for the troops, which will be sent to Afghanistan after the outing.

Ritchie said local businesses, individuals and organizations have donated a lot for the outing and the raffle basket auction.

Anyone with questions about the event or donating to the cause can contact her at 330-277-7619.

mgreier@salemnews.net