Today, Ben announced that his Foundation in association with The Giving Back Fund, will be distributing a grant to the Massachusetts State Police in honor of the Steelers upcoming game against the New England Patriots on Sunday, November 3rd.

MassStatePDThe Massachusetts State Police will use the grant to purchase a new K-9 that they plan to have on the force by the end of the year.

Lieutenant Joseph King, commanding officer of the Massachusetts State Police K-9 unit, said, “The canine that we purchase with this money will be well trained, well cared for and will help our troopers in keeping the citizens of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts safe for many years to come.”

This marks the seventh season that the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation has distributed grants to K-9 units. The mission of the Ben Roethlisberger Foundation is to support K-9 units of police and fire departments throughout the United States with a particular emphasis on support for service dogs in Pittsburgh, PA. Roethlisberger and the Foundation also strive to support Make-A-Wish.

The Foundation distributed more than $135,000 in grants to K-9 units around the country during the 2012 NFL season and has distributed in excess of $1 million since 2007.


You can learn more about Ben’s foundation here.

*Photo: That’s K9 Jari posing in a new vest donated by Massachusetts Vest-A-Dog!