ALTON, Ill. – It has been a year of big changes and bigger feelings as the Alton Police Department approaches a somber anniversary.

Friday will mark one year since Alton Police K-9 Odin was killed. The Belgian Malinois German shepherd mix was shot as his handler, Officer Allen Averbeck, was trying to arrest an armed suspect. Averbeck was also shot.

Averbeck survived, but his partner’s absence is greatly felt one year later.

“I don’t know how to describe it. It hurts to lose something like that,” Alton Police Sgt. Mike Morelli said. “If it wasn’t for his sacrifice, my friends wouldn’t be here today.” Morelli oversees the department’s K-9 program.

A portrait of Odin now hangs on the walls of the department as a reminder, and remembrance, of his sacrifice.

The department is also taking steps to move forward as it welcomes a new member.

A barely one-year old Belgian Malinois was recently selected from a training facility in Pennsylvania to be the Alton Police Department’s next K-9 officer.

Riggs, as he has been named, will join Officer Lane Lawson, 22.

It will be Lawson’s first time as a handler. At the end of the month, Lawson and Riggs will embark on a 10-week K-9 training program with the Illinois State Police.

Lawson remembers the tragic events of Aug. 22, 2004, and said the addition of Riggs will symbolize a new chapter.

“Odin saved several officers’ lives that day. So, to have the honor to get a dog, to be able to do the work that Odin did, and be able to follow in Officer Averbeck’s footsteps, will be pretty cool,” Lawson said.

The Alton Police Department’s K-9 program is funded through private donations. Those donations can be made through checks or to MustacheMarch4PD (MM4PD).

Donna Salof played a key role in ensuring the K-9 program continues. A native of the area, Salof made a significant donation to cover the cost of Riggs and a previous K-9.

“About the time I moved back is when I heard about what had happened to Odin and his line of work. And I thought this is something I can get involved in,” she said.

The department has expressed gratitude to Salof and others in the community for their support of its K-9 program. A K-9 itself can run close to $10,000. Training, along with the cost of a vehicle equipped for a K-9, can total tens of thousands of dollars.

Sgt. Morelli said the community will be impressed with Riggs, as they have with the other K-9s on the force.

“People love dogs more than they love humans,” Sgt. Morelli said.