Provided

Lt. Jeff Montesano with Sabre, a rescued black Labrador retriever who served as Cornell's first police dog from 2001 to 2008.

Memorial for Sabre

A memorial for Sabre, Cornell's first police dog, will be held Feb. 22 at 3:30 p.m. in the Anabel Taylor Hall Chapel on campus.

Sabre, a rescued black Labrador retriever who was Cornell's first police dog, died Jan. 5 at age 12 in Ithaca.

Over an eight-year career that ended in 2008, the retriever served Cornell Police, keeping venues safe for Cornellians and such visiting dignitaries as former President Bill Clinton, U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, the Dalai Lama, former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres, Martin Luther King III, actor Danny Glover and musicians B.B. King, Gwen Stefani, Snoop Dogg and the Black Eyed Peas.

He had been suffering for months from chronic infection, deteriorating health and lack of mobility.

Cornell Police adopted Sabre from the Tompkins County SPCA and paired him with Lt. Jeff Montesano, who was then an officer. Sabre was subsequently socialized and groomed for law enforcement.

In addition to working on the Cornell campus, the retriever was called into high schools, airports and other colleges around central New York and the Southern Tier.

For training, Sabre graduated from the Southern Tier Police Canine Association in Binghamton, where he underwent four weeks of intensive work. Sabre was able to detect at least 18 different explosives, and he often searched luggage, vehicles, lockers, packages and buildings. He was certified by New York state and the Eastern Police K-9 Association.