K9 Unit
SCSAR's K9 Unit is made up of a skilled team of K9 handlers, flankers, and, of course, our dedicated K9s. Handlers work directly with the dogs during missions, while flankers assist with navigation, radio communications, mantracking, and clue detection. Both handlers and flankers are certified SARTECH II (or higher) and are trained in Wilderness First Aid and CPR. Our deployable K9s are certified through national agencies in their respective disciplines and are also tested in rigorous internal searches and scenarios.
TRAILING
The trailing K9s on the SCSAR team are trained to locate people in both large wilderness areas and urban environments. These dogs work on-lead, typically following scent left on the ground. While they may occasionally air-scent, their primary focus is ground-based tracking. Trailing K9s are scent-specific and are trained to search for the individual matching a scent item provided to them.
AIR SCENT
The air scent area K9s on the SCSAR team are trained to locate people in large wilderness environments. These dogs work off-lead, allowing them to cover vast areas quickly and efficiently. They are not scent-specific; instead, they search for any human presence within the designated assignment area.
Human Remains Detection (HRD)
HRD (Human Remains Detection) K9s are trained to recognize and alert to the odor of human decomposition in any environment. The HRD K9s on the SCSAR team have extensive experience locating remains in wilderness settings. Many of our K9s are dual-trained and certified in HRD as well as a live-find discipline. This dual capability has proven highly effective, especially when the status of a missing person is unknown at the time of deployment.
David Hartman
AMPWDA Master Trainer
SARTEC II
EMT
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K9 Ada
​AMPWDA Trailing L2
AMPWDA Trailing L3
AMPWDA Urban Trailing
AMPWDA HRD
Georgia K9 Trailing L1​
NASAR HRD
​AWADA HRD​​
David Hartman and his K9 Ada have had multiple real-world deployments, both with Trailing and HRD. He is experienced working on ground team search teams and with small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS). He is a pilot with Civil Air Patrol where he serves as a Mission Pilot, Ground Team member, and sUAS pilot. He serves as a EMT and firefighter with his local volunteer fire department.
He has certified in Trailing as Expert, Distinguished Expert, and Urban with AMPWDA. He has also earned multiple certifications from multiple organizations in both HRD and Trailing.
David keeps an open mind to new methods and techniques. Every dog and every handler are different. Part of the challenge of training is finding the optimum method for each K9 team. He is a firm believer that if you have a good bond with your dog, your dog will give their best working for you.
Additional certifications include FEMA IS-3, IS-5, IS-100, IS-200, IS-700, IS-800, SARTEC II, Wilderness First Aid, IFR Pilot, FAA Part 107, PADI Master Diver and General Amateur Radio License..
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Raised in Charleston SC, Christina (Christy) Hogle moved to Spartanburg in 2001 and joined SCSAR in 2022. Christy and her husband Chris, have 3 dogs, including a Labrador Mix named Loki. Loki is an affectionate, hyperactive but picky ball fanatic. (he only likes chuck-it balls) His favorite things are playing fetch and giving/getting love. K9 Loki earned his Level 2 Wilderness Trailing Certification through AMPWDA in 2024. Loki is currently cross training in HRD. In addition to being part of the K9 Team Christy serves as a K9 Flanker, member of the Ground Team, and as an Instructor for SCSAR.
Christina has spent 20+ years in law enforcement and is a certified instructor with the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy. Christina is a certified Canine Obedience Instructor from Penn Foster University and a certified AKC Instructor and Evaluator. She holds various medical instructor certifications from the American Heart Association and the American Health and Safety Institute including EMR Instructor, Wilderness First-aid Instructor and Basic Life Support Instructor. She was named SCSAR’s Rookie K9 Handler of the year in 2022 and SCSAR’s
Instructor of the year in 2024..
Christy Hogle
AKC Instructor/Evaluator
SARTEC II
EMR Instructor
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K9 Loki
​AMPWDA Trailing L2
HRD In-Training
Kevin Hite
SARTEC II
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K9 Khaos
​AWDA HRD
Biography is being written.
Marty was born and raised in Memphis, TN and has lived in South Carolina since 2007. He and his wife have been married for 29 years, have a son, have daughter and have one grandson. He grew up in the outdoors, having had many hunting dogs over the years, but never a working dog. Gunner is his first working dog, he is a very high energy Golden Retriever. His favorite activity is fetching, followed by swimming and hiking. According to Marty (thank you for the kind words), he has learned more about dogs in the last few months by working with the K9 Team than he had during the first 53 years of his life.
Marty Hester
SARTEC II
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K9 Gunner
​AMPWDA Air Scent L1
AWDA HRD
Lorraine Archer
SARTEC II
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K9 Jeager
​AWDA HRD
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K9 Clip
Air Scent In-Trainig
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Lorraine Archer and her 2 K9s joined SCSAR in 2022. While training her dogs towards certification she assisted the team on searches as a K9 flanker and ground pounder to obtain experience. Recently K9 Jaeger, a Dutch Shepherd, was AWDA certified in Human Remains Detection. In addition K9 Clip, a Belgian Malanois, is being trained in Live Find Air Scent and hopes to be certified by the end of the year.
Lorraine grew up in Upstate New York where she always had dogs but as a child found her passion showing horses. Throughout her life she traveled the country competing in horse shows. About 12 years ago she started taking training dogs more seriously and in addition to training for SAR she trains and competes with her other dogs in scentwork and personal protection sports.
Lorraine has an Associates Degree in Business Administration and a Masters Degree in Nursing. She currently works as a Nurse Practitioner to support her dog habit.
Marion Tisdale
CSAR Instructor
SARTEC II
EMR
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K9 Dock
​NAPWDA Air Scent
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After graduating from Clemson University in 1987, Marion returned to Spartanburg to work in small business. He and his wife, Elizabeth, have 2 daughters, Catherine Eve and Ashley. As a small business owner, Marion always saw the importance of community service and volunteerism.
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Marion joined SCSAR in 2024and he has been involved with K9 Sar since 2012. He initially was with SCSARDA and certified his first dog, Maya, in Area Search with NAPWDA (North American Police Working Dog Association). His new dog is a 3 year old Border Collie named Dock and they certified in March 2024 with NAPWDA in both Obedience control and SAR Area Search.
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Marion is currently a board member with the international organization and non-profit Canine Search and Recovery (CSAR), a 501(c)(3) organization that provides training, networking, and education for volunteer and professional K9 SAR handlers and works to promote the increased use of search dogs in all aspects of detection.
NAPWDA Associate Member – 8 years
CSAR member – 6 years
Currently serving a 3-year term on CSAR Board of Directors. 2024-2026
EMR Certification – 2018
Angie Stewart
SARTEC II​
Paramedic
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K9 Miko
Certified HRD
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Biography is being written.
Brian Brown
SARTEC II​
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K9 Maggie
AMPWDA Air Scent L1
HRD In-Training
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Caroline Ashe
SARTEC II​
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K9 Phorman
FEMA Type 1
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Brian is one of the founding members of SCSAR. He brings a vast wealth of experience to the team including Ground Team, Water Search, Radio Communications, and K9 Handling,
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Brian and Maggie are a great team who have deployed on Air Scent assignments. Maggie is currently being trained in HRD.
Caroline’s passion for Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) was sparked in 1995 after witnessing the response to the Oklahoma City bombing. Her drive to pursue this work deepened following the events of 9/11, where watching the search dogs in action left her with a profound sense of purpose.
Twelve years later, Caroline’s path crossed with Dr. Jennifer Brown—a seasoned USAR handler and FEMA veterinarian—who became a mentor and helped launch Caroline’s career in disaster search and rescue. In 2016, with Dr. Brown’s support, Caroline officially joined Florida Task Force 4 (FL-TF4).
In 2018, Caroline welcomed her first working dog, a black Labrador named Faust. Unfortunately, Faust’s career was cut short due to medical concerns, and he was retired from the program to prioritize his well-being. This challenge led Caroline to add Phorman to her pack—a live find black Labrador Retriever trained to locate people trapped or buried in disaster zones. In 2022, Caroline and Phorman achieved their Type 1 certification, the highest level for a disaster search team, and have since deployed three times across Florida.
Caroline’s team expanded again in 2024 with the addition of Tenebre, a chocolate Labrador Retriever focused on human remains detection. Tenebre is currently in training with plans to certify in 2025.
After relocating to South Carolina, Caroline connected with SCSAR, where she and her dogs now contribute their specialized skills to support disaster search operations. She continues to serve with FL-TF4 while also volunteering with SCSAR, dedicated to making a difference wherever she is needed.
Christy Nicholson
AKC Instructor/Evaluator
SARTEC II​
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K9 Hiro
Trailing In-Training
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Christy was born and raised in Boiling Springs, SC, and joined SCSAR in 2024. She is married and has three boys and three dogs. With a lifelong passion for working with dogs, Christy has been a full-time obedience trainer for over two years. She is a certified AKC trainer and evaluator.
Hiro is Christy’s first working K9—a high-energy Dalmatian who thrives on training, trick work, trailing, and running. His favorite reward is Easy Cheese, and he’ll do just about anything for it. Hiro has earned all three AKC Canine Good Citizen (CGC) titles, passed the AKC Temperament Test, and achieved several other accomplishments. He is currently training toward his first official trailing certification.