Helping Paws, a Minnesota-based nonprofit that trains and places assistance dogs with veterans and first responders with PTSD, is starting a fund in honor of the late House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her family.

The nonprofit on Monday announced the Hortman Heroes Fund, which will support "programs that place highly skilled service dogs with individuals who have sacrificed for their communities and country."

Melissa Hortman, her husband Mark and their dog Gilbert were shot and killed in their Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, home on June 14. Gilbert was a former Helping Paws service dog in training.

"This was a profound loss for the entire Helping Paws community, as we mourn the passing of two dedicated volunteers and a beloved dog who trained in our program," Helping Paws Executi

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