Carl Gambrell and his dog Marta are what make Ditmas Park, Brooklyn a great place to live. They're wonderful neighborhoods, friends, and champions of our local businesses, particularly those on Cortelyou Rd. Carl is the owner and operator of Ocean Parkway Dogwalking and the trusted, daily caretaker of many neighborhood dogs. Carl has experienced an incredibly difficult summer with a series of unexpected setbacks and deserves some support from our village to get back on his feet and recover.

Most seriously, Carl and Marta were physically attacked and separated from each other for hours during a terrifying incident at the Coney Island boardwalk July 10. The incident is under investigation with the NYPD 60th Precinct. Anyone who might have relevant photos or videos from the night of July 10 at the boardwalk is encouraged to contact the precinct. Carl and Marta are thankfully both home safely now.

This horrifying event comes just after Carl's client payment system was compromised in late May and his bike was stolen from a dog-walking client's property in June while he was working.

This fundraiser serves to help Carl recover lost income, fully replace the bike that is instrumental to his business commuting, and support any recouperation and self-care as he and Marta recover from the assault and stress of the last few weeks. Criminal investigations are lengthy, often open-ended, and they demand a lot of physical and mental wherewithal from victims. Carl has approved this GoFundMe and all funds go to him directly for his discretionary use.

Whether you can give $5 or $50, these are the moments when every little bit counts and our collective village can make a huge difference. Please help us uplift a neighbor, dad, friend, and local business owner. If you can't give now, please consider hiring Ocean Barkway in the future and help spread the word about this effort.