ATLANTA—The parents of 24-year-old hiker Meredith Emerson will adopt her dog Ella and take the retriever back to their Colorado home.
The black Labrador retriever mix was with Emerson when she disappeared while hiking at Vogel State Park in north Georgia on New Year’s Day.
Authorities charged 61-year-old Gary Michael Hilton with murder in the woman’s death after he led them to her body on Monday night.
Emerson family spokeswoman Peggy Bailey said Emerson’s parents, Dave and Susan Emerson of Longmont, Colorado, want to adopt the dog because she is “a part of Meredith that they’ll always have.”
A memorial fund set up in Meredith Emerson’s name at the Longmont Humane Society had surpassed $7,800 by Thursday.
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Information from: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, , and the Longmont Times-Call,
