Co-worker

On April 15^th, Deputy Merrill responded to a domestic violence call with his partner and another deputy.  The suspect shot both men.  Deputy Merrill was saved by his tactical vest and returned fire and eliminated the threat.  However, his partner, Josh Owen, was mortally wounded.  Deputy Merrill performed CPR until help arrived.  Deputy Merrill has since returned to work and remains steadfast to the call of law enforcement.  He now works to educate and prepare officers of the dangerous realities they face in protecting their communities.

Co-worker

Officer Spies was shot in the line of duty as he pursued a suspect in an unmarked police car on August 11th after being ambushed by automatic gunfire.

Supervisor

On May 6^th, the officers responded to a call of unknown trouble to find a suspect had taken a 12-year-old boy hostage and was threatening him with a knife.  When the suspect locked the door with the child inside, Officer Matlon broke down the door.  The child was bleeding from several stab wounds, and the suspect refused commands to drop the knife.  To prevent further injury to the child, the officers engaged in a physical fight with the suspect and one deployed his taser.  A third responding officer was ordered to render aid to the child while Officers Matlon and Oppegard subdued and restrained the suspect.  The two officers put the care and safety of the child ahead of their own safety.

Luke Ahlschlager, Chief

On February 6th Officer Darin Daveau responded to a domestic call with the Chief and an investigator. A young woman who was pregnant was struggling with her boyfriend. The woman’s mother reported that the young woman planned suicide by cop. The young woman came outside and approached the chief with a knife, and Officer Daveau drew his taser. The boyfriend intervened and pushed the woman back into he house where there were children present. The boyfriend refused to obey commands to keep her outside. Officer Daveau struggled with the non-compliant boyfriend and was able to get inside the house to protect the children and locate the armed woman. Office Daveau ensured the safety of the two children before locating the armed woman who had a self-inflicted cut on her wrist. Although the woman was non-compliant and refused aid, Officer Daveau was able to place a tourniquet on the woman’s arm until additional support arrived.

Partner

Officer Salchow responded to assist with a domestic call. The suspect had shot a firearm at his wife, and there were multiple other parties in the house. Officers cleared the house except for a 7-year-old child and the suspect. Officer Salchow entered the house and was able to find the child and get him to safety before back-up arrived. This act of courage and selflessness earned Officer Salchow the Maplewood Medal of Special Commendation, which is the second highest honor in the department.

Co-worker

On June 17, Deputy Majeski responded to a call for a wrong way driver on Interstate 94 in Lake Elmo. The vehicle collided head on with a semi-truck, causing the death of the wrong way driver and starting a vehicle fire. Deputy Majeski arrived on scene and pounded on the door of the semi tractor and revived the driver just long enough to get the door unlocked and seatbelt unfastened. Officer Majeski dragged him from the truck and away from the semi as the fire exploded and fully engulfed the cab.

Supervisor

On August 30th, officers were dispatched to a call about a group of disorderly individuals (later updated to a person threatening a child). Officers arrived and located a chaotic scene with a group of individuals who stated that they were concerned for the welfare of an infant (2-3 months), and that they witnessed the mother entrust the safety of her child to strangers while attempting to find and smoke narcotics and disappearing for a period of the time without the child. They also watched the mother swing the infant in a way that was unsafe. Officer Waterkamp assisted in caring for the infant by feeding her and changing her diaper. He utilized a shirt to make a changing table in the rear of his squad and to swaddle her to keep her warm till medics arrived. The infant was transported to the hospital where Child Protective Services met officers.

Former Supervisor

On January 24th, Officer Sheak and his partners were trying to effect an arrest warrant on a subject for felony domestic assault. The suspect barricaded himself in a back bedroom (not known to be armed at the time). Officers attempted to negotiate with the suspect, when he came out of the bedroom firing a handgun, striking Officer Sheak three times. Officer Sheak endured multiple surgeries and eventually returned to work on 8/7/2023. The suspect was eventually taken into custody that night and has since been sentenced to 200 months in prison.
Officer Sheak is a true example of a never quit mindset.

Sheriff

On July 15, Deputy Brady Pundsack volunteered for an extra shift to help fill a need for additional support at the Pierz Freedom Fest music event. He was directing traffic on Highway 25 when was struck by an SUV vehicle and suffered severe injuries. He was airlifted to St. Cloud Hospital and treated for multiple injuries, including surgery for a broken C5 disc in his neck. Unfortunately, Deputy Pundsack is now unable to work as a Deputy because of the injuries that he received. Deputy Pundsack has made it clear that he wants to return to the profession once he’s cleared by medical staff. Brady is always positive and even through these troubling times he wants to give back and remains positive.

Co-worker

Officer Kristopher Dauble is a motivating and driven member of the Minneapolis Police Department. Officer Dauble’s high level of proficiency led him to work on the Gun Investigation Unit (GIU) and Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team. Officer Dauble’s work with GIU led to several investigations that have directly lead to over 50 guns being recovered. His selfless actions have directly led to the improvement of the safety of the residents and guest of the city of Minneapolis.

Fire Chief

We are a volunteer Fire and Rescue Department. Jason has made more calls than anyone else in the Department. He responds to an average of 78% of all calls. We have been averaging 250-275 calls per year. Firefighter Hallerstrom has shown great leadership and is a role model that other members can approach and talk to when they have any type of question, whether it was Fire Department related or not.

Fire Chief

On January 7th at 4:34 am (about -10 degrees) Deerwood Fire was called out for a house fire. Upon arrival these two brave firefighters climbed into a second story window from a ladder to rescue an unconscious female from her home that was fully engulfed in fire and smoke. The room had zero visibility and they were not familiar with the home. They found the femail resident within a minute and rescued her out the same window where other firefighters, police and EMS staff were waiting to help. The resident of this dwelling is alive and well today after a tough recovery.

Assistant Chief

Capt. Holmes joined the City of St Paul Fire Department in February of 2011 and has quickly risen through the ranks while proving to be the consummate and dedicated professional in all areas of fire, rescue and EMS. He is the first to seek out additional educational and training opportunities to better not only himself and his crew but for the greater good of the community he serves. Capt. Holmes also seeks opportunities to volunteer and engage with the community, and he pursues every opportunity to take on additional responsibilities within the SPFD to help shape and better position the department for the future. Capt. Holmes has also served 21years in the Minnesota Air National Guard and retired in 2022 at the rank of Captain and as a Communications Officer for the 109th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron.

Supervisor

On April19th, Paramedic/EMS responded to an apartment fire with children trapped. The fire department was not yet on scene and a decision was made to break some windows with hopes of finding the children. They did not see anything with the first window removed, so they moved to a second. With the glass not yet cleared, the EMS lieutenant could see feet. As soon as the glass was removed, the EMS lieutenant dove into a smoke-filled apartment and grabbed the first child and handed them out the window. He then went back and found another child as the conditions within the apartment were quickly deteriorating. He tried to return a third time, but a burning hot curtain rod fell striking him in the head and he knew he had to get out of the apartment since it was now too hot and smokey. As he exited the apartment, the volunteer fire department arrived to finish rescuing the third child. The EMS lieutenant helped fight the fire to make the conditions more favorable for the firefighters to finish the rescue. Two of the three children are alive due to efforts of EMS Lieutenant Sulo Kyyra that day.

Co-worker

Paramedic/EMS Ron Richards is a valued member of the Jackson Ambulance. He is always on calls and always makes sure that he is checking in with everyone to make sure that they are okay. His nomination cannot be limited to just one act/incident as he has had many calls over the last 12 months that he has gone above and beyond. As a dispatcher that interacts with him not only over the radio but in person, Ron takes the time to ensure that after the hard calls that I am doing ok.

Sr Director of EMS

EMS were dispatched to a reported drowning in the city of Minneapolis. The first responder team quickly located an abandoned swimming pool on the property with very dark water. Bystanders reported a child was still in the water and no one could swim. Without hesitation, the team leapt into action, jumping into the murky water, risking their own personal safety to rescue the child. Paramedic Sheldrew located the child, pulled them from the water, and the team began resuscitative measures. This team certainly didn’t hesitate to do anything and everything to save this child in hazardous conditions facing personal risk.

Supervisor

Rippentrop took a 911 call from a hysterical mother stating her 2-year old child fell down the stairs and was not breathing. She was able to calm the mother down enough to be able to obtain a valid address to quickly dispatch the First Responders. Further information came in that involved an adult male that lived at the residence but left when the 911 call was made. With her quick actions, she was able to air out the attempt to locate information and both the male and the vehicle were located and stopped within blocks of the scene. Because of her actions and those of her partner, they very possibly saved the life of an infant child that was also located in that vehicle. She then called Child Protection, the medical examiner, and other family members. Later the same month, Rippentrop along with her partners received numerous 911 calls of a person drowning. First Responders were immediately dispatched. The telecommunicator was responsible for documenting arrival times for all the First responders and ensuring that she had accurate and reliable documentation of the first responders that were in the water assisting with the rescue/recovery. She also had to research information that was provided to try to identify who the person was in an attempt to locate next of kin information. She then made that one last call to the medical examiner.

Co-worker

Public Safety Telecommunicator Joanne Weeres is a lead dispatcher in the Stearns County dispatch center. She is a role model for the center and shows patience and compassion to all the people she speaks with day to day. She stays calm under pressure and handles tough and critical situations very well by staying calm on the radio. Joann was awarded a lifesaving award this year for giving instructions to a caller who was with someone choking that ultimately saved their life. Joanne has put in 29 years of service.

Co-worker

Public Safety Telecommunicator Schmidt is a key member of our dispatch team. He always goes above and beyond in the center – as a trainer and as a partner. He is professional and shows the citizens who call us empathy and compassion. Adam is a well-rounded guy who is down to earth professionally, easy to talk with, and is cool, calm, and collected. Could not ask for a better dispatcher.

Supervisor

Amy has consistently demonstrated a dedication to her job that goes above and beyond what is expected of her. She is a true professional who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the safety and well-being of the community she serves. Amy has worked countless hours on focused enforcement details, where her attention to detail and quick thinking have helped to keep our officers safe and our communities secure. She has also been instrumental in training police recruits at the academy, sharing her knowledge and expertise with the next generation of law enforcement professionals. One achievement that stands out was when Amy served as the incident tactical dispatcher (INTD) during a focused enforcement detail in August of 2023 that involved an Officer being shot. Despite the chaos and danger, Amy remained calm and was integral in coordinating the response to apprehend the suspects successfully and safely.

Co-worker

Public Safety Telecommunicator Carla Otte has been a 911 dispatcher with Stearns County Sheriff’s office for almost 30 years. She is the mother figure to our center and has truly been through it all. After all these years, she still comes into work every day with a positive attitude and a smile on her face. She brings laughs and life to the center. Carla shows compassion and empathy to all her callers, yet she has the radio voice that could break up a bar fight. Carla is a wonderful trainer to the future dispatchers of our center. She shows the future dispatchers how to have a strong but warm heart.