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Sheriff's Office holds annual awards ceremony

The Boulder County Sheriff’s office formally recognized team members, volunteers, partner agencies and individuals in the community whose exceptional service, teamwork, heroism, or gallantry in the line of duty embodies the mission and values of the
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Boulder County Logo Source: Boulder County website

This content was originally published by the Longmont Observer and is licensed under a Creative Commons license.

The Boulder County Sheriff’s office formally recognized team members, volunteers, partner agencies and individuals in the community whose exceptional service, teamwork, heroism, or gallantry in the line of duty embodies the mission and values of the Boulder County Sheriff’s office on Saturday.

“We gather every year to celebrate the many accomplishments of our employees, and to recognize some outstanding community members, volunteers and partner agency contributions as well. I love the stories, sometimes heartwarming, sometimes tragic, but always reflective of the skill, care and self-sacrifice of first responders and ordinary community members willing to give when tragedy or great difficulty arises,” Sheriff Joe Pelle.

The significant contributions of volunteers were recognized with the awards of Volunteer Excellence, and Reserve Deputy of the Year. Sheriff’s Commendations, Teamwork Award of Excellence, Distinguished Unit Citations and Employees of the Year were awarded to employees or teams for distinguished or outstanding achievement in the line of duty or noteworthy performance. Meritorious Service Medal for service excellence over a number of years was conferred to six staff members. The Life Saving Medal was conferred eight times to employees who, in the line of duty, took rescue, or physical or medical intervention actions that directly saved a person’s life.

The following community members and the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group received a Sheriff’s Commendation because they distinguished themselves by an action that helped in the delivery of services in a public safety event, or for a specific event that enhanced the effectiveness of the Sheriff’s Office.

On April 10, 2018, 12-year-old George called 911 to report that his mother needed help. George and his mother were hiking on the Bluebell-Baird Trail when his mother experienced a medical emergency. In George’s call to 911 he asked the dispatcher to send help, described the circumstance just before his mother fell ill and was able to provide a location. After hanging up with the 911 operator, George phoned his father to let him know what was happening. Throughout the rescue George provided reassurance and kindness to his mother. This young man’s quick action and ability to accurately communicate the details of the situation connected his mother with the medical and rescue resources needed.

On May 14, 2018, three young employees of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) were parked near Mount Sanitas when they noticed a boat trailer tire smoking. Nate Vanderschaaf and Sarah Jo Gates stopped to see if they could help. Since their home was nearby, they decided to take the trailer there for repairs. In no time Nate and Sarah had the trailer jacked up, tire removed and the metal bent away from the tire. They not only replaced the failing tire, but Nate fixed the short in the trailer lights and tightened the lugs to the proper torque! Now the CPW personnel were properly equipped for safe travel. Their actions are an excellent example of what it means to be an active community member.

On July 22, 2018 Michael Sullivan was stopped for lunch near Isabelle Glacier when he heard screaming and looked up to a nearby snowfield to see a hiker falling down the snowfield. Jeff Sampson had fallen approximately 400 feet to rocks at the bottom of the snowfield, and sustained significant, extensive life threatening injuries. Michael made his way over to assess the Jeff’s injuries. He made a rock chair for Jeff to sit on then attempted to call 911, but the call failed due to lack of signal. Before leaving the area to call for help Michael used his trekking poles and rain jacket to create a marker at the top of the snowfield and used Jeff’s equipment to increase comfort and prepare Jeff to withstand the building storms. On his way down, Michael made contact with two other hikers, Tai Blue and Brendan Harrigan. They agreed to go stay with Jeff while Michael headed to the trail head. One of the hikers had blankets in their pack which were used to keep Jeff from going into hypothermia. Tai and Brendan remained on scene with Jeff for over five hours and stayed through two lightning storms on the mountain. Michael hiked back to the scene with the rescuers, remaining throughout the rescue. Throughout the day, Michael ended up running and hiking nearly 17 miles, with an elevation gain of 1,600 feet, at a starting elevation of about 10,500 feet.

The Boulder County Sheriff’s Office is fortunate to partner with the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group (RMRG) in providing public safety services to the residents and visitors of Boulder County. Founded in 1947, RMRG is the oldest continually operating mountain rescue team in the United States. In 2018, RMRG volunteers will conduct more search and rescue calls than roughly half of all Colorado search and rescue teams combined. They have already surpassed the 180 calls for service in 2017 with over 220 calls this year. The current record for the number of call outs in one day is seven responses.

Thank you to the outstanding staff, community members, volunteers and partner agency contributions.