Beltrami County doctors Ralph and Donna Morris were recently recognized as MSA 2020 Sheriff’s Volunteers of the Year during the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association Summer Conference in June.
The Sheriff’s Volunteer of the Year award is presented to those who consistently volunteer their time to the sheriff's office and the community. From March 2020 until they were nominated in September 2020, Ralph and Donna had donated a combined 775 hours, a release said.
The pair was nominated by Beltrami County Sheriff Ernie Beitel for their voluntary support of the sheriff’s office, the community and the Emergency Operations Team, which partnered with Beltrami County Public Health to prepare the community, local government, medical community and schools for the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Ralph and Donna, prior to retirement, worked extensively in preventive medicine and public health preparedness in responding to disasters at the local, state and federal level," Beitel said in the release. "Their service began with the sheriff’s office and the community with twice-daily briefings, which turned into more meetings and then countless hours in Zoom meetings to help prepare the sheriff’s office, community and our jail for the pandemic."
They also created documents and algorithms to provide guidance to the community days or even weeks ahead of the Minnesota Department of Health or the Minnesota Department of Corrections.
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"But one of the greatest things that Ralph and Donna offered was peace of mind to our sheriff’s office staff," the release continued. "They were only a phone call away, day or night to bring peace of mind, reassurance and guidance to them."
