April 10, 2026
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With the couple of letters published in the SILVER WORLD and the talk that’s been around town about the state of Hinsdale County Emergency Medical Service (HC EMS) leadership, I cannot remain silent any longer.Nearly three years ago, I was given the opportunity to become an ambulance driver for EMS. The first person I met was Buffy Witt. The second person I met was the paramedic she enticed to work in Lake City, Brad Jones.I then met the rest of the team, fell in love with the work and the system, and relished the sense of providing a needed service. Over two years ago, Buffy stepped down, but left the agency in the capable hands of new leadership, namely EMS Director Katherine Heidt and Chief Paramedic Brad Jones, who created Captain roles to expand the leadership team. In these two years, HC EMS has become a well-oiled machine, able to respond to 911 calls efficiently and effectively, to establish timely Continuous Quality Improvement review, and to define processes and procedures. The state of HC EMS leadership has been strong!It is precisely due to the leadership of Katherine and Brad that I decided to go further in EMS to support the Hinsdale County community and its visitors by enrolling in the “Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Academy” this term. I was looking forward to graduating next month and having Brad as my mentor this summer in order to become the best EMT I can be. I now know that this isn’t going to happen, as Chief Jones has been forced out of Lake City EMS with personality politics by our commissioners, despite his following EMS professional personnel standards and county policies. This comes right at the start of our busy visitor season!Our team is strained and in trouble now. If you care about having an ambulance show up from Lake City when you call 911, I urge you to contact the county commissioners to actively work to keep Director Heidt and Captain Humphreys involved as our leadership, or EMS could face our Medical Director having to close the ambulance service altogether – call TODAY !Lorie StewartEMT StudentLake City
As we celebrate National Volunteer Awareness Week, we pause to recognize the extraordinary individuals whose generosity, compassion, and dedication strengthen our community every single day. Volunteers are the heartbeat of service—quietly giving their time, energy, and talents to make life better for others. Their impact is felt in our schools, our parks, our food programs, our emergency services, our youth activities, our senior support networks, our special events, and so many other corners of our community.To every volunteer: thank you.Thank you for showing up when it matters most.Thank you for lending a hand, a voice, a skill, or simply your presence.Thank you for believing that one person can make a difference—and proving it through your actions.We also extend our gratitude to the many organizations that create opportunities for service and empower volunteers to thrive. Your leadership and commitment help weave the fabric of a stronger, more connected community.Organizations Serving Our Community with Volunteer Assistance
Preliminary numbers are in for the April 7 Town election, with Mayor Dave Roberts holding a significant lead over mayoral candidate Jodi Linsey; Roberts with 120 votes and Linsey with 79.Trustee candidates Kaylin Trivisonno, Henry Woods and Nathan Wuest received 147, 132 and 138 votes, respectively. There will still be one trustee seat vacant after this election, which will be filled by appointment at a later date.According to Town Clerk Christina Bowman, there were 200 ballots verified and counted, with a total of ten ballots held in reserve for signature verification. The casters of these ballots are being notified in writing of the discrepancy, and they have eight days to confirm that the signatures are genuine.A total of 351 ballots were delivered by mail to voters, with only one coming back spoiled or needing to be replaced. Forty-six ballots were unused, six were returned as undeliverable, with zero being disqualified and zero unofficial, emergency or substitute ballots.Election judges were Karen McClatchie, Carol Robinson, Bill Stewart, Alice Attaway and Rebecca Kaminski. Final ballot certification will take place April 16 after the eight-day signature verification time is up.Mayor Roberts was first elected Mayor in 2022, after Bruce Vierheller retired, and Roberts served as Trustee for many years before becoming Mayor. Trustees Trivisonno, Woods and Wuest, along with Mayor Roberts have also been elected to four year terms.