CHAFFEE COUNTY, Colo. — A Chaffee County sheriff’s deputy known for high-mountain rescue work and tactical medical service has received the inaugural Hometown Hero Award from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that Deputy Donnie Smith of the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office was recognized May 12 by U.S. Attorney Peter McNeilly and Sheriff Andy Rohrich. The office said the award was created as part of the Department of Justice’s recognition of law enforcement service around America’s 250th birthday.

According to the federal release, Smith has worked in law enforcement since 2021 and was honored for service that includes two difficult mountain rescues as well as broader public-safety work.

Rescues on Mount Yale and La Plata Peak

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Smith helped rescue a woman in November 2022 after she fell roughly 500 feet down a large ice field on Mount Yale. The release said Smith was flown to the apex above the woman, tended to her injuries and stayed with her until daylight, when she could be airlifted to a hospital.

Officials credited Smith’s actions with saving the woman’s life and helping save her severely frostbitten feet.

The release also described an October 2024 rescue on La Plata Peak. After a full day of patrol, Smith was flown late at night to the top of the peak to reach an injured hiker who could not descend. Because the helicopter could not complete the rescue in the dark, officials said Smith stayed overnight with the man in freezing conditions above 13,000 feet until the hiker could be airlifted at daybreak.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said those actions saved the hiker’s life.

“A hero for the heroes”

Officials also cited Smith’s tactical medical service. The release said he created a medical program to teach agency staff tactical medicine, serves as a Tactical Medical Party member on the sheriff’s office tactical team, and has worked as a paramedic and ski patroller. On his days off, Smith volunteers with Chaffee County Search and Rescue.

“The District of Colorado is proud to honor Deputy Smith for his exceptional work and service to his fellow Coloradans,” U.S. Attorney Peter McNeilly said in the release. “He is an extraordinary example of what a law enforcement officer can be, and I am grateful for his continued service.”

“When I think of the word hero, I immediately picture Deputy Smith,” Sheriff Andy Rohrich said, according to the release. “Whenever a job is too difficult for the rest of us, Deputy Smith steps in to accomplish the mission. Donnie is a hero for the heroes.”

For ThinBlueNews readers, Smith’s story is a reminder that public-safety work often stretches far beyond traffic stops and jail doors. In mountain counties, deputies can be called to patrol roads, respond to violent threats, render emergency medical aid, and climb into freezing alpine rescues when someone’s life depends on it.

In Chaffee County, federal and local officials say Deputy Donnie Smith has done that work again and again.

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