Ramsey County Commission President Resigns

During the Ramsey County Commission meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 18, Commissioner Blaine Volk announced that fellow Commissioner Lee Gessner resigned his position in a very brief letter which was submitted on Nov. 4 at 1:35 p.m. Gessner was not present at the meeting nor the prior one although he had been serving for the past year as commission chair; Volk chaired those meetings in Gessner’s absence.

Gessner came to the offices of the Devils Lake Journal for an interview on Nov. 20, to explain his motivations for stepping down. He said there were a number of reasons, both personal and professional, when reflecting on his decision to resign from the Commission, and chief among them was his own mental health.

Gessner said it was around 25 years ago, when he was first started struggling with depression. He and his wife Bonnie attended counseling sessions and thought they had it under control. “And for the most part, I have,” he said.

However, he admitted that his work with the Commission had taken him “way out of his comfort zone.” While he found himself accomplishing things that he hadn’t thought were possible for him, it was still a struggle. What continued to drive him was that he wanted to make a difference in his community.

“So … the last six (to) eight months, I’ve been pretty hard to live with,” Gessner said, adding that it led him to go back to therapy a few months ago.

“I’m the kind of person that takes things to heart,” he said. “I’m not good at letting things roll off my back.”

Things came to a head during a temper flare-up over a trivial matter. “One day, I completely lost it on some guys at the (Devils Lake Rural) Fire Department,” Gessner admits. “That was the day I decided this was enough.”

“I felt like I put quite a bit of work into being the person I wanted to be, and when I started to lose my temper, the only thing that had changed in my life was being on the Commission, so that’s why I pulled the plug,” he said.

Gessner had even considered quitting the Fire Department, but Chief Nate Bennett persuaded him to reconsider. “I’m not going to be a front-line firefighter anymore,” he said. “I’m going to step into the background and still do what I can there, but this was a decision for my mental health.”

Gessner realized that speculation and rumors were already spreading on his reasons for stepping down. “I had a phone call from Commissioner (Dick) Horner from Benson County last night,” he said. “He wanted to know if it was because of the Law Enforcement Center and the problems over there.”

Gessner was referring to the 51-year-old building currently being used to house the Devils Lake Police Department, Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, Lake Region 911 and Dispatch, and the Lake Region Correctional Facility, that has been in great need of repairs and upgrades. There have even been proposals of building a new LEC in an industrial park area to no avail. However, Gessner stressed that was not part of his reasons for resigning. “I’m not saying I don’t think there’s problems with the Law Enforcement Center, but that’s not why,” he said.

Looking back on his work with the Commission and local politics, he remembered someone told him to “trust, but verify everything” and he laughed about it, adding “That will wear you out!”

Gessner had hoped to make a difference sitting on the Commission, but felt that more systemic change is needed. “The ‘good ol’ boy system’ has hurt this community,” he said. “And the roots of that go back generations.”

I wasn’t able to do half what I wanted to do,” Gessner admitted. “But I’m not ashamed (of trying to do the right thing).”

Gessner says the job was bigger than he expected. Not only was he attending all Commission meetings every month, but all the committee meetings that went with it – this past year he also chaired the Commission meetings, so he had to run each meeting and handle all of that, plus his portfolio which included oversight of the States Attorney’s Office, Veterans Services Officer, Auditor’s Office, Human Resources, Lake Region Public Library and the Fair Board and all those requisite meetings. It’s nearly a full-time job just to stay on top of everything.

“I cared too much about doing the job and being able to make informed decisions,” he added.

One thing he does regret is his lack of interaction with fellow commissioners outside of actual meetings. “I didn’t consider it proper to visit with the other commissioners a lot,” he said. “If you’re going to talk about something as a commissioner, it should be in that Commission room. Hindsight being 20/20, maybe if I would have visited a little more with each one of them, you know, maybe could have vented some of this stuff, and prevented the fallout.”

His advice if you are thinking of stepping out of your comfort zone and doing this work, realize that you have to give back to the county and view it that way – giving back. Plus, he says, you need to be able to let things roll off your back. There will be setbacks and few, if any, “home runs,” but you can build on the little successes.

“If all you want to do is go to the Commission meetings twice a month, don’t waste your time or ours.”

“Remember the ‘good ol’ boys” and don’t take things to heart, like I did. Voice your opinions and don’t give up. Protect your own mental health, it took me a long time to do that for myself. Find someone, a friend, a therapist, you can open up to, take medication if it’s needed, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, be true to yourself and honest. It’s okay to get help!”

He sees his time on the Commission as “a learning experience” and for the most part, “a good experience.”

Gessner had initially taken over the two-year term vacated by Lucas Wakefield and served a year of his own two-year term.

The Commission now needs to fill the vacancy created by Gessner’s resignation.

At the Nov. 18 Commission meeting, considerable discussion ensued regarding accepting his resignation and filling the vacant position. States Attorney Daniel Howell advised the Commission that according to the ND Century Code, they are required to fill the vacancy “immediately” with a person who is a qualified elector in Ramsey County. Then Howell told the commissioners that “time was of the essence” and should they not find someone interested in the position, it would then by law go to the Treasurer, who would be required to fill the vacancy until the next general election, approximately one year from now.

Commissioner Bill Hodous stated that he was uncomfortable nominating anyone without first talking to them about it, which was the consensus of the commission. Howell advised them to “advertise” the opening and solicit letters of interest from Ramsey County residents. The commission agreed to that and set a deadline of end of day Friday, Nov. 28 for those letters to be received at the Auditor’s office so they could make a decision by the next Commission meeting, Dec. 2 at 8 a.m. Howell advised that would be sufficient according to ND law.

Hodous later stated in a telephone interview on Thursday, Nov. 20 that no action had been taken immediately after receiving Gessner’s resignation because no details were included in the letter of resignation, the Commission needed to have more details before calling a special meeting or taking any further action.

According to Commissioner Jeff Frith, who was also interviewed via telephone on Nov. 20, the Commission was waiting for the information coming from the County States Attorney on how to go forward after the resignation was received, as it is not something the Commission has dealt with very often.

The official address of the Ramsey County Auditor is 524 4th Ave. NE, Unit 6, Devils Lake, ND 58301. You may send your letter of interest in serving on the Ramsey County Commission through the mail or drop it off at the auditor’s office during working hours until the end of day, Friday, Nov. 28 to be considered a candidate to fill the position. That may be complicated since the Ramsey County Courthouse is closed on both Nov. 27 (Thanksgiving Day) and the day after Thanksgiving, Nov. 28.

The Commission is now calling for letters of intent from qualified residents of the county. Regarding the timing of the request for those interested in the position, as long as the letter or e-mail is dated prior to Nov. 28, it should be eligible. If you want to bring your letter of intent to the Auditor’s office personally, you’ll have to do that no later than end of day, Nov. 26 – that’s tomorrow! (If you get your Devils Lake Journal on Tuesday, Nov. 25!)

The Commission will make a decision at their next meeting.