OUR TEAM

Fire Department Officers

Chief

Johann Sonnenberg

Johann has 13 years of experience in fire and EMS. He brings training expertise and command knowledge to our team.

1st Assistant Chief

Dan Sundt

With over 25 years of experience in fire and EMS, Dan brings much knowledge and experience to our team.

2nd Assistant Chief

Laife Denning

Laife started his fire career at Oronoco and has been on the department for seven years. His interests are in interior fire attack and incident command.

Training Officer

Dustin Nevsimal

Dustin has over 20 years in EMS and four in the fire service. He is also a full-time firefighter. He heads up the department's training and drill program.

Fire Department Staff

Name	Rank	Member Since
Taylor Armstrong	Captain	01/2022
Matt Arnold	Firefighter	03/2024
Chris Bachman	Firefighter	06/2022
Aubrie Bourgoyne	Firefighter/EMR	07/2023
Adam Brase	Firefighter	06/2022
Logan Brase	Firefighter	01/2024
Grace Cunningham	Firefighter	10/2025
Finn Cassity	Fire Explorer	09/2024
Dani Dave	Firefighter/EMT	07/2023
Cain Dolan	Firefighter	05/2004
Ryan Fee	Firefighter	03/2025
Sam Jensch	Firefighter	09/2019

First Responder Officers

Director

Gwen Bourgoyne

Gwen is an RN with 20 years of experience and began her EMS career in Oronoco as an EMT in 2024. She is committed to high-quality care, strengthening partnerships, and community engagement.

Assistant Director

Colby Lesniak

Colby started in EMS in 2023. She is an EMR and also serves on Dodge Center Ambulance. Colby also draws from her experience in healthcare at Mayo Clinic.

Deputy Assistant Director

Danielle Johnson

Danielle is not only an EMT but a Nurse Practitioner as well. Her patient care knowledge both in the field and in a hospital setting is invaluable to the department.

Secretary

Kathy Brandt-Rucker

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Training Officer

Jayne Schulte-Whiting

Jayne began her EMS career in Oronoco as an EMT in 2022 and now leads the OFR training department. She is also an experienced RN with backgrounds in ICU, PACU, vascular, and cardiac care.

First Responder Staff

Name	Rank	Member Since
Elizabeth Amundson	EMT	08/16/2022
Taylor Armstrong	EMR	10/07/2024
Lori Bachman	EMT	06/21/2022
Aubrie Bourgoyne	EMR	07/05/2023
Finn Cassity	EMS Explorer	09/29/2024
Dani Dave	EMT	07/05/2023
Melanie Decker	EMS Explorer	08/04/2025
Denise Heppelmann-Wangsness	EMR	01/03/2011
Shannan Huschka	EMT	06/21/2022
Chris Inman	EMR	07/07/2008
Christina Inman	EMT	10/04/2004
Shawn Lehman	EMT	09/05/2023