Douglas County welcomes Ring as new emergency manager

Nov. 6—Douglas County Commissioners Tom Kress, Chris Boice, and Tim Freeman are pleased to announce that Emily Ring has taken over as the Douglas County Emergency Manager.

Ring joined the Emergency Management Team in April of 2023, and worked under our former Emergency Manager, Wayne Stinson until his retirement last month.

The role of the Emergency Manager is to help local communities and organizations identify, anticipate, and prepare for possible hazards and vulnerabilities, while undertaking and establishing measures to effectively deal with, mitigate, respond and recover during and after disasters.

According to Wikipedia, "Emergency management, also called emergency response or disaster management, is the organization and management of the resources and responsibilities for dealing with all humanitarian aspects of emergencies (prevention, preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery)". Like many other county-led emergency management programs across the United States, Douglas County's disaster response and emergency preparedness programs were brought into existence following the creation of the Federal Civil Defense program and the creation of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 1979. Sheriff Norm Neal is credited with helping to develop the first Civil Defense program in Douglas County within the Douglas County Sheriff's Office (DCSO) in the early 1980s. Since its inception, Wayne Stinson was the one responsible for the county's disaster response and emergency preparedness division. Wayne spent the better part of his career building the foundation for the successful emergency management program the County has today.

Historically, Douglas County Emergency Management division has operated behind the scenes preparing plans and procedures for responding to and recovering from disasters and emergency events as a part of the Sheriff's Office. While overseen by DCSO, these efforts operated in coordination with the County Commissioners, public safety officials, other elected officials, nonprofit organizations, and other municipal and government agencies. Just like the proverbial changing of the guard with Ring replacing Stinson, the Emergency Management division has also experienced movement. Douglas County Emergency Management has evolved into a full-fledged independent county department.

Before being hired by Douglas County, Ring spent six years working for Josephine County in Emergency Management as the Assistant Emergency Manager, then the County Emergency Manager. Prior to that she spent several years working as a Crisis Counselor, Domestic Violence Case Manager, National Resources Ranger, and as a seasonal Wildland Firefighter. Ring holds a bachelor's degree in social services with an emphasis in GIS Technology and Anthropology from the University of Wisconsin & Eastern Oregon University, as well as a master's degree in Biological Sciences and Resource Management from Green Mountain University. She and her husband recently moved and now call Douglas County home. She also has a stepson and two grandkids. In her free time Ring enjoys outdoor activities with friends and family, arts and crafts, taking care of home, pets and her garden.

"We are very excited about the future of our Emergency Management program! We will of course continue to honor the legacy of our successful Emergency Management program built by Wayne but look forward to the energy and skills that our new Emergency Manager Emily brings to the table," commented Commissioner Tim Freeman.

For more information about the Douglas County Emergency Management Department and the services provided, check out the new webpage on the county website at https://douglascountyor.gov/856/Emergency-Management.