Before he was a Chaffee County Sheriff’s deputy, Donnie Smith was a Search and Rescue North volunteer descending a snowfield above 13,000 feet in the dark. On July 15, 2019, a retired NASA astronaut had fallen 500 feet near the summit of La Plata Peak. Hikers heard the man screaming and called for help. Helicopters located him after nightfall. Smith was dropped near the summit, hiked down to the victim — Jeff Ashby — stabilized him, and stayed on the mountain until an Army National Guard helicopter hoisted Ashby out at 7:30 the next morning. Ashby, a retired U.S. Navy captain and veteran of three Space Shuttle missions, was transported to Summit Medical Center with multiple fractures.
Smith joined the Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office in 2021. He has since earned two lifesaving medals as a deputy. In November 2022 he received his first for a backcountry rescue. In October 2024 he was again inserted by helicopter above 13,000 feet on La Plata Peak, stabilized a seriously injured solo hiker in rugged terrain, and remained overnight until extraction at first light.
On Tuesday, May 12, the Department of Justice will present Smith with its inaugural Hometown Hero Award at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, 1801 California Street in Denver. The ceremony begins at 11 a.m. U.S. Attorney Peter McNeilly, Chaffee County Sheriff Andy Rohrich, Deputy Smith, and Jeff Ashby will be available for interviews afterward.
The DOJ created the award in honor of the United States’ 250th birthday to recognize law enforcement officers across the country for extraordinary service to their communities. McNeilly has served as Colorado’s chief federal law enforcement officer since June 2025, overseeing more than 160 attorneys and staff. He is a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Sheriff Rohrich, a lifelong Chaffee County resident appointed to lead the department in September 2024, will attend alongside Smith.
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