MN State Patrol dispatchers honored for work during annunciation shooting

MN State Patrol honors 911 dispatchers for Annunciation mass shooting response

911 dispatchers were honored for coordinating the emergency response to the Annunciation Church and School mass shooting, FOX 9's Rob Olson has the details. 

MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minn. (FOX 9) - The banquet room at Mendakota Country Club was filled with a lot of heroes. 

Troopers, civilians, officers from other agencies. Around 70 people were recognized for their work in the past year at the Minnesota State Patrol’s annual awards.

"Minnesotans and I are grateful," Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson remarked. "It’s been a difficult year to say the least."

But it was one extraordinarily difficult morning that brought recognition for two of the recipients: Erin Madison and Kate Geissler, the patrol’s dispatchers on duty the morning of Aug. 27, 2025, when a shooter opened fire on children inside Annunciation Church in Minneapolis.

A chaotic morning 

911 dispatchers honored for response to Annunciation shooting

State officials honored the 911 dispatchers who helped coordinate the emergency response to the mass shooting at the Annunciation Church and School. FOX 9's Rob Olson has the full report. 

What we know:

Erin and Kate were on duty at the patrol’s dispatch center in Roseville when the 911 calls began flooding in.

"We have a saying that we need your best when your best is needed and it was certainly needed that day," said Geissler, who’s been a dispatcher since 2012.

While dispatchers routinely juggle phone calls with multiple radio transmissions, that morning took their skilled multitasking to another level.

"The audible stimulation in a communications center during an emergency like the Annunciation shooting is overwhelming," she said. "You have audio transmissions coming out of every speaker around you, you have voices in your ear, you have to communicate with your partner."

Troopers, police officers and medical response were there within minutes.

"Lives were saved, I believe, because all the cops and everyone were there on scene as quickly as they were," said Madison, a dispatcher since 2012. "We’re humble and we’re grateful that we were able to be there and be a part of it. However, we don’t want to do it again." 

Teamwork

What they're saying:

Erin and Kate were among eight dispatchers in total awarded for their work this past year. 

For their work during the Annunciation shooting, they say credit is due to everyone involved, both among their team and those in the field.

"When I think about that day," said Geissler. "It just helps to lean on the community I have around me, my partners, my allied agencies and just know we did the absolute best that we could with the circumstances we were given."

And they believe all dispatchers, in every agency, should be recognized for life-saving work done every single day.

"All the 911 dispatchers in all the centers, if I could just say real briefly, all deserve awards," said Madison. "They’re so amazing for everything that they do."