by Dennis Dalman
Former Sartell police chief and St. Joseph resident Robert Ringstrom died June 14 when the bicycle he was riding and a semi-trailer truck collided in St. Joseph.
The accident happened at 7 p.m. that day at the intersection of CR 75 and 20th Avenue SE.
Ringstrom, 74, was the Sartell police chief from 1990 until his retirement in 2004.
A mournful tribute to Ringstrom was posted on the Sartell Police Department’s website.
It stated this: “Bob was a respected leader to his staff and the community. He remained connected with much of our staff after retirement, and he will be missed.”
Ringstrom worked hard to place liaison officers in the schools of Sartell.
“He led us through an era where professional standards were enhanced and turned the job of policing into a profession,” the website statement noted.
Ringstrom was born in Devils Lake, N.D. and graduated from the Jamestown, N.D. High School. He joined the Marines in 1968 and served in the Vietnam War. Later he worked with a security team that protected the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey.
Ringstrom’s funeral is set for 2 p.m. June 21 at Celebration Lutheran Church in Sartell. His burial will take place at the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery in Little Falls.
For more about Ringstrom, his life and family, see his obituary in this newspaper.
Robert Ringstrom, who died in an accident Feb. 14 in St. Joseph, was a former Sartell chief of police.
