Aug. 27, 2026
By Tim Hundt
VERNON COUNTY, Wis. – Vernon County will honor the legacy of Ted Harris, a longtime community servant who spent decades protecting and educating local residents, by naming a new public safety facility in his memory.
The Vernon County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously at its August 20 meeting to name the county’s nearly completed emergency storage building the Ted Harris Emergency Management and HazMat Facility. The resolution passed with warm support from county leaders, emergency personnel.
Harris died on July 9 at the age of 86, leaving behind a profound legacy in Viroqua and across Vernon County. Throughout his extensive career in public service, Harris worked as a police officer for the City of Viroqua, Chief of the Viroqua Fire Department, and a deputy and evidence specialist for the Vernon County Sheriff’s Department. He was also a founding member of the county’s hazardous materials response team and trained thousands of emergency responders as a fire service instructor.
The decision to build the new facility dates back to the county’s sale of its old highway shop property north of Viroqua to developers for $800,000. Because that site had been used to house emergency equipment, the county board committed to constructing a new emergency management storage building at a cost of about $2 million.
During the August 20 meeting, Emergency Management Director Brandon Larson presented the resolution to dedicate the new building to Harris. Larson explained that the facility is nearly complete and represents a fitting tribute to a man who helped establish the county’s modern emergency response capabilities.
Larson reported that construction on the storage facility is rapidly winding down and has reached a key milestone.
“At the July local emergency planning committee meeting, as giving a status update, progress update on where we are at with the construction of the new storage facility,” said Larson. “As of today, it’s about 90 percent complete.”
Larson further explained that a committee member suggested naming the building after Harris to memorialize his outstanding contributions to local and statewide emergency services.
“In that discussion, it was brought up by one of the members to name it after Ted Harris,” said Larson. “Ted Harris was a one of our founding members of the hazmat team. Spent 28 years on the team, he was a member of the LEPC for 22 years. He recently passed away a month ago. So one of the members thought it would be fitting to name this building after Ted.”
Local Emergency Planning Committee Chair Greg Lawton also addressed the board, highlighting the immense turnout at Harris’s recent memorial service on August 15. Lawton noted that emergency vehicles and personnel from across Wisconsin traveled to Viroqua to pay their respects, underscoring Harris’s statewide influence.
Lawton described the memorial service as an incredibly moving tribute that proved Harris’s impact extended far beyond county borders.
“That was the most amazing memorial service I’ve ever been a part of, and it was obvious Ted had a statewide imprint, not just on Vernon County,” said Lawton. “I think 42 vehicles were there from all across the state, and probably over 500 at the service.”
Lawton added that the selection of the resolution number itself had a special, unplanned significance that directly connected back to Harris’s years of patrol with the county.
“I think this is a great honor, and I think what really makes it that it should happen the resolution number 43 was his badge number at the sheriff’s office,” said Lawton. “So I noticed that actually yesterday.”
County board supervisors shared their own reflections, noting that Harris’s steady presence in schools, fire stations, and the sheriff’s office shaped generations of local families. Supervisors recalled that beyond his public safety roles, Harris taught science in Viroqua for 36 years, served as high school principal, and was one of the premier wrestling officials in the nation, officiating matches for the Big Ten and multiple national championships.
Sheriff Roy Torgerson, who worked closely with Harris for decades, previously praised his humble and dedicated approach to leadership, noting that Harris refused to officially retire and was still working as the department’s evidence specialist at the time of his passing.
Torgerson expressed that Harris represented the very best of community policing and public service, setting an example for all future deputies.
“Thank you, Ted, for showing us the greatest leaders are often the humblest among us,” said Torgerson.
The county’s new Emergency Management and HazMat Facility is located on Railroad Avenue in Viroqua, built on county owned land. With power officially connected to the building by utility crews, officials expect the facility to be fully operational in the coming weeks, serving as a permanent monument to Harris’s legacy of service.
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