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Minnesota Rural Health Awards
Rural Health Awards are given annually to individuals and groups who have made a significant contribution to improving rural health in Minnesota.
Nominees may have contributed to rural health in any capacity, as a volunteer or in a paid position.
Awards are announced every year on National Rural Health Day, the third Thursday of November.
2025 Minnesota Rural Health Awards
The 2025 Minnesota Rural Health Awards were announced on National Rural Health Day, Thursday November 20, 2025.
Review the MDH Rural health care professionals' service to Greater Minnesota honored by MDH press release.
The 2025 awardees are:
- Nicole Kiesow, PA-C, Family Practice Provider for Headwaters Health in Fosston receives the 2025 Minnesota Rural Health Hero Award. Nicole is passionate about supporting the farmers and manufacturers who sustain rural communities, believing that they should not have to travel 90 miles to deliver their babies in unfamiliar hospitals. Nicole identifies deeply rural Minnesota and is committed to demanding and delivering better healthcare for it.
- Elevate, Perham, recieves the 2025 Minnesota Rural Health Team Award for it's work in redefining what it means to age well in rural Minnesota. Operating as a division of Perham Health, and supported by the LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation Connected Communities initiative, Elevate brings together healthcare and community resources to help older adults live with purpose, health, and joy.
- Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato Coalition receives the 2025 Minnesota Rural Health Team Award for it's work in gathering parents, teachers, coaches, and health professionals who are committed to protecting youth from nicotine addiction. By building strong relationships, Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato creates a united front against the tactics of the tobacco industry.
- Ray Christensen, MD, Associate Professor and Associate Director, Rural Physician Associate Program, University of Minnesota Duluth, receives the 2025 Minnesota Lifetime Commitment to Rural Health Award for his leadership roles locally, regionally, statewide, and nationally. His leadership is also recognized in his lifelong goal to increase the opportunities for medical students to learn medicine at rural sites.
- Joseph Corser, MD, Medical Director, First Steps to Healthy Families - Sanford Bemidji receives the 2025 Minnesota Lifetimes Provider Achievement Award for his work as a board-certified physician in family medicine and addiction medicine who brings a philosophy of caring for the community to his work in emergency medicine, trauma, and addiction care. Through his leadership, advocacy, and a deep commitment to the community, Dr. Corser has dedicated his career to caring for the people of northern Minnesota.
2025 Minnesota Rural Health Hero Award
Nicole Kiesow, PA-C, Family Practice Provider for Headwaters Health in Fosston receives the 2025 Minnesota Rural Health Hero Award.
Nicole is passionate about supporting the farmers and manufacturers who sustain rural communities, believing that they should not have to travel 90 miles to deliver their babies in unfamiliar hospitals. Nicole identifies deeply with rural Minnesota and is committed to demanding and delivering better healthcare for it.
Nicole Kiesow, PA-C, began her career as a nurse, working in rural Minnesota Emergency Rooms. During this time, she recognized the need to do more for her community. There was a revolving door of providers unfamiliar with the farming and business culture of the area. Many would come for only a few days, leaving without forming connections with the people they were treating. Often, they did not understand the mechanisms of the injuries they encountered, as they lacked knowledge of farm equipment such as corn headers or swathers, These gaps in understanding led to many discussions about farming and machinery in the Emergency Room.
Nicole graduated from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences in May 2008. Her career goal has always been to establish a rural health clinic in the small town of Grygla, where she lives. The area faces significant challenges in accessing healthcare, being more than 30 miles from the nearest trauma center, with Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulance response times often exceeding an hour. That goal remains unchanged today, and Nicole is now one step closer to making it a reality.
She began her career at Lakewood Health System in Staples, Minnesota, working in the satellite clinics of Browerville and Eagle Bend. Nicole loved this experience, as it kept her connected to the farming community and allowed her to relate closely to her patients. In January 2011, she moved back home and accepted a position in Fosston, where she worked until the fall of 2025. Her role there was diverse and community-driven; she adapted her work to meet local needs. While her foundation was in Family Practice, she developed expertise across multiple specialties to compensate for the difficulty many patients faced traveling for care.
Nicole learned to treat transplant patients locally to reduce the strain of long-distance travel and became highly skilled in orthopedics through collaboration with visiting specialists. She ensured patients received complete evaluations and preparation for surgeries, minimizing the need for multiple out-of-town visits. She also trained on how to address treatment-resistant depression, recognizing that mental health specialists were scarce in rural Minnesota.
In the fall of 2025, Nicole and her partners achieved a major milestone by opening their own clinic. Their mission is to ensure that rural communities have access to dedicated providers and advocates for local healthcare resources. Nicole and her team believe that living in a rural area should not mean settling for lower-quality care. Every day, they work to restore and protect resources that larger healthcare systems have centralized in urban areas.
Nicole is passionate about supporting the farmers and manufacturers who sustain these communities, believing that they should not have to travel 90 miles to deliver their babies in unfamiliar hospitals. She envisions a system where every small hospital and Emergency Room is staffed with doctors and advanced practice providers, not remote telehealth screens. Nicole identifies deeply with rural Minnesota and is committed to demanding and delivering better healthcare for it.
2025 Minnesota Rural Team Award
Elevate, Perham, receives the 2025 Minnesota Rural Health Team Award for its work in redefining what it means to age well in rural Minnesota. Operating as a division of Perham Health and supported by the LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation Connected Communities initiative, Elevate brings together healthcare and community resources to help older adults live with purpose, health, and joy.
Elevate is redefining what it means to age well in rural Minnesota. Operating as a division of Perham Health and supported by the LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation Connected Communities initiative, Elevate brings together healthcare and community resources to help older adults live with purpose, health, and joy.
Guided by the philosophy of Your Health, Your Way, Elevate’s mission is to build healthier, more connected communities by offering programs and resources that support well-being at every stage of life. Through partnerships with healthcare systems, businesses, schools, and civic organizations, Elevate creates opportunities for people to move more, eat well, engage socially, and stay mentally strong. Its work reaches beyond traditional health services: focusing on prevention, education, and community connection as key ingredients to aging well.
Collaboration is Elevate’s cornerstone. Its partnerships with Perham Health and Perham Living serve as a model for rural innovation, bridging the gap between clinical care and community life. This approach ensures seamless support for older adults and caregivers and demonstrates that care extends far beyond the clinic walls.
Elevate’s programs are as diverse as the people it serves. From Memory Café and Elevating Voices Choir to Connections Lunches, Mobility Market, fitness classes, and caregiver resources, Elevate meets individuals where they are. In 2025, Elevate reached nearly 40,000 people, facilitated over 1,100 volunteer opportunities, and delivered an estimated $458,961 economic impact, including 150 emergency visits avoided and reduced hospital readmissions. These numbers tell a powerful story—but the real impact is seen in lives changed: a widow dancing for the first time in a decade, a caregiver finding hope through support groups, and seniors rediscovering purpose through volunteerism.
Elevate believes aging well isn’t just about living longer: it’s about living better. By combining evidence-based wellness programs with the power of community connection, Elevate is changing the way rural Minnesota ages—with purpose, health, and fun!
2025 Minnesota Rural Team Award
Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato receives the 2025 Minnesota Rural Health Team Award for its work gathering parents, teachers, coaches, and health professionals who are committed to protecting youth from nicotine addiction. By building strong relationships, Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato creates a united front against the tactics of the tobacco industry.
Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato is a coalition of parents, teachers, coaches, and health professionals is committed to protecting youth from nicotine addiction. The coalition’s members come from Mankato, North Mankato, St. Peter, and surrounding rural communities. The organization’s goal is to make a difference in areas where prevention resources are often limited and tobacco companies aggressively target young people with fruit, candy, and menthol-flavored vape and pouch products. Although these products come in a variety of kid-friendly flavors, they also contain significant amounts of nicotine and toxic chemicals.
The coalition educates, advocates for stronger policies, and connects families with tools and support to live healthy, nicotine-free lives. A major focus of its work is policy change aimed at reducing access to flavored tobacco products, which are designed to attract and addict youth. By addressing these products at the policy level, Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato helps create environments where healthy choices are the easy choices.
Coalition member Dr. Katie Smentek from Mankato Clinic Pediatrics observes the impact on her young patients and emphasizes, “The nicotine levels in today’s e-cigarettes can have serious consequences for adolescent brain development and overall health, making it an urgent public health issue.”
However, policy change is only part of the organization’s work. The coalition also engages youth voices in shaping the change they want to see. Young people consistently express a desire for commercial tobacco and vaping to disappear—whether they currently use these products or not. Many youth who report using vape and nicotine products are trying to quit; their peers are tired of seeing friends struggle with addiction and want their communities to take action. Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato amplifies these youth voices, using their input to drive advocacy efforts.
The coalition’s approach also includes partnerships with schools, health professionals, parents, community leaders, mentors, and local organizations to share information and resources. Representatives attend community events, provide educational materials, and collaborate with other partner organizations that prioritize the health of youth and families. By building strong relationships, Nicotine-Free Greater Mankato creates a united front against the tactics of the tobacco industry.
2025 Minnesota Lifetime Commitment to Rural Health Education Award
Ray Christensen, MD, Associate Professor and Associate Director, Rural Physician Associate Program, University of Minnesota Duluth, receives the 2025 Minnesota Lifetime Commitment to Rural Health Education Award for his leadership roles locally, regionally, statewide, and nationally and his lifelong goal is to increase the opportunities for medical students to learn medicine at rural sites.
Raymond G. Christensen, MD. is a board-certified Family Physician. His youth was spent on a small dairy farm/s in WI. He completed his BS in Agriculture, MD. from the University of WI, and Medical Internship at St Mary’s Hospital Duluth. In 1972 he co-founded Gateway Family Health Clinic, LTD. in Moose Lake, MN. After five years of general practice, he obtained board certification in Family Medicine in 1977. His personal vision has always been to provide healthcare access to rural citizens and visitors.
Since 1972 he has served as a preceptor for the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth and Twin Cities campuses, and for other health profession students. Hospital staff membership and leadership included Mercy Hospital in Moose Lake, MN, Sandstone Hospital in Sandstone, MN. and courtesy staff at St Lukes and St Mary’s hospitals in Duluth, MN. In 2002 he joined the faculty at the University of MN Medical School as a member of the Department of Family Medicine and Behavioral Health and serves as Associate Dean for Rural Health, Associate Professor of Family Medicine, and Associate Director of the Rural Physicians Associate Program (RPAP). Work at UM Medical School has included supporting and increasing rural education opportunities, teaching, course directorship, faculty committees, and community outreach through Doctors on Call and HOPE Student run free clinic.
He has served many leadership roles locally, regionally, statewide, and nationally, including the development of the NEMN Regional Trauma System, the National Rural Health Resource Center, Arrowhead EMS, and the MN Office of Rural Health. Previous service focus also includes physician review and board service and chair of the Foundation for Health Care Evaluation (now Stratis Health). He is a past President of National and MN Rural Health Associations. He has also served in professional association work and leadership (MN Medical Association, MN Academy of Family Medicine, MN Hospital Association, and American Health Quality Association) in MN and nationally. He previously served as adviser to the MN Commissioner of Health, and as a member of the MN Health Care Commission (formative body of MN Care). His current goal is to increase the opportunities for medical students to learn medicine at rural sites.
2025 Minnesota Lifetime Provider Achievement Award
Joseph Corser, MD, Medical Director, First Steps to Healthy Families – Sanford Bemidji receives the 2025 Minnesota Lifetime Provider Achievement Award for his work as a board-certified physician in family medicine and addiction medicine who brings a philosophy of caring for the community to his work in emergency medicine, trauma, and addiction care. Through his leadership, advocacy, and a deep commitment to the community, Dr. Corser has dedicated his career to caring for the people of northern Minnesota.
Joseph Corser, MD, has worked to advance rural health care in northern Minnesota, where geographic isolation and limited resources often challenge access to care. A board-certified physician in family medicine and addiction medicine, Dr. Corser brings a philosophy of caring for the community to his work in emergency medicine, trauma, and addiction care. He serves patients at Sanford Bemidji and Bagley Medical Centers and leads initiatives that have transformed health care delivery across the region.
Dr. Corser has pioneered programs that address critical gaps in rural health, including the hospitalist program at Sanford Bemidji, the Recovery Medicine Clinic for individuals navigating substance use disorders, and the trauma program at Sanford Bemidji that earned Trauma Level 3 designation in 2020. As medical director of the Bemidji Ambulance Service, multiple first responder groups and Chair of Emergency Medicine for over two decades, he has strengthened emergency response systems and played a key role in the community’s response to the opioid crisis.
His leadership helped launch the First Steps to Healthy Families program, which supports pregnant women and families with young children in achieving healthy, sober lives. He also helped establish the region’s first Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) Clinic.
Since 2023, Dr. Corser has led Sanford Bemidji’s participation in the Minnesota Department of Health’s Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) grant. Through this initiative, working with a team, they are educating emergency department clinicians, hospitalists and pre-hospital providers in the Northwest Minnesota region on initiating treatment for opioid use disorder. Building system-wide capacity for longitudinal care and ensuring rural Minnesotans receive high-quality services close to home.
Dr. Corser enjoys teaching and mentoring the next generation of rural health providers. He has been active in teaching multiple learners in Bagley and Bemidji and has served as a faculty member at the Duluth Family Medicine Residency Program, where he received multiple awards including being named Teacher of the Year in 2016. He serves on the North Country Community Health Services board, Sanford Bemidji Foundation Board, and served on the Bagley School Board for nine years. He is very grateful for the opportunity to have traveled with Northern Minnesota Rotarians to Santa Barbara, Honduras, beginning right after Hurricane Mitch and for years after to bring resources, deliver care to isolated rural communities and educate providers at the public hospital.
Through his leadership, advocacy, and a deep commitment to the community, Dr. Corser has dedicated his career to caring for the people of northern Minnesota.
Previous Years Award Winners
Previous Rural Health Award winners