Heather MacDonald For Ramsey County ND

09/02/2026

Weak minds lable a strong women as a problem. Strong minds surround that women and cheer her on.

A lot of people cannot do what I what I do because they let fear of rejection control their every move. Rejection is part of the process to success.

Wow tikok gave me a banger of a voice over today 🤘

Another reason people cannot do what I do is because they're afraid of what their peers might say. Maybe your peers are part of your problem? Something to consid3r.

My parents always taught me its better to stand alone and do the right thing then to stand with the crowd and do the wrong thing.

So to the people who say I am too or much too aggressive.

Thanks 😘

Oh by the way

Your insecurities are showing 😉

08/29/2026

Cut the red tape ✂️ ❌️

Too many restrictions are costing the residents money.

Life is a lot like kids sports. Too many rules the kids don't have fun and they quit. There are rules that need to be there and there are so rules that are just draining on the whole organization.

Adulthood is much of the same. Healthy people do not stay at a job they hate. They find something else.

The residents of Ramsey County deserve options. Business owners deserve to be profitable. Business owners deserve to have money to hire people.

The people deserve the opportunity to go into business for themselves.

The county won't have the money to keep up with roads, public health, social services and the list goes on if the private sector isn't strong.

Is the private sector strong? Sure does not feel like it.

I will again say the uncomfortable thing. This isn't working. Okay, the uncomfortable words have been said. Now it's time to fix it.

I would appreciate your vote in November.

08/29/2026

THINGS THAT GRIND MY GEARS

You know what grinds my gears?

Bragging about bringing in a food truck from out of town and parking it across the street from an established, locally owned business.

That local business stays here. They spend their money here. They hire people here. They pay taxes here. They donate here. They support local organizations, schools, benefits, fundraisers, and community events. The list goes on.

That out-of-town food truck? At the end of the day, it takes the money it made in our community and drives down the road.

You cannot run ads telling people to “SUPPORT LOCAL” and then turn around and do the exact opposite. That is talking out of both sides of your mouth.

Then I read in the paper that the City of Devils Lake is considering an application process to open a business in Devils Lake.

Seriously?

We want to make opening a business MORE difficult?

There isn't exactly a line of people beating down the door to open businesses here. Getting financing is difficult. Navigating licensing, regulations, zoning, insurance, taxes, and everything else that comes with opening a business is already difficult.

I recently filled out a roughly 20-page application just to add something to an already established license. Trust me, it was no walk in the park.

Please, for the love of God, STOP MAKING IT HARDER.

I realize there are people who will sit in front of officials and say everything is fine, then walk through my doors and tell me every frustration they have. I hear it weekly. I've experienced plenty of it myself.

"Frustrated" is an understatement.

So here is my advice to municipalities:

Stop making it harder for the private sector to grow.

Government has a role. We have zoning laws, health and safety regulations, building codes, licensing requirements, and plenty of other rules already on the books. Enforce the rules that actually protect the public and then give entrepreneurs room to do what entrepreneurs do.

Let people invest. Let them build. Let them take risks. Let them create jobs. Let the free market work.

If you want more money flowing into government budgets, you need a healthy private sector generating economic activity.

It really is that simple.

Meeting after meeting, year after year, we hear complaints about budgets. Yet where is the serious conversation about expanding the tax base by growing the private sector?

Residents don't want property taxes continually going up to fill every budget gap.

So how do we change that?

GROW THE ECONOMY.

Establish factories. Encourage smaller manufacturers and businesses that can support larger industries. Encourage entrepreneurs. Support the mom-and-pop shops already here. Make it attractive for someone to take an empty building and turn it into something productive.

I can't give you the entire economic-development playbook in one Facebook post, but I can tell you this:

Making it harder to open a business isn't in it.

The bigger point is simple.

The residents and business owners of this community deserve better.

We need elected officials who are willing to go toe-to-toe over bad ideas. People who aren't afraid to say “Absolutely not” when something doesn't make sense instead of sitting silently and following along.

Blindly following the same thinking hasn't moved our economy forward. At some point, somebody has to be willing to challenge it.

I know there are people who don't like me. Some will twist what I say. Some will make up stories. Some especially don't like when I start asking uncomfortable questions about how government operates and how taxpayer money is being spent.

That's okay.

Because government decisions cost citizens money, and citizens have every right to question those decisions.

And now that a few people are probably clutching their pearls, let me make one final thing very clear:

Growth is uncomfortable.

Progress requires challenging old ideas.

It requires asking why.

It requires saying something when everyone else is afraid to.

It requires admitting when something hasn't worked and being willing to try something different.

We cannot keep doing the same things we've done for 30 years and then act surprised when we keep getting the same results.

If we genuinely want this community to grow, then we're going to have to start having some uncomfortable conversations.

I'm ready to get uncomfortable for growth.

Are you?

08/18/2026

08/13/2026

Did you know?

Donating blood burns approximately 600 to 650 calories.

Now you do.

It's the battle of the badges at the Memorial Building. Until 6pm tonight (Thursday) and from 9am to 1pm tomorrow (Friday).

Go pick your team. Team law or team fire.

08/05/2026

Just over here coating my chicken and doubling down.

08/03/2026

The only way to combat inflation is to grow through it.

Yet it sure doesn't seem like much effort is being made to grow through it.

MN factories are leaving MN left and right. We got all this space here and our tax laws are WAY more business friendly then MN. Why are they not selling Ramsey County?

07/22/2026

Let's talk about it.

The substance abuse crisis in Devils Lake doesn't just affect our city—it affects all of Ramsey County. It's heartbreaking, and it's frightening.

For years, we've relied on a system that often waits until someone commits a crime before they can receive meaningful help. Too many people who desperately need treatment first end up in jail because there are so few options available when they are in the middle of a crisis.

I believe our community needs to have a serious conversation about bringing detox services back. A medically supervised detox facility could give families somewhere to turn before a situation reaches the point where law enforcement has to get involved. It would provide a safe environment for people to sober up, receive medical care, and then transition into treatment to address the underlying causes of their addiction.

The staff at the Lake Region Correctional Facility have made great strides in helping people who come through their doors, and they deserve credit for that. But jail should not have to become the primary gateway to treatment. Whenever possible, intervention before an arrest is a better outcome for everyone involved.

The reality is that addiction is rarely the root problem. More often, it is a symptom of something much deeper—trauma, grief, mental health struggles, or overwhelming life circumstances. People often turn to alcohol or drugs in an attempt to numb emotional pain. That doesn't excuse harmful behavior, but it does remind us that recovery requires treating the whole person, not just the addiction.

Addiction doesn't care about your social status, your political affiliation, your income, or your upbringing. It can impact any family. Some families simply hide it better than others.

I'm sharing this because my own family has become the subject of gossip, speculation, and social media conversations. Rather than let others tell our story, I want to speak honestly.

My brother-in-law, Roger, is an alcoholic. This has been a battle for many years. Like so many people living with addiction, there have been periods of recovery and periods of relapse. Roger's full story isn't mine to tell, but I will say this: the trauma he has endured throughout his life is heartbreaking.

This summer, my family watched him at his absolute lowest. We saw a man who wasn't himself. His words and actions terrified all of us because we genuinely feared for his safety. We tried everything we could to help him, but you cannot reason with someone who is deep in the grip of addiction. We couldn't get him to sober up long enough to have the conversations that needed to happen.

Eventually, he ended up in jail. While none of us wanted that outcome, it became the safest place for him at that moment because there were no other realistic options available.

As a family, we wanted to handle this privately. Unfortunately, that wasn't possible once the rumors and gossip started circulating.

Living through this has only strengthened my belief that our community needs more resources. I truly believe that if detox services had been available when Roger was in crisis, things may have unfolded very differently. I know we are far from the only family that has experienced this. Many families in our community have lived this nightmare, are living it today, or will face it in the future.

This isn't about making excuses or avoiding accountability. People are responsible for their actions. But accountability and compassion can exist together. We should be asking ourselves whether we are giving families every possible opportunity to get their loved ones help before a crisis turns into a criminal case.

I hope this is the last time I have to publicly address my family's situation.

To everyone who has reached out with genuine concern, support, and encouragement, thank you. Your kindness has meant more than you know.

And to those who chose compassion over judgment and stood up for Roger while he was at his lowest, thank you. Those are the kinds of people who make our community stronger.

07/17/2026

Today I received both a phone call and an email from Representative Julie Fedorchak's office regarding the U.S.-Canada border crossings. I was assured that her office has been pressing the Department of Homeland Security to explain why the border crossing hours have not returned to their pre-COVID schedules. This is encouraging to hear because these reduced hours continue to have a significant impact on our local economy. I've also attached the email I received from Representative Fedorchak's office.

While I had her on the phone, I also brought up our water issues because, quite frankly, we are drowning. As a community, we've exhausted nearly every avenue with the state. Until the memorandum is revised or reversed, it continues to be used as the reason nothing can be done. It has become painfully obvious that many of the decision-makers within the four walls of Bismarck simply don't understand—or don't prioritize—the challenges facing the Lake Region.
So I figured, why not raise the issue with someone who has influence at the federal level? As the old saying goes, shoot your shot when the opportunity presents itself. So I did.

Unfortunately, I didn't get very far. I was surprised when I was told to reach out to the Agriculture Commissioner to see if there might be some financial relief available for our growers. While I absolutely recognize that our farmers need assistance as more productive land is lost to flooding, I also know that what people here are asking for isn't another relief payment.
What we want is a permanent solution.

Our communities don't want to keep asking for disaster aid every few years. Our farmers don't want another government check. They want to farm their land. Our homeowners want to protect their property. Our businesses want stability. We want meaningful action that addresses the problem instead of simply helping us cope with the consequences.

Financial assistance may help people survive today, but it does nothing to solve the problem tomorrow.