NewsWest 9
MIDLAND - One sergeant at the Midland Police Department is making her mark. Rosemary Sharp will soon be the first female firearms instructor in over two decades.
Sgt. Sharp just might be the definition of girl power.
Rosemary has been a cop with the MPD for seven years and soon she'll be calling the shots, literally.
"I have to say it's pretty exciting but it's also been a goal of mine and I feel like being out here with some great shooters, I've accomplished that goal," she said.
Sharp will officially become a firearms instructor on Friday. She'll be the first female in over 20 years to become an instructor and only the second one ever in Midland Police history.
"I think being a female instructor and having female officers in our department, I think that it will bring them at ease knowing that there is a female instructor now with the Midland Police Department," Sharp said.
Sharp said getting here wasn't easy.
"As a female instructor, I felt like one of my biggest challenges is being in a male dominant environment," she said. "I feel like at first I was a little nervous coming out here just because the guys are going to be looking at every shot that you do."
MPD said they hope Sharp will start a growing trend with females taking charge.
"I think as we get more female firearms instructors, they can relate to the ladies, they understand how they are thinking, their strong sides and weak sides," Kent Spencer, Range Master for MPD, said. "I think that is very important."
Sharp said she hopes to continue to be a role model for her fellow female officers.
