WOMEN of the Mid North Coast Local Area Command are among those celebrating a centenary of their gender's contribution to the NSW Police Force.
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The festivities will kick into full swing in Port Macquarie on June 16, which gives the community plenty of time to reflect on how hard sworn and unsworn women in the organisation work.
On that day the custom-made baton will arrive in town, after leaving the Sydney Opera House on International Women's Day last month.
The command's highest ranked woman, Inspector Kim Fehon, is the first female officer of that rank. She had a profoundly personal reason for joining the force.
"My dad was a policeman, and of all the dads in the area I grew up in he was the only one who wanted to go to work every day and do his job. That's what I wanted to do, so I got involved."
Senior Constable Jodie Bodell joined "just to make a difference in the community".
"And you never know what you're going to be doing each day."
Senior Constable Karlee West said she's proud to be among the ranks of women in the job.
"I joined because I wanted to make a difference, and to do something different because I had an office job before," she said.
There are 207 staff in the LAC. Women play vital roles including four female sergeants, 47 other officers, one scene of crime officer, nine administrative staff and an aboriginal community liason officer.
Inspector Fehon said the challenges of the job have reduced over time, thanks to those who have gone before.
"The biggest challenge that remains is that generally females need to rely heavily on excellent communication skills when dealing with aggressive people.
"But this challenge has also been reduced with the issuing of additional appointments such as OC spray and electronic control devices which reduce the need to get involved in physical altercations with offenders."
The senior officer said it is important for her to be a good role model to her children while juggling the professional and the personal.
"I think that for any woman who works full time a work life balance is a challenge, and at times we all feel guilty that we are not giving enough of ourselves to either role.
"In my case, I am lucky to have good family support and shift work actually allows me flexibility that office workers may not have. I feel very blessed that I am lucky enough to have the best of both worlds: a great family and a job that I am passionate about."
