For more than a year now a woman has lead the state's largest law enforcement agency, the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
When Col. Sandra K. Karsten was appointed as the patrol's 23rd superintendent in March 2017, she became the first female to achieve the ranks of lieutenant, captain, major, lieutenant colonel and colonel in its history, now in its 87th year.
Of the 1,223 commissioned members of the Highway Patrol (as of April 1), the 32-year veteran is one of only 68 women.
There are six commissioned female troopers assigned to the Troop E area of Southeast Missouri, including two, Lt. Amy Reynolds and Lt. Michele Coon, who serve on its command staff.
When Reynolds transferred from Troop C in August, she became the first woman to serve in a leadership role in Troop E.
There were "a lot of females that came before me on the patrol that broke through the barriers," Reynolds said. "They did the hard work ... for us."
Being first wasn't new to Reynolds, who also was the first female to be assigned in the St. Francois County/Washington County areas.
"I was a novelty the public had not seen before, a female," said the 19-year veteran.
After Coon's graduation from the patrol's Law Enforcement Academy in 1997, she initially was assigned to Troop F and then transferred to Troop C.
"I didn't have another female in the same zone as me for at least 10 years," said Coon, who had been promoted to corporal by the time she had a female zone mate.
"When Amy and I were both in Troop C, there were only three of us, I think, when we first got there," Coon explained. "Now, there's, I'm guessing, at least 10 females there. It's definitely got better."
When Reynolds entered the academy, she said, she was one of eight women in her recruit class.
"We graduated three," she said. "As far as the training, some of them lasted a little longer than others; it depended on the individual."
For some, Reynolds said, it was the physical fitness portion that "made a lot of the females quit because they couldn't keep up with maybe the running, push ups, the physical demands of the academy."
One or two, Reynolds said, could not necessarily keep up with the academic part.
"For the most part, I think, it was the physical standards," said Reynolds, who indicated preparing oneself through training and conditioning helps to ensure "you're in the best shape" for the academy.
Three of the seven women who began Coon's academy class graduated, which she indicated is not unusual.
A couple of the female recruits, she said, quit early on due to family demands and illness.
"It wasn't all just the academy ... it was other circumstances," Coon said.
While in the academy, Reynolds said, all her classmates were very supportive, and there were no gender distinctions.
"We were like a family," she said. " ... We were all struggling with the same things that were going on in the academy.
"We were supporting each other; we encouraged each other."
Reynolds said there was no belittling from her male counterparts, saying she and the other women couldn't do it.
"They were all supportive and encouraging in my class; I can't speak for every class," Reynolds said.
According to Coon, there always are some who will "tell you you can't do something, but I was very determined that I was going to make it through this academy.
"I was going to make this my career, and there wasn't anybody that could stop me."
It was that attitude, Coon said, that she took into the academy from the beginning.
"I think we all encouraged each other, and one of the goals of the academy is to get everybody working together as a unit or a team," Coon explained.
At the beginning, she said, each recruit came in as an individual.
"At the end, you leave as a unit or a group that is a functioning team," said Coon. "Everybody has different struggles during the academy (but) everybody wanted everybody to succeed."
In her first post-graduation assignment, Reynolds said, she wasn't treated any differently while patrolling the roads.
There always are exceptions to the rule, said Reynolds, who indicated there were a few incidents here and there.
"I think more than being female was being young," Coon said. "Being very young and starting out, you don't immediately get the respect that the older troopers have, but once the community gets to know you, then you earn that respect, regardless of your gender."
According to Coon, the one thing that the patrol really has done well is having female troopers who have excelled mentor younger troopers.
"I always felt like I had really good mentors within the patrol, who really encouraged me to move up (through the ranks) and to gain my leadership abilities, and the colonel was one of them," Coon said.
Karsten, she said, is an excellent mentor and a good person in general.
"Throughout my career, I have worked hard and tried to do my best at each position," explained Karsten. "Along the way, I have been mentored by many people, both men and women.
"I have learned from their experiences and integrated their wisdom into my work habits. I attribute my success to my mentors and to my work ethic."
For Coon, being a mentor is one of the things she had enjoyed most about her 21-year career.
"I was surprised by that," she said. "I didn't know when I first came on that would be something I was really interested in, but as I've move up, I really enjoy working with the new officers and helping train them and helping them grow in their position."
And, she said, the trooper's gender doesn't matter.
It's about helping a young trooper to "assimilate into this job," Coon said.
Leading by example, Reynolds said, is especially important while serving in a leadership position.
"Everyone is looking at you to kind of set the standard" by "what you do and how you do" it, said Reynolds. "They look at you and base what they do on how you do things."
Earlier in her career, Reynolds said, she worked with men, she believes, didn't even have respect for their mothers.
Reynolds recalled one trooper who did not have much respect for his mom, but "after seeing me in a leadership role, he even came up to me and said how much he respected me, not necessarily because I was female, but just because of the role and example I set."
Although her duties now are primarily administrative, "I do like to get out and be trooper again," Reynolds said. "I like to stop cars, check on stranded motorist and work crashes if I need to depending on what the day brings."
Reynolds believes it is important for the troopers, both male and female, to hear a lieutenant or even the captain on the radio and for them to see "the leadership is not afraid to get out and work."
Leading by example, she said, also is important because "you never know when people are watching you."
As law enforcement officers, "we live in a glass bowl," Reynolds said. " ... Even when I'm off duty, people know what I do for a living. I always try to set a good example" for not only young girls, but young boys too.
Reynolds is raising a son, who soon will be a teenager.
"I hope I am setting a good example for him," she said. "... I hope he grows up be a respectful teenager and adult no matter what he does" for a living.
Reynolds described her own mother as probably her biggest cheerleader.
"She really encouraged me," said Reynolds, who recalled how she initially planned to apply for another police department, but "my mom asked me why don't you apply to the highway patrol.
"I said it was really hard, difficult to get on. My mom still encouraged me and said: 'I think you need to try.' So I did, and the rest is history."
Coon said her mother also was "very encouraging throughout the whole thing."
Coon encourages anyone, male or female, who wants to pursue a career in law enforcement to not "let your fears of failure hold you back. You can do anything you set your mind to. That's the best advise I can give to any young person.
"We're all going to be scared of something, but you've got to set your mind to it, (believe) you can do it, and you can overcome that fear."