Page 14 - January-February 2020 HER

14 JAN/FEB HER
HER Feature
“I’ve been here five years and they’ve promoted me four times; they don’t want me to leave. I love it;
I love this place and I love this job. I have a great staff.”
and I talked to every spectrum level of people to be able to do that profes- sionally (and) with respect. They’re still guests, this is still customer ser- vice (and) we’re still a casino, and we want to keep people safe, but we also want to treat people well, even if they’re having to be booted,” she said.
Since a long line of related police officers paved the way for Pendleton, she encourages others who own the same dream of pursuing a career in law enforcement to not only embrace the challenge but to also fully com- prehend what’s being asked of an in- dividual going into this line of work.
“My family was all police. My dad was a police chief, his uncle (and) my great-grandfather were police so it was kind of something I just always thought was it,” she said. “But for someone who sees it and thinks that’s what they want to do, they
need to first get educated on the law and criminal justice. You need that background; you need to know the business before you decide, ‘I just want to be a cop; it looks like fun.’ You’ve got to really get your base background and then there is noth- ing that can hold a woman back,” she said.
“Prepare yourself, take every op- portunity to train every bit you can, get your education and nothing can stop you. We have some great Hot Springs officers (and) women offi- cers that work here; they’re just awe- some and going on up in the ranks. They need to,” she said.
Pendleton admitted some advan- tages that can accompany being a woman on the job.
“Sometimes when I’m on a call with a man, (as a) woman, (you) just have a different perspective. It just helps and kind of kiddingly, you get
away with a little more than a guy. You can say something to somebody a little different because just natural- ly, you can. ... We’re moms, we know how to treat children and most of the time when someone’s misbehaving, they’re acting like a child so I would tell someone just to go for it (and to) just go as far as you want to go,” she said.
Pendleton recognizes the grow- ing demand for strategic, reliable security at Oaklawn, along with the implementation of guest care and customer service.
“It’s growing more and more so we have more and more demands. ... The more tables we get with this new expansion, the more demands we have. Then, of course, (it’s) very important we don’t want underages in here and we’re very, very careful. I’ve always been in service since high school so I feel like I’m doing
a service to our guests (in keeping them) safe,” she said.
In an effort to continue serv- ing others while keeping the peace among many, Pendleton looks to keep giving back as she uses her diverse experiences and the passion she carried for the work she devot- ed her life to, to securely carrying out the mission set before her.
“My last 10 years were in uni- form patrol which was my most favorite job. I was a field lieutenant in uniform patrol, so (in) that expe- rience, I responded to everything across the board. I loved it, and it was just ‘always something differ- ent.’ And you learn how to read people; you’re observant. ... All of that together prepared me for this job. The skills that I got from 29 years with the police just work out perfectly here. The culture here at Oaklawn is just, it’s fabulous.”
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