𝐀 𝐏𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐲 𝐕𝐢𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐚 𝐋𝐞𝐞 𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤

In the fall of 1979, the Pawhuska Daily Journal-Capital carried a quiet but historic headline. While her daily duties at the Osage County Sheriff’s Office were described as routine—serving papers and transporting prisoners—Deputy Virginia Lee Kendrick had already made history. On November 27, 1979, she became Osage County’s first female field deputy, breaking a barrier that had stood since the county’s founding in 1907.

Sheriff George Wayman understood the significance of the moment. For nearly a decade, he had considered hiring a woman deputy, recognizing a critical gap in law enforcement. He believed that victims of sexual assault—many of whom never reported their crimes—might find it easier to speak with a female deputy. The same held true for abused children, whose first step toward justice often begins with trust. Kendrick’s appointment was not symbolic; it was practical, forward-thinking, and rooted in the real needs of the community.

Virginia Kendrick’s path to that historic day followed the same demanding route as her male counterparts. She began her career with Osage County on October 1, 1978, working in the county jail. Prior to that, she had gained two years of experience as a police dispatcher in Grants, New Mexico. In early 1979, she completed five weeks of basic police training at the officers’ certification school in Oklahoma City—later known as CLEET, the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training—clearing yet another hurdle in a profession that demands patience, resilience, and personal sacrifice.

Kendrick approached the job with a grounded philosophy. “Police work is common sense,” she once said. “Ninety-eight percent of the people won’t give you trouble if you treat them like you’d like to be treated.” Raised in Nelagoney, a rural community east of Pawhuska, and educated there for twelve years, she carried those small-town values into every role she held. She was quick to note that she did not see herself as a crusader or a symbol, but simply as a deputy doing the job she was hired to do and doing well.

That quiet professionalism defined her long career. From 1978 until her retirement on April 1, 2001, Virginia Kendrick served Osage County in nearly every capacity imaginable: jailer, dispatcher, deputy, and eventually Booking Sergeant in the newly constructed Osage County Jail. She was instrumental during one of the most significant transitions in the Sheriff’s Office’s history—the 1998 move from the original county jail into the current facility. Her institutional knowledge, steady leadership, and attention to detail helped ensure that transition was successful.

Over more than two decades of service, Virginia Kendrick became more than an employee; she became part of the foundation of the Osage County Sheriff’s Office. She was a mentor to younger staff, a steady presence during difficult moments, and a living reminder that progress often comes through persistence rather than fanfare.

Virginia Lee Kendrick was born on December 8, 1943, and passed away on September 6, 2011. I had the privilege of working alongside her when I began my own career in the Osage County Jail in 1997. Over the years, I learned firsthand what professionalism, dedication, and quiet leadership looked like. Being honored to serve as one of her pallbearers remains a meaningful moment of my career.

Virginia Kendrick was a pioneer, a public servant, and a lasting figure in Osage County law enforcement, not because she sought recognition, but because she earned it through decades of faithful service to others.

— Sheriff Bart Perrier … See MoreSee Less