Aberdeen's First Female Officer Reflects on Career That Chose Her

Growing up with five brothers and sisters in Strathmore, Kathy Sisti never thought about becoming a police officer.

In fact, when it came time for her to pursue a full time career, she went to business school. Sisti, who is now 48, worked at a couple places as a secretary, including the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office and Money Magazine in New York City.

After she got married to her husband George in 1985, Sisti decided to leave her position in the city. Soon, she was busy raising their daughter Jennifer.

It wasn't until Sisti became a part-time dispatcher at the in July of 1988 that the idea of joining law enforcement crossed her mind.

"It's strange how things happen," she said.

Sisti got the job as a dispatcher because her husband George and the chief of police at the time, John McGuinty, were both members of the Aberdeen Township Fire Department. Part-time quickly became full time, and full time quickly became McGuinty asking her to take the test to become an officer.

Finally, she said yes. Her husband and mother were less than excited about her choice to take the exam, she remembers, although her father was very supportive.

"Nobody really wants you in harm's way," she said. "You look back and you see where they were coming from."

Sisti did well on the entrance exam.

"And the rest is history," she said. Sisti became a police officer in Aberdeen Township in 1990, making her the first female police officer in township history.

"I think I broke a lot of barriers being the first female in the department," Sisti reflected. She remembers some male officers being very accepting and others being very straightforward with their opinion that women should not become police officers.

Ultimately, it came down to proving herself.

"If you can do an equal or greater job than a guy, then they start to look at it differently."

Sisti was also one of the only female police officers in the area when she first started her career. She was regularly called for assistance with booking female prisoners in Matawan, Keyport and Union Beach.

Women also bring a different dynamic to the job, she said, noting that a good mix of male and female officers can make a department excel.

"Females are more opt to be compassionate," she said. "We may be less intimidating at times."

Sisti served the majority of her time on the traffic safety division, which includes responding to accidents, doing radar and school crossings. She also worked in the schools, and started a nieghborhood watch before programs like D.A.R.E. existed.

She enjoyed responding to accidents and trying to piece together eye witness accounts and physical evidence to determine the cause.

"To me it was like putting a puzzle together. There's a lot of evidence to be found when you arrive at the scene," she said. "But I think that's police work in general."

Sisti remembers getting to do everything she could have wanted as a police officer, including working under cover and catching a bank robber.

But on the morning of Dec. 11, 2010, Sisti was moving a trailer holding a radar that informs drivers of their speed when the trailer caught motion and pulled her down. Her injuries have led to multiple surgeries and months of physical therapy, and, perhaps worst of all, her forced retirement just a year and a half before she planned in December of 2011.

"After all these years, I caught a bank robber, caught a gas station robber, and it's a machine that takes me out," Sisti said, laughing in disbelief. "When a doctor says you can no longer perform these duties that are part of your life, it's upsetting."

Sisti said if she could change anything about the career that chose her, it would be fulfilling 25 years on the force. But ultimately, she said, nothing can take away the experiences, the friendships and the memories.

"I couldn't have been luckier to get a job in my town, the place I love," Sisti said.

Editor's Note: A retirement party in Sisti's honor will be held at the Buttonwood Manor on Mar. 16 at 7 p.m. For more information, .