Making history: Harlingen appoints first female SWAT operator

HARLINGEN — When asked about her background, Rebecca Martinez took a deep breath.

It was a long one.

Making history rarely comes from a short story.

A single mother of five, Martinez never saw herself becoming a police officer, let alone becoming the first female SWAT operator in the history of the Harlingen Police Department.

Martinez originally had planned to become a teacher.

Divorced with five children and an associate’s degree from Florida that didn’t transfer to Texas, that plan quickly came to a halt.

So at age 30, Martinez decided to join the Air Force reserves.

“Life threw me a curve ball and I couldn’t continue that anymore so I joined the reserves,” Martinez said. “The military has really helped me in being a single mom.”

Contemplating her next step, the San Benito native would vent to her family looking for direction.

That was when her younger brother, a member of the San Benito Police Department, suggested she join the force.

“I didn’t have a lot of options at that point,” Martinez said.

Soon, Martinez went to the academy and fell in love with her new career.

To her, being an officer was built on the same foundation as teaching.

Martinez said she still gets to help people, but she’s just wearing a different uniform.

“It is not what I expected, but it is some thing that I loved,” Martinez said.

Only four years on the force and Martinez has already managed to snag a spot on the SWAT team, a feat that did not come easy.

“I don’t ever want to be complacent in this job,” Martinez said. “What I see what the SWAT team does for the police department and when I see what the SWAT team does for the citizens, it is basically everything I believe in.”

After applying, Martinez had to meet a higher standard of physical training and a higher firing range score than was needed for the academy.

The application process required tests and interviews in front of a board where Martinez needed to prove she was the woman for the job.

“It took me awhile to pass,” Martinez said. “I had a couple of failures, but I did not want to give up.”

Between her 10-hour shifts and the varying schedules of her children, finding any amount of time in her full schedule was nearly impossible.

But Martinez made a commitment to train at least six days a week.

“I had to find the time if I really wanted this,” Martinez said.

Going into this, Martinez knew she was vying for the spot to be the first female SWAT operator.

While there are other women on the SWAT team, they hold positions such as negotiator and not operator and Martinez used that as motivation.

When she finally made it through, Martinez felt relieved but knew that the work wouldn’t stop there.

“The team has been great and everyone has been so proud of me,” Martinez said. “But along with that excitement is pressure. I have some very big shoes to fill.”