ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — This Black History Month, a leader in the Orange County Sheriff’s Office says she wants to blaze a trail for other women who look like her.

After her recent promotion, newly promoted chief deputy Denise Demps is taking a page in Orange County’s history book, as the highest-ranking Black female in the sheriff’s office since its founding in 1845.

As Demps unpacks boxes and sets up shelves in her new office, she reflects on how she rose to that role from where she started in 1991.

 “I decided to apply for the sheriff’s office…the only agency I applied for…because it’s the best," Demps says, then laughs. "Thirty years feels like it’s been 10, so it does fly by pretty fast. I would say some of the culture that’s changed is inclusiveness.”

There came a day when Demps says she believed she was blazing a trail for other young, black women for the first time.

“They’re looking at me to make decisions as the leader, not just the female or the Black female," she says.

Law enforcement has struggled with diversity issues within its ranks for many years, Orange County Sheriff John Mina says, but he adds that he believes his department has made strides in that area.

“As far as white deputies, they only represent 44% of our new-hires. So 20% African American, 29% Hispanic, 6% Asian," Mina said.

However, both he and Demps say it takes direct community outreach to continue recruiting a diverse staff.

That’s an area where Mina says Demps has immediate star quality.

“Denise is also very engaged with the community," Mina says. "She’s got one of those personalities where she can just reach out to any one of our residents, especially our youth, and instant smiles appear.”

Demps attributes her grit to her family, specifically her great-grandmother.

“She would tell us stories about what she would do, and would think about, and no one can stop you from doing that, and I had the audacity to believe her," Demps says.

So, with a new office, new title, and new inspiration, she’s writing a new chapter in the agency’s history moving forward.

“Chief Demps is the most qualified person for this position, but the fact that now she is the highest-ranking Black female in the history in the agency is also something that should be celebrated as well," Mina said.