ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — She was the first woman officer to ride patrol in the Rochester Police Department, and Wednesday she turned 100 years old!

Bobbie Smith was a trailblazer in local law enforcement, joining the RPD as one of a handful of women officers in the 1950s. In 1974, she became the first woman to ride patrol car in the RPD. She also worked plenty of homicide and missing person cases.

She appeared on News 8 in 1963, for the program called Decker and Company.

Her granddaughter sent us these pictures of Bobbie, enjoying life at her home in South Pasadena Florida.
We talked to Bobbie by phone.

Those who remember her say she was known for her calm demeanor even in dangerous and fraught situations. We asked her about that on her birthday.

“You could calm the situation down and make them feel comfortable, and that was a good feeling, to know that you are making them feel that they have somebody on their side,” she said. “It is nice to think of now, in the public eye. It feels good to know that I did something no one else had done before.”

Happy 100th birthday Bobbie Smith! From all of us at News 8, thank you for your service to our community.