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Jacksonville's only female firefighter celebrates 20 years with the department

"I'm proof that we can do just as much as a man can do."

JACKSONVILLE, Texas — For twenty years, Alicia Whetsell has served the Jacksonville community as the city's first, and only, female firefighter.

Whetsell joined the department on December 19, 1999, then only 20 years old and a single mother. While there were hardships, she says her early service, especially her first year, was positive.

"It was kind of a roller coaster at first, but a good one," Whetsell explained.

Jay Hooker, now a retired captain with the fire department, remembers when Whetsell first started.

"Came to us as a single mom with a child, beautiful little girl, and we just took her right in, dug around and you know, she just became immediate family," Hooker explained.

The department rallied around Whetsell, who helped her find her place within the department.

"They're my brothers. A few of them have been close father figures to me, uncles, I would have never made it 20 years without them," Whetsell said. "I wouldn't have made it the first two weeks without them."

Whetsell says she takes great pride in her work over the past two decades.

She says she wants other women to follow her example in breaking stereotypes.

"I proved them wrong, and that's what young women need to be inspired by to get past that stigma of, you know, 'Women can't do this,'" Whetsell said. "I'm proof that we can do just as much as a man can do."

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