PHOENIX — The Phoenix Police Foundation along with law enforcement and community members celebrated women in policing on Friday at the 7th Annual Women in Blue awards ceremony.
Tim Thomas, president of the Phoenix Police Foundation, said women in blue are "an emerging force" in policing and said they do an "amazing job".
"We really want to highlight the things they're doing," Thomas said. "We want to promote more women to this profession."
Thomas said right now the number of female officers in Phoenix is 13% and said the Phoenix Police Department is trying to get that to 30% by 2030 through a campaign pledge called 30X30.
The awards ceremony recognizes women in sworn and non-sworn roles in three categories.
Thomas explained the Thelda Williams Up and Comer Award is given to someone who is new to law enforcement and shows great promise.
The recipient of that award was police assistant Maya Kozareva who came from Bulgaria and got her citizenship as a teen.
"That inspired me to go above and beyond and I wanted to give back to my parents for all the sacrifices they made to get me where I am today," Kozareva said. "Truly my inspiration comes from my parents and my peers."
Kozareva said her goal is to become a sworn officer and eventually work in crisis intervention.
"[I'd] be able to help people out, give them resources and talk them down from whatever it is they're experiencing," Kozareva said. "That's what I plan to do in the next couple of months, is get sworn, go through the academy and shine."
Thomas explained the Elevating Women in Law Enforcement Award is given to women who help promote women in law enforcement.
Sergeant Shannon Warrior received the award.
"It's really cool to see women have that passion the same way as the men in blue do," Warrior said. "Again we are a family, but the passion in this career is pretty cool and being able to find that is pretty neat."
Warrior said she started her law enforcement career at age 31.
"I think it really benefited me a lot," Warrior explained. "I had kids, I had a life, I had other careers and I had a foundation of who I was."
Warrior said this helped her because she knew how to talk to people, which she said is a valuable component of being an officer.
The third award was given to Officer Morgan Bullis, who received the Act of Valor Award.
"This officer did something where her life was put into danger, and her courage out there protecting the public, put herself in front of others," Thomas explained about the award.
Bullis was shot in the line of duty and had to be out for several months.
"I got to go home that day while a lot of officers don't, so it's a weird feeling getting awarded for that because a lot of people don't get to go home," Bullis said.
Bullis said what brought her back was her dedication to helping serve and protect.
"If a kid can't be a voice, we are there for them," Bullis said. "For someone in a domestic violent situation, how can I get them out of it? A kid who gets sexually assaulted or physically assaulted - how can I get them out of that? And that's kind of why I'll keep going until I can't go anymore."
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