Mary Schmidt

I was born in Germany. My dad was an engineer for the army, stationed there at the time. I don’t remember any of it. It’s on my bucket list to go back. When I was three he was reassigned to Fort Leonard Wood. That became home base. That’s pretty much where it stayed.

My parents divorced when I was in third grade. My dad got sent to Fort Knox for a little while. When he was reassigned back to Fort Leonard Wood, my mom came too.

I’m the oldest of eight. My parents both remarried and my stepmom’s kids came into the picture when they were little. I don’t think of them as step-siblings. They’re just my siblings. That’s all they’ve ever been.

I graduated from Waynesville and moved to Lebanon. I went to Drury for my bachelor’s in education. When I did my student teaching I was in a first grade classroom. There was just so much I saw that I wanted to help with. I still wanted to help kids, just not from a teacher’s desk. I earned my master’s degree while I was working at Children’s Division.

I met my current boss on a case. He was the juvenile officer and I was the caseworker. He offered me a job. I thought he was kidding at first, but he wasn’t. I applied. He offered it to me. Now I’m a deputy juvenile officer in Laclede County.

Every day is different. No two days are the same. I get to see the whole picture, not just one piece of it. I see families come in rough and completely turn it around. They get their kids back. Their families come back together. I love seeing that.

KVC, Missouri Alliance, Lane Change, food pantries, mental health services. When these pieces work together, families are stronger. It takes a village.

When I walk into someone’s life through this work, it’s usually the worst moment they’ve ever had. A lot of parents are embarrassed. I understand that. I’m not there to judge anybody. You meet them where they are.

I trust people until they give me a reason not to. I want families together.

My husband was military when I met him. We’d just gotten married when he deployed to Afghanistan. He was gone almost a year. Now he works probation and parole. We both carry work we can’t really talk about at home. We don’t have to explain that to each other. We just understand.

We’ll be married fourteen years this July. Three of our kids have grown and gone. One is still at home. We have a grandson who’ll be three in August. Last year we bought a house four streets from where he lives. We take the dogs out in the evenings and walk over. He loves when the dogs come by.

I am grateful for my boring life.

Sometimes I see families after everything is done. It’s usually Walmart. I don’t approach them unless they come to me. I don’t want to embarrass anyone. But sometimes they stop and talk. And I get to see them just out in the world. Shopping.

Being a mom or a dad.

Mary Schmidt

Deputy Juvenile Officer, Laclede County