Nationwide — Tia McWilliams has made history as the first African American woman sheriff in rural Georgia. As the new sheriff of Taliaferro County, she is set to lead a staff of mostly men.

“This is a male-dominated world, but in the words of the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, it’s a man’s world, but it wouldn’t be nothing without a woman or girl,” McWilliams, who is also a mother of two, told WJBF Augusta.

McWilliams has been with the sheriff’s office for over 19 years, most recently as a Chief Deputy. Through those years, she focused on doing great in her job.

She was elected in November 2020 to replace former Sheriff Marc Richards who retired on December 31, 2020.

McWilliams hopes to bring developments to the sheriff’s office including an expanded 911 operations center “to create a more comfortable space and working environment” and an in-house training area “for our officers to be able to train and grow and develop their potential s𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁s.”

She expressed her gratitude in her Facebook post, saying, “Just a little country girl living the dream that God fathomed for me. THANK YOU Taliaferro County! I love you.”