Not one of the guys

Debnes has been a locksmith for 35 years and has worked for the district for six years. She is the only female locksmith. When LISD orders the brown work shirts, only one comes in a woman’s size. 

“I hate to say this, but gender did come into play because there’s a lot of guys that at first, they’re looking at me like, ‘oh, well what’s she going to do?’” Debnes said. “Well, I’m a really serious locksmith… it wasn’t that I’m just this little girly person. I’m a really serious, technical service person. I’m a craftsman.” 

Anytime someone has a jammed lock or an issue with their door, Debnes is immediately there to fix it, promising that it’s no trouble at all with a smile. That’s who she is.

“I know that she’s really passionate about her job of securing the building and making sure that she treats everybody with a lot of respect on top of it,” West Zone Facilities Service Manager Steven Jones said. “She takes it personally to take care of each client or student, teacher, makes sure everybody is safe and secure.”