With now a bit more than a month in as the Scottsdale Self Defense Examiner and columnist, it dawned on me that you all probably have never heard of me prior to this column and might still not really know anything about me. In order for me to inspire change in Scottsdale residents and beyond in the arena of self defense, there must be a trust factor as well as credibility established. Therefore, I am dedicating this column to the most important person in the whole world…me!
My self defense resume began when I had two stalkers in one year as a result of the bad direction of a very good friend. I certainly do not fault my friend, in fact, I should thank her because self defense was never a concern for me prior and I was now forced to face the fact that I did not know how to defend myself. Yes, I was one of those people that we all hear about when bad things happen that say that they were a firm believer in the cliché that “nothing bad ever happens to me, bad things happen to other people”. That is so typical, right? The reason that it is typical is that most of us do not consider self defense until an incident occurs and then it is usually too late to do something about it, which is exactly why I became a weapons dealer and self defense instructor. I never wanted to feel helpless ever again.
I started Shieldher in February 2007 and sold only one product, the Taser C2, in only one format, the Taser Party, to only one demographic, women. As I gained a greater understanding of self defense basics including techniques both mentally and physically, I began to understand just why many of us shy away from learning self defense and why it was so difficult to get women to care about protecting themselves. Many of us have been presented with complex martial arts moves and intimidating weapons that have become a barrier to personal safety and self defense. In fact, self defense is predominantly mental and by simply understanding the human body, any person can take down another just by capitalizing on vulnerabilities of the attacker, without a weapon in hand.
In October 2009 after much deliberation, I completely revamped Shieldher’s Web Store to include a variety of weaponry options like flashlights and pepper spray, to include self defense training classes like Just Yell Fire, to include Taser and self defense “Tupperware-style” parties, and to include additional safety services like background checks to help more people in a much broader demographic. I became a certified self defense instructor shortly thereafter and have now taught dozens of women, children and men to protect themselves and prevent victimization through my alliance with Lion’s Den MMA gym in Scottsdale.
My life was enriched in February when I taught self defense to the women and children of Homeward Bound, which provides transitional housing to victims (families) of domestic violence and homelessness. I hope to continually grow my relationship with Homeward Bound in the future. Lastly and most thrilling, I am working with Bulletproof Securities in Scottsdale to put together gun education and safety classes for women and children like “Firearms 101 for Women” that will roll out this summer; it’s going to be awesome!
Every day I study self defense to further my education and I continually strive to provide better, stronger solutions for more and more individuals to lower the incidence of abuse in America and beyond. My New Year’s resolution this year was to save one life and I hope to start with you, the readers. Please sit back and continue to enjoy my column as it just may save your life one day.
Thank you for reading my column. Be Safe!
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