by Joseph P. Tartaro | Executive Editor
Between sessions in the free firearms safety mega-event on May 21, many of the volunteer instructors posed with students at the host Top Gun Shooting Sports range in Taylor, MI, which is rated as a Five Star range by the National Shooting Sports Foundation. (Photos by Patrick Dunbar.)
Hundreds of metro Detroit women attended a free day-long event that featured lessons on gun safety, 9mm pistol range instruction and personal protection.
Almost 600 women of all ages and races showed up for the sixth annual event on May 21 at the five-star Top Gun Shooting Sports Range in Taylor, MI, sponsored by Legally Armed in Detroit (LAID), a state gun rights advocacy group. A turnout of such size for a firearms related event caught the attention of the Detroit Free Press, The Associated Press and local radio and television stations who reported on the community event.
Safety instruction classroom work was required for participation at the free firearms familiarization program in the Detroit area. Here, Rick Ector, founder of Legally Armed in Detroit, discusses the basic rules of firearms safety.
The gun safety and familiarization program was made possible through the combined efforts of over 30 professional firearms training instructors and range officers who volunteered their time not only for that Sunday, but in the advance planning and scheduling.
Legally Armed founder Rick Ector told The Gun Mag that while the free training event had been promoted on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram the registration period was for a single week before the gun safety program. He said that 700 women registered for the free classes during that week and were divided into four separate divisions on the 30-point Top Gun range.
A variety of semi-automatic pistols were used in the LAID firearms introductory class, but all were 9mm to simplify the logistics of providing ammunition for such a large turnout of first-time shooters.
Ector said he began the yearly free training to help women because they are “easier targets” for predators, and the first class in 2011 had a turnout of 50 women. Each year since, the enthusiastic participation by women in the city and suburbs of Detroit has grown steadily.
“We teach women how to safely handle, load and discharge a firearm, and a personal protection strategy,” he said, citing rising attendance at the event over the years.
Every range participant in the Detroit-area introductory shooting program was mentored by a volunteer professional firearms trainer.
“I became a National Rifle Association (NRA) credentialed Firearms Trainer after being robbed in my own backyard by two armed thugs. I have first-hand experiences about being violated from dangerous criminals, Ector said.
“Additionally, I enrolled in a variety of self-defense courses and eventually applied for a Michigan Concealed Pistol License.
“After legally carrying a concealed pistol, I became interested in gun rights advocacy. The right to keep and bear a firearm, especially for personal protection, became very important to me. As such, I created a blog entitled, ‘Legally Armed In Detroit,’ in which the topics are focused on gun rights, responsible firearm ownership, and personal protection.
“My passion is empowering law-abiding citizens with the knowledge, the skills, and the mindset necessary to defend themselves, their families, and their homes from the attacks of violent criminals. “
Ector said many of his graduates have had to display and sometimes use their firearm to defend themselves against an attacker.
Rick Ector, founder of Legally Armed in Detroit, shown speaking at the 2016 Gun Rights Policy Conference in Tampa, FL.
Most of the women who attended this or earlier versions of the training event were motivated by a concern for personal and family safety or simple curiosity. A few had some youthful firearms experience which they sought to revisit again.
“It’s rough out there,” attendee Charlene Ybarra told the Free Press.
Claudia Gutierrez of Belleville said that Sunday was the first time she’s used a firearm.
“It was stunning actually,” she said. “You have to have the right stance.”
Gutierrez said she decided to go to the event because “this is a crazy world.”
“I live in a safe area, but you just never know,” she told the Free Press. “I’ve always felt it’s people who kill, not the guns.”
The training includes classroom instruction and time on the shooting range, with one-on-one instruction by a professional firearms trainer under the supervision of certified range officers.
Four participants hold up pretty impressive targets at the sixth annual free firearms safety event organized by Legally Armed in Detroit.
Each of the students was given a free gun lock, donated by Detroit-area law enforcement agencies and firearms businesses, and a certificate for a free future one-hour range session at the Top Gun facility. In addition, there were firearms safety brochures, some caps and T-shirts.
Ector told TGM such large firearms classes would not be possible without the individual commitment of the volunteer firearms instructors who donate their valuable time and talents.
“There’s a lot of advance planning and consultation that goes into such an undertaking,” he said. “The preparation takes much longer than the event.
“We couldn’t do this if the professionals in the gun community didn’t willingly work together,” he added.
Dan Korzeniewski, one of the volunteer shooting instructors at the event, said he likes seeing women “learn a skill set that could potentially protect them and keep their families safe.”
What’s the reaction from the boyfriends and husbands, TGM asked.
“Very positive,” said Ector. “Most of them join the women when they revisit the range later for more shooting or go shopping for firearms, ammunition or accessory gear.”
