Murphy – Reach of Cherokee County Inc. held a women’s self-defense class on Jan. 25 at Penland Senior Center.
This was a follow-up to the introductory class in December, which was more of a verbal teaching course and showed a training video on what could happen when you do nothing in a potentially dangerous situation. The second class offered hands-on teaching allowing the students who wanted to participate.
Reach shelter manager Tommy Jackson, who has a background in law enforcement and the military, was the instructor. Event coordinator Amanda Hamby assisted Jackson with the demonstrations.
One of the keys to keeping yourself safe is to be aware of your surroundings. The class objective was to teach the importance of doing something in a situation that warrants taking action and demonstrated some different techniques on how to do so.
The students were able to punch a target, allowing them to practice stance as well as body force.
“Everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy this class,” Hamby said.
Daphne Blount, who was in the class and is also an advocate for Reach, said, “Self defense is not just a set of techniques or skill; it is a state of mind that you are worth defending.”
The next class will be for seniors at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb.18, at the downtown senior center. Additional classes are planned for the future.
“This class went even better than the first one,” Hamby said. “We just want to help the ladies better protect themselves with some information on how to do so, should they ever need to.”
For details, call Reach at 837-2097.