The fork in the road

There are times in every life where you find yourself looking around and realizing that is it time to make a change.  I've been wrestling with that recently.

I'm making some changes, looking to refocus my teaching, refine my writing, build a few classes of my own.  It is exciting, it is scary and I will be bouncing ideas off of you, looking for feedback!

Thank you for being on this journey with me.

National Take Your Daughter to the Range Day Founder’s Event June 15, 2013!

The Founder’s Event has a new host range this year.  We will be at the Silver Eagle Group (SEG), 44620 Guilford Drive, Suite 100 , Ashburn, Virginia.  SEG is graciously donating range time and support to promote shooting sports and the NTYDTTRD message of Safety, Education and Family.

The event will begin at 8:00 am and go through 11:00 am.  We will have all lanes dedicated for NTYDTTRD use during this time.  The event is open to children ages 6 through 18.  All minors must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.  Parents are welcome to shoot with their kids.  Firearms will be available to be borrowed, ammunition for the most common calibres is being donated, souvenir targets will be provided and credentialed instructors will be available to assist anyone who would like assistance. 

Advance registration for the event is required, and registration will open May 1.  Time slots will be available on the hour, for 45 minutes.  This allows time to transition and clean the lane for the next family.  To register, email Lynne@InnovativeDefensiveSolutions.com with your name, names and ages of children and total number in your party along with your preferred time slot (8:00, 9:00 or 10:00).  You will receive a confirmation for your slot.  When you arrive, you will be asked to complete a range waiver, a NTYDTTRD waiver and a photo release granting us the right to use any photos for promotion of the event.

There will be prizes for the kids as well as a raffle for larger prizes such as gift certificates for training at Front Sight or a Range Bag from Brownells.

A donation jar will be available at the sign in desk in case you would like to contribute to the organization to help defray our costs.

Last year the two responses we saw the most were huge smiles on the faces of the kids and their proud parents, and we heard over and over “This was AWESOME!  When can we do it again!”.  NTYDTTRD, Inc is hoping to implement an education program for kids in the future to help them find the joy in developing their shooting skills in a safe ans supportive environment.

We look forward to seeing you on June 15!

Photo Shoot was Amazing

I was lucky enough to have seven women join me at the NRA Range. A couple traveled several hours to get there.  We did the needed pictures quickly and easily, and then had lots of fun!  I'd never done a shoot with just "the girls" and now I can't wait to set up another one!  What fun!!!

Thank you to everyone who came out, you were gracious, cooperative and FUN!

Big plans for the weekend!

You may know that I’ve begun writing magazine articles, in addition to the book and blog…I have written two for Combat Handgun so far, the first of which is scheduled for August publication.  Well, I just finished drafting an article on range drills, ways to practice.  But, I need photos.  I posted a notice on my Facebook page (Women Firearms Instructors) and 5 lovely ladies volunteered to come to Fairfax Va Sunday evening and participate in a Ladies Fun Shoot/Photo session.  I’m excited.  I will get to meet some of the women who read and participate in the blog and FB page and it will be fun to have a share tips, tricks and guns!  What could be better?  I’ll be posting a few photos and some highlights after the shoot (pun intended).  I can’t wait!

Tragedy at Home

First, my thoughts and prayers are with the people of Boston, and around the world, who were impacted by the senseless bombing at the Boston Marathon.

Unfortunately, this most recent act of terrorism is likely to be used by the Anti-Gun forces to further their agenda, ignoring that there were no guns involved, and numerous laws broken.  I see this as further justification that we, the citizens of this incredible country, need to be prepared to defend ourselves and need the right to do so at any time. 

Law Enforcement is sorting out the facts now and in time we will know a lot more.  The fact that this attack was April 15, Tax Deadline day causes me to suspect domestic, rather than foreign, hands.  While the investigation continues, what can we do?  Continue to do your normal activities.  Don’t let this senseless act change your behavior, except to be more alert and aware.  DHS sponsors the “If you see something, say something” campaign.  This is good advice.  Alert authorities is something looks out of place, such as someone acting strangely or in a threatening manner, or unattended packages in public places. 

Be alert, be aware, and stay safe

I was out sick last week

You would think that would give me more time to write, but....I spent more time sleeping.

Feeling like joining the humans again today, and wanted to make a quick post.

Thank you for all of the support.

Let's beat the bushes and get ranges signed on for NTYDTTRD!

Congratulations to Julie G, if you visit her website you can see a photo of her beautiful new baby girl.

For those ranges who have registered, I promise to get the website updated in the next 3 days, and if you don't see your information, please email me as I've gotten a little behind.

Safe Shooting!!!

National Take Your Daughter to the Range Day - Jun 15, 2013

As many of you know, National Take Your Daughter to the Range Day is near and dear to my heart.  If you are new to this blog, you may not know the history.  This idea was launched in Jan 2012 on Facebook, it quickly grew and we became a non-profit corporation, had 35 hosting ranges across the country and thousands of followers on FaceBook, Twitter (@NTYDTTRD), and here, on this blog. 

Hard as I tried, starting last fall, I had trouble getting interest for this year.  Now, just like last year, I am inundated with emails.  That’s ok, I’ve blocked out time (taken time off from teaching) to deal with it all.  I was concerned that the current anti-gun climate would put a damper on the event, but it seems to have the opposite effect.  There is a little nervousness about the ammo shortage, but many of the clubs have reported that members are coming forward with donations of ammo to support the events.

The theme for NTYDTTRD is Safety, Education and Family.  Safety is key, whenever we are handling firearms, Safety is number one!  Education, we want to help the kids learn and understand the proper handling as well as discover the fun of shooting.  Family, doing things as a family is important, and shooting is fun.  This is also a great chance to get the girls involved and many Dads see it as a Father Daughter outing, although Moms are welcome and most ranges are also welcoming sons. 

While we strive to keep costs down, there are expenses.  Postage, promotional materials, the website, insurance…We really need donations to help cover these, and many of our donations come in small increments, $5 or $10.  We are grateful for every penny.  There is a link on the National Website to donate via PayPal. 

We also need donations to support the local (Northern Virginia) event, held last year, and probably this year, at HQ NRAs Range.  Bottled water, ammo, targets, prizes…we are collecting not only National but locally targeted donations.  Any help is greatly appreciated.

Talk to your local range, see about hosting an event!  The smiles on the faces of the kids make all the planning and effort worthwhile.  Many clubs reported an increase in membership requests.  Some commercial ranges noted an increase in return customers. 

Safe Shooting!

 

 

what is it like to write a blog?

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to write a blog?  I debated before I started this, and then jumped in.  But while I was debating I was reading others.  Some are newsy, focused on current events.  Some are like a journal, free flowing thoughts and the days events...that wasn't what I wanted to do.  I wanted to share information and what I was learning.

This has been an amazing experience.  When you first start writing, there is a hope that someone will read and enjoy what you write, but you don't know.  There isn't an instant following, it takes time, word of mouth, referrals and links from some truly amazing people.  I feel like I've been successful at meeting my original goal, and there are so many people I should thank, especially you, who are reading this now.  It is humbling to watch my counter go up, to see comments and get emails from people who liked something I wrote.  It is a feeling I can't really describe.  Writing this blog has opened up so many opportunities to me.  I've connected with and met some really great people.  I've written a book! How many of us say "I should write a book someday" compared to how many of us actually do.  I am working hard on my second book, probably coming out next year.  SkyHorse Publishing took a chance on me with the first one, liked it enough that they gave me the contract for the second book before the first one had finished printing.  They are printing 2000 copies, perhaps we can make it sell out?  I'm also blogging for Gun Shows Today, and I have written a couple articles for Combat Handgun Magazine, with more on the way (first one is due out in August.

This has been a rollercoaster ride, with ups and downs.  Writing for an audience of one hoping someone would find me and now...well, Thank you. 

I hope you continue to enjoy what I share, and that you continue to send me ideas and questions.  I appreciate all of you more than I can ever tell you.

Safe Shooting!
Lynne