Self Defense Duo Teaches Safety tips for Women and Children
It’s an unfortunate reality, but every 22.2 seconds, a violent crime occurs in America. While every crime can’t be prevented, the way one reacts to these situations can.
Charley and Tracy Vega are a Florida-based couple who have developed Simple Self Defense for Women & Children. As leading Self-defense duo teaches safety tips for women and children
personal safety experts, the duo has appeared on Marie Osmond’s talk show, Lifetime Television and a variety of news stations to discuss the importance of self defense and how parents and children and can become more aware of their surroundings with their live saving tips and techniques.
“We work with faculty, students, women’s groups, companies—anyone looking to increase safety in dangerous situations,” Charley said. “We were recently at a TV studio and they asked us to teach self defense to their employees.”
Charley, who taught martial arts for 30 years, teaches women you don’t have to fight to fend off an attacker. “There are things you can do to escape and get away,” Charley said. “But in order to understand how to teach women self-defense, my wife pointed out some key points about women. Women don’t usually want to take their shoes off, they typically don’t have time to take classes to learn how to fight, they don’t typically want to be thrown around and they don’t want to go to a smelly gym.”
Tracy emphasizes they want women to realize the program is for them. “We’re not teaching women how to fight, we’re teaching them how to get away,” Tracy said. “We also teach children how to get away and this program is really designed for ages 9 to 91. Women often ask us what to wear to one of our workshops and you don’t get to choose what you’re wearing if you get attacked. So we encourage them to wear what they’d normally wear on a typical day. We also like to bring a little humor to the process.”
During the age of texting and getting distracted at all hours of the day by social networking, Tracy’s top tip is to always be aware of your surroundings. “No one seems to be paying attention anymore with iPhones and iPads,” Tracy said. “Always be aware of your surroundings and never let anyone get in your personal space. Keep a safe distance of 7 to 10 feet from someone who is creeping you out or giving you a bad feeling. This distance gives you time to run.”
Women often ask the Vegas about what to do if they are approached in a parking garage. “Bad guys come up to you. If this happens, put your hand up in a stop motion to their eye level,” Vega said. “You’re showing them you’re not an easy target and you’re also getting the attention of people around you.”
While Charley and Tracy affectionately refer to each other as the “Sonny and Cher” of self-defense, they bring a touch of comic relief to their workshops as well as relatable, real life scenarios. In working with children, educating kids on what can happen in the real world is key. “One of the biggest things parents teach their children is stranger danger,” Tracy said. “We developed a program called ‘The Safe List.’ Put five to seven people on the list only you would trust your child to go with or get picked up from their school buy. If the person is not on this list, give your child strict instructions that they are to never leave with anyone else. There have been several situations recently involving kids approaching the vehicles of acquaintances and getting into danger. Teenagers can also benefit greatly from having ‘The Safe List.’ It’s extremely scary, but 73 percent of sexual assaults are by someone you know.”
To escape a possible abduction, Tracy emphasizes it’s OK to teach your children to be rude in a scenario that’s making them uncomfortable. “Children do not need to be nice to everybody , especially people they don’t know,” Tracy said. “And although most parents tend to want to write their child’s name on the back of their backpacks or lunchboxes, don’t do it. This is how bad guys strike up conversations with children they don’t actually know. It’s better to use an avatar with your child that only you and your child know.”
If a car inches closer and closer to a child, Tracy always advises the child to never approach the car and if they are riding their bike and get approached by a stranger, never let go of the bike. “If an attacker is trying to take the child, it’s much harder to pull a child on a bicycle into a car,” Tracy said.
While companies often hire the Vegas to donate self-defense workshops to various communities, Tracy and Charley always encourage their workshop attendees to pay it forward. “If one woman or child is saved from our tips, we’ve accomplished what we set out to do,” Charley said. “Spread the word. If we show you how to prevent an attack, please show someone else.”
Visit Simpleselfdefenseforwomen.com for more information.
Copyright © 2014, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Self-defense duo teaches safety tips for women and children
No comments:
Post a Comment