Every April, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) coordinates the national Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) campaign during the month to educate and engage the public in addressing the issue.
In recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, Krav Maga Maryland is hosting a women’s self-defense seminar at its Columbia facility located at 8865 Stanford Boulevard (Suite 101) on Saturday, April 28, 2018 from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m. to teach women practical, easy to learn self-defense and personal safety strategies.
The seminar is open to females ages 14 and up, and will provide participants with the opportunity to participate in a hands-on training through Krav Maga Worldwide, which utilizes instinctive movements and aggressive counterattacks. The self-defense system was developed by the Israel Defense Forces for training military personnel in hand-to-hand combat. Krav Magna Worldwide. Krav Maga Worldwide pioneered Krav Maga self-defense training for civilians and law enforcement in the United States.
Elisabeth Green, general manager of Krav Maga Maryland will be conducting the seminar along with instructor Evelyn Pearcy.
“The seminar is a training we do several times a year,” said Green who is also an instructor. “It’s three hours long, and is a combination of physical self-defense techniques, mental training, and boundary-setting. It is a mental and physical training presented in a way that applies specifically to women.”
She added, “Evelyn Pearcy and I will be teaching women practical self-defense skills to fight off attackers and prevention skills. The purpose is to help them access environmental risks and identify threats before they take place.”
According to Green, “Krav Maga” is easy to learn, easy to retain, and brings students to a high-level of proficiency in hand-to-hand combat in a short period. She said the seminar is offered during the winter, spring, summer and fall.
“This is our spring seminar,” said Green. “We have them at least four times a year. It gives us an opportunity to train those who might not otherwise come and take a regular class with us. The goals of these seminars are always to provide a safe opportunity for women to learn self-defense in an environment where they are surrounded by other liked-minded individuals, not intimidated, and have fun with it. The goal is also for participants to enjoy it, and leave with self-defense skills that are available if they need them.”
This year’s Sexual Assault Awareness Month theme is “Embrace Your Voice” and seeks to help individuals, communities and the private sector understand how they can take action to promote safety, respect and equality to stop sexual assault before it happens. Krav Maga Maryland’s Women Empowerment Seminar falls in line with the theme.
“The seminar opens up with an introduction, and then we do awareness training, and cover how it feels when someone is too close,” said Green. “Then we transition into striking, kicks, and move into self-defense, and cover things like being choked. We also answer questions. The seminar moves at a pace that anyone can do regardless of physical, athletic, or ability level.”
She added, “Krav Maga is a self-defense system not based on weight classes. It is really meant for anyone to learn with any physical ability. It works for a lot of people.”
Green says she has been teaching self-defense for six years.
“I focus a lot on training geared towards women,” she said. “I always get excited about the seminars. We love hosting the seminars and so many people tell us they enjoy them. The women learn how strong they are and that they can defend themselves. It’s really cool to see.”
The cost of the seminar is $99. According to Green, a portion of the proceeds will benefit Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center, which is based in Columbia. The Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center is a multi-service crisis intervention center providing 24-hour crisis intervention services, emergency and transitional shelter, and community education.
For more information call 410-872-9194 or visit www.kravmd.com.