Sunday, May 29, 2005
The seminar gives women strategies for self-defense.
WARREN -- Eight years ago, after an encounter in a mall parking lot, Pam Karousis made a life-changing decision. She decided that she would never be a victim again.
That night, she was returning to her car from a shopping trip. She wasn't worried about moving safely to her car. She had parked close to the building, it wasn't quite dark and the parking lot was well-lighted.
As she opened her car door, two men jumped toward her, yelling for her to hand over her purse. It happened so quickly, Karousis said.
She remembers screaming until she was so hoarse she couldn't yell anymore. She was so scared that she dropped her purse on the floor of the car and she was too frightened to look away from her attackers to pick it up.
"I couldn't scream anymore so I started beeping my horn," she said. "Finally somebody came out of the mall and they ran away."
Haunting memory
That encounter played out in Karousis' mind for years - every time she parked her car, every time she walked toward her car in a parking lot.
"I got tired of being a victim," she said. "I had to do something."
Her first reaction was to carry a gun, so she enrolled in a firearms class. She ended up taking the class three times. Finally, someone suggested she become an instructor.
After learning about the National Rifle Association's Refuse To Be A Victim program, she agreed.
Even though it's an NRA program, the Refuse To Be A Victim seminar doesn't focus on guns. Instead, it teaches women how to develop their own personal safety strategy. That may or may not include using a gun, Karousis said.
Awareness, prevention
"We're trying to teach women how to avoid being a target," Karousis said. "This is about awareness and prevention."
Being aware of your surroundings at all times is so important, Karousis said. Often, women heighten their awareness in dimly-lit places or in area they believe might be dangerous, but they don't pay much attention at other times, she said.
"Criminals don't punch a time clock," Karousis said. "I don't want to see people have a false sense of security because it's daylight."
Recently, Karousis got a call from a man in Buffalo, N.Y. His wife, a doctor, was robbed at gunpoint in the middle of the afternoon. He found Karousis' name while doing an Internet search on the Refuse To Be A Victim program. Karousis' seminar was the closest one to his home, she said.
"When you're a victim you feel so helpless and you want to do something," Karousis said. "That's how she feels. I'd like to see people do something before they become a victim, and that's what this course is about."
What it covers
Topics covered in the three-hour seminar include automobile security, security on the Internet and using a computer, travel security and workplace safety. The seminar covers how to understand the way criminals think, lighting, security alarms and other topics.
"Women need to develop a personal safety strategy that fits their lifestyle," Karousis said. "It's not about firearms; it's about how to feel safe when you're out and around."
For some women, carrying pepper spray may be enough for them to feel confident, Karousis said. For others, it may take more, perhaps even carrying a gun.
"That's a personal decision," Karousis said. "This course doesn't tell you what to do. We just want you to understand all your options."