FIRST LINE OF DEFENCE

Three Concepts You Need to Protect Yourself and Those Around You

- Patrick Vuong

We see the news about the latest rape, robbery, or mass shooting and say to ourselves, “Yeah, I could have stopped it.” It’s easy to fantasize about saving the day, about being the hero. But could you do it in real life? What does it actually take to put your life on the line to defend an innocent life or a whole group of them?

Byron Rodgers knows what it takes — and he wants others to, as well. A combat vet and now a bodyguard to wealthy folks and individuals who need protection, Rodgers recently founded and hosted the inaugural Protector Symposium, a conference for security experts, law enforcement, and civilians interested in learning how to better protect themselves and those around them.

“I’m very aware of the reality that the civilian on the scene of an attack is the first line of defense,” Rodgers said of recent stabbings, mass shootings, and terrorist attacks around the world. “I wanted to do something to contribute to that civilian demographic, to educate them about violence and make them more accountable, and to help keep these injuries and death counts low.”

Rodgers had contemplated how he could teach the largest number of people in a wide range of skillsets. He toyed with the idea of hosting a seminar at the range, but logistics and safety would limit that to a few dozen students at a time. So he shifted to a symposium format, where we could reach a much larger volume of people the quickest.