'Absolutely Vital': Martial Arts Studio Teaches Children Personal Safety
BROOMFIELD, Colo. (CBS4)- It's a question most parents wonder, would your child be ready if they were approached by a stranger with bad intentions? Venture Martial Arts says they are trying to make sure that answer is yes.
Saturday they held a free stranger danger class for kids. The first lesson is awareness.
"So that the kids turn around and they know they this is a bad situation. This person has bad intentions for me" said Micah Martin, an instructor.
The next lesson is how to help themselves if things get scary.
"We teach the child what they need to do in order to get away from that situation," he said.
Grace Hilliard has been practicing martial arts at Venture for two years. She says it has helped her in many ways.
"Martial arts has sort of helped teach me self-control along with a bunch of other things discipline and integrity and perseverance" she said.
Saturday, she helped to teach other kids how to be safe.
"With all the stuff that you see on the news about a bunch of kids going missing kind of makes me nervous."
Jessica Bold took her son Kellan to the class. She said she wants him to know when and how to protect himself.
"I don't want him to be afraid to talk to people, adults or kids, but I do want him to know 'This adult is okay to talk to versus this adult is giving me kind of a weird feeling, and I might need to you know keep my guard up,'" she said.
Regardless of their experience level, every parent now feels more confident their children can be safe when they aren't around.
"Every parent should try to avail themselves and their children of the opportunity to learn about personal safety. It's absolutely vital," said Bronson Hilliard, Grace's dad.
If you would like to participate in future classes at Venture Martial Arts you can contact Micah at (303) 862-1050.
Michael Abeyta is a 4th generation Coloradan and a Multimedia Journalist for CBS4. His stories can be seen on CBS4 News at 5 & 6. He is on Twitter! Follow him @AbeytaCBS4.