How did I get involved in An Escape Plan?  I guess Karen and Jeff would say I forced my way in. 

My husband is a police officer with the IMPD.  He connected me with Jeff Patterson when I told him I needed to take a self defense class.  I had taken a class before, but it had been 10+ years since that half hour class and I could not recall anything I had learned.  The urgency for me was the fact that two of my sisters were going to college in the fall of 2008.  I knew they had to get some type of training before they left for school, even if they didn’t.

 The first phone call with Jeff blew me away.  He conveyed an intense passion for training people to defend themselves.  Then I saw his resume.  I knew he was a training officer with the IMPD but had no clue to what extent he was qualified to do his job.  He was more than qualified to train police officers, let alone citizens.  I could not wait to see what he had to teach us.

I became excited (my friends and co-workers may have said annoying) about getting some women and teen girls together for this self defense class.  It was held in the basement of my mom’s house and Jeff trained my three sisters, my mom, her good friend, two of my close friends and me.  The training was educational, simple and effective.  His presentation was entertaining to say the least, but there was a seriousness to it as well.  Everyone had a great time and walked away with some valuable knowlege and skills.  He also told us there were two more pieces to the program and I knew we had to learn them all. 

The night and day following our introduction to “Protective Thinking” I became aware at just how much I was walking around blind to my surroundings every day.  As the wife of a police officer I am well aware of the dangers of our society.  The sad thing is I never really thought it could happen to me.  “Protective Thinking” changed all of that.  I became aware.  I paid attention to who was in the area as I walked outside or in a parking garage.  I was careful who I got into an elevator or stairwell with.  I also began telling everyone I knew about this program.  The next class was bigger than the first. 

Once Escape Plan was up and going, I began emailing Karen Kell to get classes organized.  I could tell even through emails this lady was different than most.  She was encouraging, open to feedback, passionate about the program and a smart business woman.  I finally met Karen face to face at an apartment complex where I supplied most of the class.  In person, Karen was everything I had sensed through our previous phone calls and emails.  I thought, “Wow! Jeff and Karen are an amazing team.”  Karen and I kept in contact about getting more people trained.  One day I just came out and said, “Karen, if you ever need an assistant I would love to help you out.”  It just happened to be perfect timing for both of us.  That is how I came to be Executive Assistant for An Escape Plan.