Self-defense and child protection lectures at the library

This month, the Friends of the Library will be sponsoring two free lectures by local self-defense expert Andrew Moores.

The first lecture, scheduled for Thursday, February 16 from 6-8 p.m. in the Lane Room will be for men and women and will be a basic introduction to the emotional and psychological aspects, innate survival signals and tactical options one has to use when dealing with a violent attack. The goals of the lecture are to increase awareness, focus, fear management and their ability to defend themselves.

The program is designed to empower the individual regardless of size, gender, or age by creating tactics that are generic, gross motor oriented, function during high stress and adrenaline overloaded incidents and also respect the body’s survival system, signals and responses.

The second lecture will be for parents regarding child safety and child abductions. It will cover the following topics:
• Stranger Danger vs. Strange Behavior; why "stranger danger" doesn't work anymore
• Listening to gut instincts and how they can save lives for both parents and kids
• Child Lures; the most popular lures a predator will use to lure the child away from a safe area
• Easy ways to teach kids how to physically protect themselves in case of danger

This lecture will be given on Thursday, February 23 in the Lane Room from 6:30-8 p.m. Based upon questions and concerns from parents, a follow-up lecture will be designed and geared to children and given at the library at a later date.

For materials purposes or to register for one or both of these programs, call the Lane Memorial Library at (603) 926-3368.

Andrew Moores is director of training at Atlantic Karate and Training Center located in the World Gym in Seabrook. Moores is well known and highly respected for his work with personal safety, threat assessment and violence prevention programs for children, women and men. He has been involved with the martial arts for 12 years and has found much success in the tournament arena with most recently finishing second in Kumite (sparring) and first in Kata (forms) at the World Uechi Championships. In addition, Moores finished first at the 2003 Tsuruoka Canadian National Championships in Kata (forms) and was a proud member of the United States team which finished second in team Kumite (sparring).

Moores, a Master’s degree candidate within Boston University’s Emergency Management and Organizational Continuity program, is a member of Blauer Tactical Systems’ Personal Defense Readiness team. Blauer Tactical Systems is one of the world's leading consulting groups for combative and defensive tactics training. Blauer Tactical has been involved in the research, development and design of programs for law enforcement and military trainers for more than 20 years.