NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — It was supposed to be one of the safest places in the country.
At the campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania for former president Donald Trump, bullets flew into the crowd.
With nearly 300 mass shootings so far in 2024, understandably, the frequent violence is making people feel uneasy.
We want to be a resource for you, so we found out more about a free seminar on Thursday, July 18 on responding to critical incidents like mass violence.
"It's such a crazy world we live in that the more information that we can get to people to help themselves and their families the better off we all are," said Brink Fidler.
Brink Fidler's team at Defend Systems teaches people what to do in an active shooter situation. Not too long ago, Defend Systems did a free training for Metro teachers on a no-school day.
Fidler, a Metro Nashville police officer for two decades, believes these workshops are critical.
"This is a problem in society," Fidler said.
A year before the mass shooting at The Covenant School, Fidler trained school staff. Their active shooting drills saved lives.
Typically, the Defend Systems curriculum is customized to the school, church, or business being trained. Because of recurring mass shootings, they're prioritizing seminars that are free and open to the public.
"The principles and concepts that we teach go with them to a restaurant or a mall or - god forbid — to a rally where people are gathered in public," Fidler said.
Defend Systems is partnering with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation for the training on Thursday night. It will be at Long Hollow Church from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. People who plan to attend should register online.
"When bullets are flying at a public event, that's what we talk about in our training. What do we do in those moments to prepare ourselves in that environment, so we know what we're going to do if something does happen," Fidler said.
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
