Today we’d like to introduce you to Gary Pierce.
Gary, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I have been shooting guns since I was 6 yrs. old. That’s when I got my first .22 rifle. My dad would take me out to shoot all the time and as I got older I graduated to a 410 shotgun and a 30-30 Winchester. I have always loved hunting and mostly shooting.
During the late 60’s, I served in the military and was proud to do so. In the 80’s and 90’s I started hunting quite a bit. In 2002, I got my concealed license to carry a handgun. I was impressed by the instructor and told myself I will become an instructor at some point. In 2003, I picked up a new hobby which I dearly love.
Cowboy Action Shooting. I think this is the best shooting sport there is. We dress in period correct clothes and shoot vintage correct replica firearms. We have regular monthly matches along with regional, state, national and world championship matches. All in all, a great sport.
In 2010, I sold my business and was semi-retired and finally got to become a CHL license instructor. Later became an NRA pistol, rifle, and personal protection classes instructor. So, I added training classes to my schedule. I do a lot of handgun training classes especially for the ladies. I really enjoy teaching. I hope all my students benefited from the training they received. To all of them I say, Thanks.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest struggle is getting started with classes. You have to do a lot of advertising, set up a website and get people to come to your class but before all that, you must find a range that will let you hold classes there. Not so easy.
Defender CHL – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Defender CHL conducts classes for those people wanting to get their license to carry a handgun in Texas. In addition, I teach beginners and advanced handgun classes. All though, the license classes are larger, I do a lot of beginner’s handgun classes for those (especially the ladies) who want to get a license but do not know how to shoot a handgun. What sets me apart from others in the business is the level of personal training my students get from my classes. All you need to do is read my reviews to see why my students picked my class over the others. I’m very pleased that I give each student a good education and for the money.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
There is not just one moment. They happen ever so often. Sometimes a student (mainly some of my lady students are extremely afraid of shooting or even hearing the noise a firearm makes much less being able to hold it in their hand for the first time a fire it.
When I see a student start to cry and tell me they cannot do this and this fear of death is all over their face when they take that first shot and I get them to actually overcome that fear and fire 100 rounds of ammo that day and qualify for their license to carry with the handgun portion and then I see how proud they are on their accomplishment then is when I feel great and so does the student.
Pricing:
- LTC classes $69, Beginners Handgun and LTC classes ar $125 per person.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.defenderchl.com
- Phone: 713-823-5034
- Email: gary@defenderchl.com
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