Registration is still open for two women’s classes the Chilton County Sheriff’s Office will hold March 8 and March 15.

The first class is a women’s basic self-defense class that will be held Saturday, March 8, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Chilton County YMCA on Ollie Avenue in Clanton.

“We’ve done the self-defense class probably 10 or 12 times,” Sheriff’s Department Investigator Erric Price said. “It’s a pretty intense four hours. Most people walk away pretty tired and exhausted, but they’re glad they came. They feel better and more proactive and able to stop an attack after the class.”

The class is free to attend for women ages 13 and older. Anyone under 16 years of age must be accompanied by an adult.

Participants are encouraged to wear workout pants or sweat pants and a T-shirt and to avoid shorts and tank tops.

Anyone interested in participating must complete and return a registration form and waiver to either the YMCA or Chilton Christian Academy no later than Friday, March 7.

Forms and waivers are available at the YMCA and CCA office.

Price said the class would cover the basics of self-defense, such as how to achieve the mindset of protecting oneself or one’s children during an attack and how to escape from someone’s grasp.

“One of the big parts is having a mental mindset of hurting another person if you have to in order to protect you or your children,” Price said. “Having the mindset of what you’ll have to do to accomplish that is a big part of our class. Most everything is hands-on.”

The second class is a women’s firearm safety class that will be held Saturday, March 15, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Chilton Christian Academy on Highway 31 in Jemison and the firing range in Thorsby.

The class is open to women ages 13 and older, and anyone under 16 years of age must be accompanied by an adult.

The cost of the class is $20 per person, and all proceeds will go to the CCA senior class to help pay for a senior trip.

Checks can be made payable to CCA the day of the event.

“This is just an idea they came up with,” Price said. “We did a women’s firearm class last year out at the Y, and it went pretty well. We told them we would supply the instructor and teaching, and they would do the fundraiser and concession stand aspect of it.”

Price said the class would be conducted in a classroom setting as well as a range setting.

In the classroom, participants would learn the fundamentals of how to hold a gun, clean and load it, extract it from its holster and point it at a target.

From the classroom participants would move to the range, where they would be able to load and fire a gun, and instructors could adjust anything being done improperly.

Participants must bring their own firearm, ammunition, and hearing and eye protection.

As with the self-defense class, those planning to participate must complete and return registration forms and waiver to the YMCA or CCA office by March 7.

“The biggest goal for both classes is that citizens will be more proactive in self-protection and just observing criminal activity and being aware of it,” Price said. “We hope out of those weekends to have about 50 people participate in both of those classes.”

For more information about the classes, contact Investigator Erric Price at (205) 351-1804 or erric777@yahoo.com.