Summer time and livin’ is busy! Despite the record heat indexes around the country, our chapters are having a lot of summer fun at the range! We trained more than 1,800 women in July and welcomed 539 new card-carrying members. Here are more of our July 2023 highlights:
107 Women Compete in 4th Annual Clays Extravaganza
The 4th Annual A Girl and A Gun Clays Extravaganza welcomed 107 shooters to Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch in Ft. Worth, TX, on July 21-23, 2023. The ladies, who ranged in age from 16-75 and from brand-new to pro, each broke 200-300+ targets in 2 hot days. Once again, we had a jaw-dropping prize table, including several shotguns, thanks to our sponsors! Our friends from CZ-USA, Syren, USCCA, and Tru-Spec were on site to demo products. The event — which had NSCA registered targets — included professional shotgun clinics, 2 sporting clays courses, 5-stand, super sporting, Annie Oakleys, flurry, and a pizza party! The event was a tremendous success with many smiles and friendships!
1,726 AG & AG Members Tune in for Hunting Series
This month we hosted the final Virtual Girls Night Out of the 3-part series on hunting. More than 1,726 AG & AG members tuned in to listen to our professional guides offer tips and Q&As to help ladies learn more about types of game, conservationism, hunting trips and locations, legal and ethical considerations, and more. Everyone is in agreement that the AG & AG Upland Adventure is a great first hunt, and registration is open! Join us in Greensburg, KS, for our annual pheasant hunt.
210 Competitors Submit Scores for Quarterly Pistol Match
In July we announced our 2nd Quarter postal match results, which included a record number of competitors (210) from a record number of chapters (47). The Quarterly Match is a nationwide competition among members of AG & AG. Facilitated during a regularly scheduled event, such as a Girl’s Night Out, shooters are able to experience a competitive atmosphere: understanding the course of fire, match commands, operation of the shot timer, and scoring. The match allows new shooters to overcome mental barriers to participating in competitive shooting and gives experienced shooters the ability to test their skills in a casual, familiar environment.
Overall winner Toni Miller used her Walther PDP 5″ pistol with a Holosun green dot optic. Her time was only 20.05 for all three strings. Toni shares that her key to success is practice! “I video my hands while shooting so that I can watch recoil and grip. I have arthritis, so I practice for smooth gun handling, then accuracy, and then speed,” she says.
By the Numbers
Here is our reach in July 2023:
- In July 2023, AG & AG hosted 329 chapter events with 1,744 attendees
- We had 1 national event with 107 attendees
- We had 4 virtual events with 1,493 video views (and climbing!)
- 539 new membership packets were mailed from HQ in July.
- 3 new chapters were opened: Birmingham AL, Lawrence KS, Houston Galleria TX
- We grew to 10,933 active subscribers on our smartphone app.
Local Training and Media Highlights
Here are local news and media highlights for July 2023:
The League City TX Chapter participated in 2 Project ChildSafe events, where Galveston residents could pick up free Project ChildSafe® gun locks and safety kits along with safety education. Facilitator Cindy Scott, A-Teamer Robyn Sewell-Poutra, local officials, and NSSF representatives were in attendance.
The Henderson NV Chapter participated in a night pistol match. That was a lot of fun and a great opportunity to learn about low light and the use of flashlight.
The North Austin TX Chapter had a great turnout for a USCCA CCHDF Clinic at Lonestar Range and Academy. These girls are leveling up!
The Baltimore MD Chapter celebrated its 2nd anniversary with Breakfast and Bullets. During the celebration, we had a random drawing where 5 lucky ladies won prizes! Two ladies were rewarded for their hard work and dedicated in executing the NRA Marksmanship Qualification Program!
The Broward County FL Chapter ladies worked on sights on target, target transitions and trigger control with one of the newer AG & AG Targets.
The Southern NH Chapter had a fabulous night out with an Introduction to Rifles and Steel! They had fun learning, hearing the ‘ding’ and adding a little competition with the dueling tree. Looking forward to going back for more!
The North Austin TX Chapter welcomed AG & AG National Training Director Tatiana Whitlock for a Carry with Confidence Class. The ladies learned effective techniques, applied what they learned, and walked away with a much greater understanding of the concealed carry lifestyle.
The Treasure Coast, West Palm Beach, and Broward Chapters gathered for a Project Appleseed event. Treasure Coast & West Palm Beach Facilitator Debbie Donahue was promoted it IIT4 and soon will be testing for her red hat!
The Littleton CO Chapter had a blast doing the Dot Torture drill! This really tested all kinds of skills, especially trigger control! The girls were awesome.
The Northern CO Chapter participated in a fun steel challenge shoot at their local outdoor range. It was a lot of fun and a great learning experience. Hearing that steel is the best! Then they headed to the famous Bruce’s Bar and Grill for some more fun and great food.
The Central WI Chapter continued to work on handgun fundamentals.
The Memphis TN Chapter participated in a Stop the Bleed class. The ladies learned about trauma kits and how to pack a wound as well as use a tourniquet.
The Columbia MO Chapter hosted Lou Ann Hamblin with Louka Tactical. Building Warrior Women, Developmental Marksmanship, One Handed Wonders, Shooting & Moving and Use of Cover were all the topics covered. WOW! It was a full weekend and these ladies rocked it!
The High Desert CA Chapter had an incredible and inspirational day in the gorgeous mountains of Southern California. They shot steel with AR-15s, continuing development with their handguns, and as always, had some fun raffles & brunch together.
The Grand Junction CO Chapter used their July ‘T’ Time and took off to Hotchkiss for the local IDPA match; a few ladies from the Cedaredge Chapter joined in on the fun. #sisterhood
The National eChapter had three ladies participate in the 2nd Quarter Quarterly Match! Ladies are stepping out of their comfort zones and are really going for it. They are looking forward to more eChapter members participating in future matches!
The Douglas County NV Chapter hosted their 1st Annual Member Appreciation Party! They enjoyed each other’s company, had drawing give aways and played a game of Firearm Pictionary.
The Sierra Foothills Chapter CA shot the required drill to earn a charm for their bracelets. The first drill for the “Charm Challenge” is the Nevada County (CA) CCW course of fire. The ladies did an outstanding job of nailing the shooting qualification!
The Sherwood OR chapter hosted a bake sale and raised $1,000 for a local domestic violence shelter called Abuse Recovery & Ministry Services! #givingback
The Delaware OH Chapter hosted a Meet & Greet at their host range, Black Wing Shooting Center.
The Douglas County NV Chapter Girls honed their Basic Fundamentals, practiced for their Blue Confirmation Drill and ended the training session with a few courses of Dot Torture.
The Flagler County FL Chapter hosted a Sabre Pepper Spray Class. Thanks to A-Teamer and Sabre Instructor, Darlene Downer!
The Broward County FL Chapter members coached each other on Quarterly Match practice at GNO.
The Memphis TN Chapter hosted their first Breakfast and Bullets events at one of their new ranges, Top Gun. The ladies enjoyed working on the quarterly match on the range then gathering for brunch afterwards.
The Davenport IA Chapter celebrated their 5th Anniversary with AG & AG. Pizza, cake, and awesome members!
The Baton Rouge LA Chapter hosted a Shotgun Night, and it was the first time most of these ladies had held one. They did great and had a lot of fun! They had a brief lesson on the anatomy of the platform and the shell, practiced loading and unloading in the dry-fire range, then they got to experience the real thing.
The North Austin TX Chapter celebrated their two-year anniversary hosting Action Shooting International (ASI) matches at Texas Shooting Academy with 56 participants!
The Central NJ Chapter hosted a home invasion seminar presented by Dave Rosenthal, president of Coalition of New Jersey Firearm Owners (CNJFO). It was a great night of learning and increasing reaction/response time.
The Las Vegas NV Chapter Facilitator and A-Teamer attended an excellent muzzle-loading class put on by Nevada Department of Wildlife
They had the opportunity to learn about and shoot 3 different types of muzzle-loaders.
Congratulations to the Conroe TX Chapter Facilitator Felicia Davis for earning the EDDIE KLEPPINGER NEW GENERATION AWARD. Felicia is well known in her community teaching not only hunter education, but other classes which introduce new shooters to firearms and safety. In the past 2 years, she has made a significant contribution to the Hunter Education program and the community she is serving. Congratulations, Felicia!
AG & AG Executive Director Robyn Sandoval was a guest instructor on Episode 322 of the Self Defense Gun Stories Podcast, which airs on iTunes, Listen Notes, Amazon, Google Podcasts, Tunein, Spotify, Podbean, and iHeart Radio.
New Articles & Videos
In July 2023, A Girl & A Gun published the following resources (membership may be required to view):
- Determined with Tonya Franklin
- 2Q 2023 Match Sets New Record
- Intro to Hunting Part 3
- Noteworthy with Jan Martin
About A Girl & A Gun
A Girl & A Gun (AG & AG) is a membership organization whose events are successful stepping stones for thousands of women entering the shooting community by fostering their love of shooting with caring and qualified instructors who coach them. AG & AG breaks barriers for women and girls in self-defense, and in pistol, rifle, and shotgun shooting sports by welcoming beginners to learn the basics of safe and accurate shooting and providing experienced shooters with advanced-level opportunities. The club has members in all 50 states and hosts recurring Girl’s Nights Out at more than 200 ranges throughout the United States.
For more information about A Girl & A Gun Women’s Shooting League, or to learn how to join, please visit AGirlandAGun.org. Follow AG & AG on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest for social media and corporate news.
