OP_042519

6 | April 25, 2019 | the orland Park Prairie news
OPPrairie.com
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From Page 5
Rogers’ bio, he would start
to crack up. That caused
the crowd to roar, and
Rogers came up to the
stage to help O’Connor
out and started his speech
with some ‘dam’ jokes of
his own.
It was an emotional
night.
In between the laughter
and tears were recognitions
and speeches
from the likes of Jeanette
Brook, an Orland Park
resident and 1980 Andrew
High School who
co-founded the nonprofit
One Light Self-Defense,
which focuses on teaching
women at risk to defend
themselves. Other
Andrew honorees were
the late Jerome Cortez (a
1990 graduate who was a
chief engineer for Navistar)
and Amanda Dexter
(2006, who is a clinical
assistant professor at the
University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
Sandburg honorees were
Tanya Carter (1990, who
is the director of student
services in Lansing School
District 158), Randy Cohen
(1986, who is the associate
athletic director
for medical services at the
University of Arizona),
Thomas Lynch IV (2007,
who is a postdoctoral fellow
working at the AbbVie
pharmaceutical) and Danielle
Osmelak (2004, who
is an assistant professor at
Governors State University).
Joining Baldea and Rogers
from Stagg is Matthew
Dominick (2005, who is
a senior director for contents
and production for
the Indianapolis Colts) and
Erika Larson (1996, who
is a clinical director and
developmental therapist
with the Kick Start Pediatric
Therapy Network).
Women learn tips and tricks for self-defense
Orland Parkers
lead State Rep.
Margo McDermed’s
program
Mary Compton
Freelance Reporter
For a group of women
taking a recent Self-Defense,
Distraction and
Awareness Tactics class,
they had one word in mind
for themselves: safety.
The class, taught by One
Light Self-Defense and
organized by State Rep.
Margo McDermed (D37-
Mokena), was held April
9 at Parker Road Bible
Church in Mokena.
“We do these free community
events about four
times a year,” said Amy
Shanks, communications
analyst with the Illinois
Contact Lens Care • Family Practice
House Republicans. “This
is less about politics and
more about providing services.
“This is something that
when you really need it,
you want to have that
knowledge. This is to prepare
for something ahead
of time. We heard about
this group, One Light Self-
Defense, who gives these
free classes. We thought
we’d bring them in because
they put on a great
class. Last year, we had
someone come back and
tell us they had used what
they had learned.”
Shanks, herself, has taken
this class.
“There are common
misconceptions about
defense, such as: When
women walking with their
keys between their fingers,
that’s actually not a
great way to keep safe because
the keys bend over,”
Shanks said. “Tonight,
these women will learn
how to get out of holds
when someone grabs your
arm or your neck. They
don’t teach fighting back;
it’s about how to get away
from your attacker.”
Staying safe is important
for Leslie Labit, of
Mokena. She and her adult
daughter Amy Griffin, of
Frankfort, took the class
together.
“It’s important to me,
because I wanted to learn
how to defend myself and
for my daughter to learn
that, as well,” Labit said.
Gary and Jeanette Brook,
of Orland Park, teach skills
on how to act in various
situations. They have been
married 33 years and they
have dedicated their lives
in serving others. Both
have been doing martial
arts for more than 23 years.
One Light has taught
more than 250 free selfdefense
workshops
Gary Brook (left), of Orland Park, teaches a skill to
Christine Hunt, of New Lenox, on April 9 during a Self
Defense, Distraction and Awareness Tactics class held
at Parker Road Bible Church in Mokena.
Photos by Mary Compton/22nd Century Media
Abbey Knize (left), a student at Lockport Township High
School, practices a technique with One Light Self-
Defense’s Gary Brook during the event, organized by
State Rep. Margo McDermed.
and trained more than
6,500 people in the United
States.
“We have 10 people on
our team that volunteers to
do this,” Gary said. “We
help teach people on how
to stay safe.”
Jeanette added, “Anyone
can be a victim at any
time. ... You need to be
prepared at all times.”