AMERICA'S GUN CULTURE: 'First line of defense': Shooting coaches stress safety with firearms skills lessons

Jul. 2—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Barry Rininger coaches the Jerome Junior Rifle Team. Tom "Tom Cat" Hindman provides insight about turkey hunting. Kyle Horner teaches how to use guns for protection. Richard Pletcher sells firearms.

They all have different areas of knowledge, but share an understanding that safety is paramount when handling weapons.

"Our whole goal is, first, to be safe; second, to teach some discipline with the kids so they learn respect for people and for weapons; and then the proper use of their weapon and what they're doing," Rininger said during a team practice at Jerome Sportsmen's Club late last month.

Hindman, owner of Hindman Funeral Homes & Crematory, has seen firsthand the harm that can occur when firearms are not handled properly.

"When it comes to the safety aspect, I bring a dimension to the class that not everybody can, and that's because I have an undertaker's perspective on tragedy," Hindman said. "Once a projectile leaves a firearm, the bullet is something that the person owns at that point. They own that bullet and any consequences that it creates. It can't be called back. I've seen that, and I've seen things that were completely avoidable."

'A straw purchase'

Pletcher estimates that about 25% to 30% of his business at Fairfield Avenue Notary Service comes from gun and ammunition sales. He offers handguns, long guns and semiautomatic AKs and ARs. But Pletcher exercises discretion in his sales at his store in the West End of Johnstown, a city with issues concerning crime and transient populations.

About once a week, somebody enters his shop attempting to make a straw purchase, an act in which a person buys a firearm, likely for somebody who is not legally allowed to own one.

"I get a lot of people, and I'm noticing lately, coming up from Philly and other areas — New York," Pletcher said. "They're on a cellphone talking to another individual, and looking at the guns and taking pictures and showing that individual. Then when she hangs up and says, 'Well, I'll take that one,' I'll say, 'No. I'm sorry. I can't sell you the gun because you were picking that gun out for that individual because that's a straw purchase.' They get upset with me with that."

He emphasized: "I will not do that."

Pletcher said there has been an increase in the past year and a half of older area residents buying small handguns for protection because of the "violence, crime, our government right now, the way the system is."

Pletcher said: "We're seeing a lot of mass shootings. We're seeing a lot of burglaries. We're seeing a lot of invasions, armed robberies. We're seeing a lot more violent crimes, and people feel that they need to have protection, especially our senior citizens."

'It's a culture'

The federal government recently enacted the Bipartisan Gun Safety Bill that, among its numerous components, expanded the background check requirements for individuals under age 21.

Congress and President Joe Biden, a Democrat, passed and signed the law in the aftermath of the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting — where an 18-year-old man killed 19 students and two teachers, while law enforcement officers waited outside the room for a prolonged period of time before entering.

Pletcher supports increasing the federal age requirement for buying semiautomatic rifles to 21.

"An 18-year-old person can't buy a .22 six-shot revolver with six shots in it, but they're allowed to go buy (a) 150-round AR or AK," Pletcher said. "My honest opinion is, which is more dangerous? See what I mean?"

Horner, owner of Mountain Top Defense in Johnstown, said events such as the Uvalde massacre can lead to increased interest in people wanting to take gun safety courses.

"If you come to any of my classes, one of the first things we talk about, especially in the concealed-carry class, is you are your first line of defense," Horner said. "You can't depend on other people to provide that for you, because realistically, you having the knowledge and ability to defend yourself is much better than having a cellphone with whatever you want on the other end of that."

Horner provides different types of lessons — for beginners to advanced shooters. One example is an introductory National Rifle Association- sponsored "Women on Target" class that teaches female students about gun safety. The next session is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 16 at Jerome Sportsmen's Club.

The classes, according to Horner, help bring people into the world of firearms.

"At the end of the day, that's what this is — it's a culture," Horner said. "There are so many avenues to take it."

Hindman has been a part of that culture since his childhood days. He fondly recalls the "rite of passage," as a teenager, when he was considered old enough and mature enough to hunt by himself.

"That was something that people aspired to," Hindman said, "realizing that if they could pass the test in their family and in the community, and be respected as somebody who respected the proper use of firearms, all safety precautions that needed to be observed — you were, at that point, an adult with an adult responsibility that you didn't take lightly."

Hindman has shared his passion for hunting and teaching with countless students over the decades, while continuing to enjoy his personal time in the woods, especially during spring turkey season.

"You can't possibly walk out of the spring woods without having the feeling that there's a creator out there that made all this happen," Hindman said. "That's the time of year when the Earth is reborn."

He describes hunting and learning how to properly handle firearms as "a real wholesome way to develop family values and ethics."

Hindman said: "You can teach a lot more lessons than just what's in the class. There's an opportunity for values and ethics and a lot of other wholesome things through this format. I always try to take advantage of that."

Hindman, of Johnstown, received the National Wild Turkey Federation's Roger M. Latham Sportsman Wild Turkey Service Award earlier this year. He has authored three books — "Tom Cat's Treasure Chest," "Autumn Agendas and Affirmations" and "The Perfect Pursuit" — and earned Hall of Fame Award recognition from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation.

The Jerome Junior Rifle Team shooters are accomplished in their area of firearms, too. Members have won Junior Olympics and 4-H awards, while also receiving honors by shooting for their high schools. Some have gone on to compete in college.

"Our goal is for them to get college scholarships, win matches and have fun," Rininger said.

The team also uses the sport to teach life lessons and develop personal relationships.

"We get kids that are introverts around here," Rininger said. "It doesn't take long that they become part of the group.

"They become good friends. They meet a lot of people. They make a lot of friends. It's a socialization that's really good for them. They get outside of their schools or their small communities."

His daughter, Nicole Rininger, said the experience "definitely just builds you as a person, to be a better person."

Brooke Szala, a team member from Davidsville, said the sport has become "a huge part of me, pretty much.

"Ever since I've joined, I've been so committed," Szala said. "I've done so many sports before. This is the first one that I've been committed to. There's just something about rifle that women become so successful in it. It's just something that you can attach to so easily. You want to commit at and be committed."

Szala and Molly Miller, from Bedford County, joined the team together earlier this year.

"There are definitely a lot of life lessons," Miller said. "You learn how to interact with different types of people. You meet new people from all over. Not all of us are from the same school. You learn, obviously, gun safety. That's important to know."