OLYPHANT, Pa. — It's a truth no one wants to think about.
"1 in 3 women in their lifetime will be assaulted by someone, whether it's a stranger or a non-stranger, so it's important that you have the tools to have the confidence and a plan to defend yourself," said Kristen Cunard from Untouchable.
Kristen Cunard and Brittany Bella are the female force behind "Untouchable."
A women's self-protection program out of Gracie NEPA in Olyphant, run by Jeff Reese.
"I spent the past 25 years training with members of the Gracie family, who are the founders of Gracie Brazilian jujitsu and the flashpoint of the UFC," said Reese, Head Instructor and Gracie NEPA Founder.
Empowering women has been a mission of Jeff's for a long time.
"Once we arm them with that mindset that they are worth protecting, now we can equip them with the strategies to neutralize and escape an aggressive attack by a man; in an ideal world, men wouldn't attack women, but that's not our reality," added Reese.
That reality has led dozens of women to take the "Untouchable" boot camp. This Sunday, another group will do the same.
"A lot of what we show at first is understanding that it's scalable because Hollywood makes it seem like the best defense is aggressive kicks to the groin or eye gouges, and sometimes that's not the answer. Sometimes you can escape without there being a physical altercation, so we start off with the psychological and scale up to the most violent," said Cunard.
And this 6-week self-defense program is for every woman.
"It doesn't matter if you're 15 or 65; the techniques are based on strategy and timing and leverage, so we are able to do that at any level," said Reese.
"Untouchable" has proven successful.
"Female students, law enforcement students, children, who've had to use it, and it's always a positive glowing review that they escaped the situation safely," Reese added.
And sometimes, we need a kick or a slap to know that we are worth defending.
"This is for you; this is something that you can pass down to future generations, your daughters, to let them know they should not be pushed over; they are worth protecting," said Bella.
The Untouchable Boot Camp begins Sunday at noon at Gracie NEPA in Olyphant; you can sign up at the door.