March 6, 2026

From Being a New Shooter to Championing Women’s Empowerment

By Jade Moldae

Erica Brown’s journey to becoming a passionate firearm enthusiast began a little later in life. What started as a personal trajectory has blossomed into a community-oriented endeavor to empower and encourage more women to take part in recreational shooting and self-defense.

Following her husband’s retirement from a 30-year law enforcement career in Illinois, Brown and her family decided on a move to Florida. While her husband and children were getting settled into their new home, Brown remained in Illinois preparing to sell their former one. During this time, Brown was looking for an outlet to break up the monotony of packing.

“One of my best girlfriends in Illinois was a firearm instructor, and she invited me to come out to the range with her. I was hooked,” Brown recalls.

Upon moving to Florida, Brown wanted to continue her journey with firearms — and that’s when she found a local A Girl & A Gun (AG & AG) chapter.

“I went and I was like, ‘this is amazing!’ There are no egos, it’s all girls, we’re all like-minded and we’re all here to do the same thing. It was nice and comfortable. I felt amazing and it was empowering to be a part of it,” Brown said. “AG & AG gave me an introduction and a gateway into doing this with people who are like me.”

From there, Brown’s passion ignited and she wanted to give back and help other women in their respective firearm journeys. So, in just a 10-year span, she became a range safety officer (RSO), instructor, business owner (opening and co-owning B2 Defense with her husband) and AG & AG facilitator for the Broward County Chapter.

“Organizations like AG & AG and supportive ranges that are hosting ladies’-only events take away some of that fear and intimidation a lot of women have at every point in their journey,” Brown said. “Whether someone is just starting or advancing, it’s hard sometimes to be out there with the guys and the big guns and machismo that goes along with some of that.”

Empowering New Shooters

About a year ago, Brown learned about First Shots® — an NSSF® program designed to introduce new shooters to safe, responsible firearm handling and recreational shooting — and was immediately interested in hosting an all-ladies event.

Finding a location to host a First Shots class was turnkey, as Brown’s AG & AG chapter meets at Gun World of South Florida. Through frequent visits to the range, Brown developed a strong relationship with Gun World Owner and CEO Kim Waltuch.

“From the beginning, Kim was very supportive of this idea, especially as a female in the firearm industry and a range owner at that,” Brown said. “Before the first one, we had plans on offering this quarterly. We already had to add an additional date because the first one sold out so quickly.”

In January, the Broward County Chapter of AG & AG successfully hosted its inaugural First Shots class — with 10 female students benefiting from a multi-faceted partnership between AG & AG, Gun World, B2 Defense Training and NSSF. It was very well received, which led to Brown electing to offer this class with greater frequency than she planned originally.

“Right now, we’re limiting it to 10 students — with five bays, 10 is a good number for me to maintain safety and give everyone some time on the range,” she said.

Two RSOs, Broward County AG & AG members, volunteer their time to ensure a safe environment is maintained, as well. Brown took joy in how this event created a greater sense of comfort to anxious students.

“There were a couple of students who were very apprehensive and told me they were nervous, but by the end of the class you could just see the changes in their posture. They were asking more questions — good questions — and becoming more comfortable,” she said.

As a new shooter, attending a First Shots event makes it clear it’s a level playing field for everyone.

“Being able to introduce First Shots and incorporate it into my chapter gives me a smaller, more intimate space — compared to our larger Girls Night Out events [GNO], where there are brand new shooters out there with lifelong shooters, which can be more intimidating,” Brown said. “In a First Shots class, I can tell them ‘Everyone out here is brand new. You’re not the only one.’ And once they’ve done it, they’ll come out and experience more at a GNO.”

Brown encouraged other AG & AG chapters to consider offering First Shots to women in their communities.

“If other chapters can incorporate this in their offerings, it would be phenomenal,” she said. “It will be a big help in growing chapters and bringing more ladies out into a comfortable and safe space.”

Marking Women’s History Month

With March being National Women’s History Month, Brown shared some ways the firearm industry could advance women’s involvement in the firearm community. Relating to women’s-only events, Brown contends there can’t be too many.

“If we can increase the number of ladies-only events it would only help increase participation — not that we need to be secluded, but we want to be kind of secluded,” she quipped.

Over the past 15 years, women have consistently been one of the fastest-growing segments in the firearm industry. With this growth, manufacturers have developed lines specifically for women — and have largely moved away from the “shrink it and pink it” approach. Brown noted this progression is crucial to welcoming more women into the space.

“Personally, I am not a fan of the ‘shrink it and pink it’ movement. We have to help people understand a firearm is a tool, not a cute accessory,” she said. “Pushing women into guns that are ‘cute’ or smaller does not work. All it does is it makes us feel small or less than when someone says a little pink revolver is the best thing for us because we are women.”

Along similar lines, Brown cautioned against taking a “one size fits all” approach to recommending firearms to women.

“We are not one size fits all; we are just as capable,” she stated. “Instead of small and cute, why not highlight other features that will open up a wider market — such as truly ambidextrous guns, etc.”

One such example is handguns with easy-to-rack slides — such as the Smith & Wesson SHIELD EZ and Walther PDP F-Series. These models, and others, have been marketed to women and designed with them in mind. While Brown asserted this feature is a helpful selling point for women, it’s not a necessity for all women.

“These guns are needed, because they help people. I have some students with some arthritic hands and these easier-to-rack slides are great, but we don’t need to push all women into buying them,” she said. “Let’s work with the abilities everybody has, regardless of gender or age. Give them what they can use, and the tools, techniques and methods to do it — no one should be put in a box.”

Whether you’re a range operator, instructor or facilitator for your local AG & AG chapter, the NSSF First Shots program stands ready to assist in helping you to provide a safe, welcoming experience with firearms. To learn more or to sign up as a host, contact Ann Gamauf at [email protected] or Zach Snow at [email protected]. For more information on First Shots, visit the First Shots welcome page on the NSSF website.