Gideon

Why Does a Church Need a Security Team?

Church Security Comments Off

Sep 122011

Reprinted with permission by Mars Hill Church on Thursday, May 5th, 2011 12:00 pm

by Nate Finn

“Why does a church need a security team??” That question is mostly asked incredulously when people visit one of our campuses and see a team of usually large guys wearing polo shirts in the lobby, the children’s ministry, and the sanctuary.

Security within our church can be a misunderstood concept. Many people believe that security does not belong in the church. On the one hand, there are people who say it unnecessarily heightens a perception of threat, and on the other, people say it means we’re not trusting in the sovereignty of God (to protect his church). We also recognize there are people who are simply opposed to our church and the gospel of Jesus. As Pastor Mark said in the 2007 sermon, “Pain and Progress,” from the Nehemiah sermon series, “Not everybody in Seattle has the same agenda as we do. Our goal is to read the Bible and love Jesus. … That’s not the most popular agenda in Seattle.” We get that, and the fact that people might oppose us is not what worries us. But here’s what we’re very committed to: people should be able to come to a Mars Hill Church service and worship in peace.

“If you are saying to yourself, ‘Aren’t they exaggerating this whole thing? I didn’t see or hear of anything,’ it is because our security teams are doing a fantastic job.”

Ultimately, the goal of the security teams is to protect the integrity of the service and how people are receiving the Word that’s being preached. Listening to a sermon can be a big experience—the Holy Spirit can be speaking to someone—and if there’s a disturbance, that moment can be broken.

Like the Israelites in Nehemiah’s day, we not only have the right to worship the God of the Bible but we have the obligation to provide a safe environment to those who want to attend Mars Hill and worship God freely. The First Amendment grants us the right to peaceably assemble, after all. (And, yes, it grants that right to those who’d oppose us to peaceably assemble and voice that opposition as well, and that’s fine, though as a private organization, we have the right to not permit that to happen on our property.)

The same people who opposed the Israelites are the same kind of people we experience today. However, the men and women you see with the security shirts are not there to intimidate but to protect the body from those trying to disrupt or cause harm. And yes, serious crimes do happen on church properties across the nation and they aren’t just petty crimes. Pastors have been killed and churches have been vandalized, robbed, and burnt to the ground. This information is not being used as a scare tactic. We just don’t want to be naïve and not be cognizant of what happens every week.

That said, our campuses experience vandalism, burglary, and theft as often as once a week. On Sundays, we keep watch on the premises, mostly in an effort to deter any potential threats by being proactive not just reactive. If you are saying to yourself, “Aren’t they exaggerating this whole thing? I didn’t see or hear of anything,” it is because our security teams are doing a fantastic job mitigating threats we see regularly throughout the year.

Children’s Ministry

One of our biggest priorities on Sundays is to keep our kids safe while they learn about Jesus each week. Similarly, we want parents to be able to learn about Jesus while they sit in the service, and part of this is that they need to be able to trust in the children’s ministry when they drop their kids off and know the kids will be safe and protected during that time.

There are, on average, five to six threats to the children’s ministries at our Mars Hill campuses per year. Security team members are present throughout the children’s ministry for two reasons. One reason is to mitigate serious threats, and the other is for accountability of our children’s ministry volunteers.

Lobbies and sanctuary

In addition, security team members keep watch in the lobbies and sanctuary. Ever wonder why there are two security team members who sit at the front of the sanctuaries while Pastor Mark preaches? Because several years ago, a man charged the stage with a large knife while Pastor Mark was preaching. In general, there is a higher potential of threats when the sermon topic is on spiritual warfare. There have been subsequent threats, and sometimes the threats vary by campus location and service time.

SPD

And lastly, at the Downtown Seattle and Ballard campuses, you will see uniformed Seattle police officers at the services. These officers are on duty and paid, though the shifts they work at the church are ones for which they’ve volunteered to take overtime hours, so they’re not being taken out of the normal police rotation to be stationed at our campuses. The strategy behind the uniformed police officer is primarily as a deterrent, but it’s also so that we can have more of an immediate response if there were an actual incident.

Guards along the wall

God called Nehemiah to build a wall and now God has called Mars Hill to build cities within the cities. God told Nehemiah to place guards along the wall to protect his people and the work, and we must place guards within our walls to protect God’s people and the work of sharing the Gospel. In order to provide the proper safety and security for our campuses, we need men who are able-bodied, have a heart to protect our children and families, and a desire to step up and volunteer a portion of their time to the Security Ministry. This ministry not only provides a valuable service to the church, but also is an opportunity for spiritual growth and community building for people who share common interests.

“But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry. And they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.”

Nehemiah 4:7–9

“Opposition only comes to those who are doing something. There are many people out there who live their life without being criticized or attacked because they spend their time lying on the couch with their finger up their nose not doing anything. There is no reason to oppose such people. So if you are doing something, expect opposition and be encouraged because you are doing something.”

Nate Finn is the executive assistant to Pastor Dave Bruskas and a member of the Ballard campus.

If you need assistance in developing and implementing a church security ministry team or need security team enhancements, then contact Gideon Protective Services, Inc. to learn more about our Church Security Seminars or full Secure Church training program. Call 888.305.6513 Ext. #3 or email info@gideonprotectiveservices.com.

Deadly Shooting Targets Congresswoman in Tucson, Arizona

Executive Protection No Responses »

Jan 122011

On 8 January 2011, Jared Lee Loughner reportedly shot U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords in the head during her constituent meeting outside a Safeway grocery store in Tucson, Arizona. Loughner, using a Glock Model 19 9mm handgun with extended magazine, allegedly shot 18 additional individuals, resulting in six dead, including Federal Judge John Roll, and 12 wounded. Loughner was captured and arrested at the scene. Giffords apparently did not have a Security Director on her staff and rarely used any security or police assistance for that matter even though she has had credible threats and acts of violence towards her in the past. Why? On 9 January, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a federal complaint charging Loughner with three counts of attempted murder and two counts of murdering federal employees.

This incident bears many similarities to previous lone offender attacks and highlights the challenging threat posed by such individuals as they operate independently and maintain few trusted associations-making them difficult to detect, monitor, and disrupt. The following are recent active shooter examples:

1. On 1 September 2010, a male suspect—possibly motivated by a violent form of environmental extremism and armed with a potentially functional improvised explosive device attached to his body, a replica weapon, and a starter pistol took hostages at the Silver Spring, Maryland headquarters building of the Discovery Channel and threatened to open fire. The standoff ended when he was killed by law enforcement.

2. On 4 March 2010, a gunman shot two Pentagon police officers at a security checkpoint at the Pentagon entrance. Pentagon officers returned fire and disabled the gunman, who later died of his injuries. The gunman’s motives remain unclear.

3. On 18 February 2010, a man flew a single-engine aircraft into the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) offices in an Austin, Texas office building, killing himself and one IRS employee. He allegedly targeted the offices as revenge for personal financial hardships he attributed to the IRS.

4. On 10 June 2009, an 88 year-old male with white supremacist sympathies opened fire with a rifle at the U.S. Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., killing a security guard. The attacker, who was wounded by return fire and arrested on the scene, died on 6 January 2010 prior to the conclusion of his trial.

Active shooter situations are unpredictable and evolve quickly. Typically, the immediate deployment of law enforcement is required to stop the shooting and mitigate harm to victims. The following measures are recommended to mitigate the impact of an active shooter incident on facilities.

1. Designate at least two evacuation routes and post routes in conspicuous locations.

2. Develop and exercise security and emergency action plans that include policies and procedures for dealing with active shooters.

3. Integrate local law enforcement, emergency responders, SWAT teams, K-9 teams, and bomb squads and first responders into training exercises.

4. When possible, establish random security patrols to disrupt potential surveillance efforts.

5. Install closed circuit television cameras accessible to law enforcement.

6. Train personnel on proper procedures relating to the identification and reporting of suspicious activities. While no single activity is an indicator of pre-operational attack planning, the combination of various activities-such as individuals loitering in sensitive areas for no apparent reason, unusual sketching, and pace counting-could be deemed suspicious in light of other available information.

7. If circumstances prevent safe evacuation, move away from the danger and find shelter in a pre-designated area of refuge or an area with a window to allow rescue. If possible, victims should make every attempt to notify rescuers of their location.

8. If victims are unable to evacuate, they should take all available actions to seek secure cover, such as locking doors and/or hiding in an area that provides maximum protection.

All of us live in a dangerous world that is only getting more dangerous and violent. If you are someone who is in the public eye or speak out about controversial issues, you are more susceptible to acts of violence toward you and others around you. Whether you want to admit it or not, high profile activities automatically put a target on your back. Society has proven time and time again that there are “wackjobs” amongst us. Not everyone is going to like what you have to say about the issue you are speaking about. Unfortunately, left wingers and right wingers see their only course of action is to cause harm and bring peril to your doorstep.

What will you do when the wolf knocks on your door? Allow yourself to become a victim or casualty? Turn and ignore the wolf and hope it leaves you alone? Fight the wolf off by any means necessary? If you’re not strong enough to fight the wolf off, what about utilizing a sheepdog to protect you? Why all the reference to wolves and sheepdogs? The wolf is a predator. The sheepdogs are those folks who will take a stand against the evil that continually haunts us and plagues our society that normal and decent human beings want to be a part of no matter what your cause is.

It is terrible what happened to U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords and those around her at the time of the attack. My heart grieves for all those involved. Could this tragedy have been prevented? The answer is yes! Hiring a Security Consultant, Executive Protection Specialist, Security Director, or some other Security Professional could have made a world of difference. Threats and other random acts of violence that is committed toward an individual or group needs to be taken seriously and validated by completing a comprehensive Threat Assessment. Hiring a Security Director to facilitate the security of all public and private events, including travel route and destination planning etc. is a critical must. Any security service that is needed can be contracted with a quality security firm or you can provide the services in-house by hiring your own security personnel. We must take a proactive stand and be strategic in protecting ourselves. We must move away from the frame of mind that says “that will never happen to me.” Every day that old adage is proven not to be true.

Gideon Protective Services, Inc. is here ready to assist you in all your security related solutions. We are a full service Security Firm featuring Executive Protection, Dignitary Protection, Security Consulting, Church Security Training and Protection, Firearms Training, Uniformed Security Guards, and a wide array of other related Security Consulting Services. Call us anytime at 888-305-6513 for a free confidential consultation to discuss your security needs. You can also email us directly at info@gideonprotectiveservices.com. We can also be reached on the web at www.executive-protection-services.com and www.executive-protection-services.net to learn more about the professionals at Gideon. Whatever you do, learn from the tragedies that have taken place and be proactive in protecting yourself and those around you.

Holiday Shopping and Security Awareness

Security No Responses »

Dec 062010

Shopping centers by nature present a unique challenge to security personnel, as they allow for open and unrestricted public access. Holiday periods and other special events can be particularly challenging as shopping centers experience a greater influx of people in their facilities. The following are key common vulnerabilities of shopping centers that could be exploited by terrorists or other adversaries:

• Unrestricted public access at most entry points does not allow for screening of individuals and their goods
• A large number of individuals coming and going allows for suspicious behavior to go unnoticed
• Multiple locations to place explosives (trash containers, planters, counters, etc.)
• Many people entering and exiting are carrying packages, making it difficult to identify potential hazards
• Vehicles routinely stop in front of entrances to pick up passengers or make deliveries so it is difficult for security to identify when surveillance of the property is being conducted
• Limited employee background checks fail to screen for potential adversaries
• Limited security force with limited training reduces the facility’s security posture and response in the event of an incident

A successful, or even unsuccessful, attack would have consequences well beyond the target facility and could result in:

• Many casualties and structural damage
• Activation of emergency services, such as law enforcement, fire, and rescue, taxing available resources in the community/region
• Jobs and businesses being lost, affecting mall owners and insurance companies
• A reduction in consumer spending and tourism if individuals do not feel safe in public venues

Security personnel are the first line of defense for a facility in the event of an attack or plotted attack. However, security officers are generally trained to handle and detect property crimes and crimes against the individual, not how to prevent and respond to terrorist-related incidents. Incorporating this type of terrorism-related training is just one protective measure that malls can take. Incident planning and preparation is also vital.

Some options for consideration are:

• Establish security procedures and a threat alert system, including a go-to person or telephone number for mall tenants to report suspicious activity
• Establish terrorism training programs for security staff
• Maintain an open line of communication with local law enforcement
• Know the delivery vehicles and staff who are routinely on the property
• Install security cameras around the property and facility
• Inform tenants and local law enforcement if there is concern about a special event that is to be held at the mall
• Maintain close liaison with tenants who might be logical terrorist targets
• Watch for people and actions that are out of place
• Make note of suspicious statements, people, items, and/or vehicles
• Eliminate any information from shopping center websites that may provide security information to
adversaries

Any suspicious activity should be reported to local law enforcement immediately.

If you have any questions about any of our services, such as Private Security Guards/ Patrol Services, Bodyguards, Executive Protection, Dignitary Protection, Church Security Training, Security Consulting, Armored Vehicles, Safe Rooms, or Firearms Training for you, your superiors, your company, your church, or someone you know, feel free to call or email Gideon Protective Services, Inc. for a free, confidential consultation. You can find us on the web. See all that Gideon can offer you.

Does Your Employer Help Protect You? What is a Survival Room?

Security No Responses »

Oct 212010

Have you ever thought about the fact crime happens all the time, all around us, whether were at work, at home, traveling in a vehicle, or even on vacation. What would you do if the unthinkable happened at your place of employment? Has your current employer taken the necessary steps to ensure all of its employees are safe? Most people from all walks of life and most businesses have the mindset “it will never happen to me”.
The auto parts giant AutoZone has taken a proactive step to implement a security plan for all of its employees, regardless of location, rank, or status in the company. AutoZone has identified survival rooms and emergency teams for an active shooter program in case violence comes to visit them while at work. AutoZone didn’t want to have an active shooter program for managers, an active shooter for senior managers, an active shooter program for other ranks and files. We wanted it to be universal and something that could be applied and shared with everyone. The company also wanted to personalize the training and provide its employees with information they could use at work as well as in their personal life. Doing so meant changing the mindset of personnel and getting them to constantly prepare for an incident at any moment. A big part of this is playing “the what if” game. “Where you’re sitting right now, what if you heard shots fired down the hallway?” AutoZone encourages employees to always know where the nearest exit is as well as secondary and tertiary exits.
The company has also trained its employees about “survival rooms” in the building. These are rooms that can be locked from the inside and have no windows. The company stores medical supplies, food and water in these rooms. “This is for people who have to evacuate, but can’t get out of the building. They can get into a survival room and barricade themselves in there.”
AutoZone has also trained employees about what to do should an incident occur. “Don’t expect law enforcement to be there to rescue you. You are on your own. They’ll be there probably when it’s over.”
What do you do when you’re at home? The same came be applied. Play the “what if” game. Change your mindset. Apply the fight or flight concept. If you can’t escape your residence and need to “hold up,” what about the concept of a “survival room” or “safe room?” Safe Rooms aren’t just for the wealthy and influential anymore. People across the board, including some corporations, are recognizing we live in uncertain times and we must better prepare ourselves for our own self defense until the professionals arrive. We all know the Police cannot be everywhere all the time.
A safe room can be as basic as a closet or an ordinary room in your residence or place of business, all the way to a self contained fortified room complete with its own electrical source, water, food, surveillance/ counter surveillance equipment, medical supplies, extra cell phone, and even weapons to defend you and your loved ones. The Safe Rooms can also be built to withstand harsh weather conditions. Check out two examples of Safe Rooms down below.

If you have any questions about Safe Rooms, Security Consulting, Work Place Violence, Church Security Training, Armored Vehicle, Executive Protection, or Firearms Training for you, your superiors, your company, or someone you know, feel free to call or email Gideon Protective Services for a free, confidential consultation. See what Gideon can do for you. Check us out at http://www.executive-protection-services.com or our blog at http://www.executive-protection-services.net.

Shooting at California Mormon Church

Church Security No Responses »

Aug 312010

Unfortunately these stories keep coming into existence.

On 8-29-10, Clay Sannar, 42, a lay bishop with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was doing administrative paperwork on Sunday between church services when a man came into the Visalia church and asked for a leader of the church. After being directed to Sannar, the attacker shot and killed him. After the shooting, a caller identified himself to police as the attacker. Police then responded and there was a confrontation with several shots exchanged. The suspect was hit multiple times. He was taken to nearby Kaweah Delta Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. No police personnel were injured. The suspect did not seem to know Sannar, and he was not a member of the church, and no one at the church recognized him.

It is not known yet whether or not that particular Mormon Church had a Church Security Ministry Team in place, or some other security awareness training. My heart goes out to the entire congregation and to the family of Clay Sannar.

We should learn from this tragedy so that this sort of act of violence will not happen again. Unfortunately, I think it will only continue due to the fact that we live in a fallen world that is in a state of permanent moral decay. We all think it will not happen to us, but we couldn’t be more wrong. We must protect our flock. I urge all church members of all faiths to ask their church administrators what security plans they have in place should the wolf come knocking on their door for a visit. If your church has a security ministry team, great, keep it tuned up. If it does not, implore your church administrators to seek out security consultants and implement a security team. Learn what options are available. There is a security plan that can be tailored to any church setting or function.

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Why Does a Church Need a Security Team?

Deadly Shooting Targets Congresswoman in Tucson, Arizona

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Does Your Employer Help Protect You? What is a Survival Room?

Shooting at California Mormon Church

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