Founder & Lead Instructor, Avoid Escape Defend Academy (AEDA)
USCCA Certified Firearms Instructor · Range Safety Officer · Birmingham, Alabama
I founded AEDA so responsible citizens could learn to think clearly, act lawfully and protect what matters most. I train beginners and experienced shooters alike, from their first virtual class to their first time on the range and beyond.
Why I Started AEDA
AEDA didn’t begin on a firing range. It began around a table. What I experienced that day challenged a fear I’d carried since 1992.
I was hosting a KING7MODE event, a group of men working through a board game and player journal built to reveal gaps in our personal and masculine development. When men get honest feedback in the right environment, the way they see themselves can change in a moment.
One of those men, T.W., invited my best friend L.A. and me to his own event: a day at the range. We trained, shared lunch and entered the raffle (L.A. won the big prize). That day, I also shared my vision for eMquattro with T.W. to get his feedback.
That day changed me.
In 1992, I was pulled over in Baton Rouge. I wasn’t speeding. I wasn’t swerving. I was just driving. I handed the officers my military orders, and it didn’t matter. They searched my vehicle anyway, dog and all. The Rodney King beating was still fresh in everyone’s mind, and I wanted no part of that ending. So I stayed calm, waited until they finished, and drove away when they let me go.
For years after that, I felt fear every time a patrol car pulled in behind me.
At T.W.’s range day, I saw the kindness and generosity of the officer who hosted us, and I made a decision: I would release that fear in exchange for personal power. I still don’t love seeing a cop in my rearview mirror, but the fear is gone. And by the time I drove home, I knew firearms training belonged inside the personal development work I was already building.
A few weeks later, I completed my USCCA Certified Firearms Instructor training. My instructor was deeply focused on the legal side of self-defense and responsible firearm ownership, and three words from that training stayed with me: Avoid. Escape. Defend. They became the name of this academy.
Today, AEDA is one part of a larger promise.
Together with eMquattro (personal development and community) and 7DS (identity transformation, built on my book Why You Absolutely Must REFRAME Your Self 1ST)…
AEDA helps men and women develop the Ultimate Protector Identity: prepared, principled people who protect themselves, their families and their freedom.
Credentials
I’m a USCCA Certified Firearms Instructor with certifications in:
- Concealed Carry & Home Defense Fundamentals
- Women’s Handgun & Self-Defense Fundamentals
- Countering the Mass Shooter Threat
- Emergency & First Aid
- Range Safety Officer
View my USCCA Instructor Profile
The Four Principles Behind Every AEDA Course
- Be Prudent: Think first. Think completely.
- Be Proficient: Master your entire protective toolbox through repetition and review.
- Be Protective: Be READY so you don’t have to get ready.
- Be Parliamentary: Honor the law in a way that protects your freedom.
“We don’t simply train people to carry firearms. We train diligently and specifically to become prepared, principled human beings.”
Al “Coach A7T” Tucker
Your journey starts with one beginner-friendly evening. No firearm required.
or explore the full BULLSEYE Development Journey