Whether on the Jefferson City Greenway, in a park or walking to a car in a parking lot, awareness is key when alone.
Dave Predmore, the main instructor at the Jefferson City Judo Club, warned 11 women and girls Wednesday night that even in the Capital City, bad things can happen.
As part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the women were participating in a free self-defense class for service members, veterans and their families, offered by the Combat Boots and High Heels (CBHH), said Maj. Adrienne Spadavecchia, Missouri Army National Guard.
CBHH is a nonprofit organization started in Columbia that strives to engage, enable, and empower men and women through mentorship and assistance. It works to prevent negative outcomes for veterans and service members by addressing women service members' unique needs. It battles suicide, homelessness, unemployment and poverty.
CBHH Executive Director Spadavecchia said she had been thinking about organizing the Jefferson City event for some time, and when the club reached out to her, she jumped on the opportunity.
She provided students with data on U.S. military sexual violence. That U.S. Department of Defense data showed 8,600 female and 6,300 male service members were sexually assaulted in 2016. Most were assaulted more than once (resulting in 41,000 assaults). The data said 81 percent of the victims did not report the assaults in 2016, and 58 percent of women and 60 percent of men who report assaults in the military face retaliation.
Predmore and other instructors began the evening by teaching the women how to fall, in case they were tripped or pushed by a possible assailant.
"We're trying to learn some preventive stuff," Spadavecchia said. "So if folks are in a situation, they can get some help."
Predmore said before the class that the club was honored it could help people in the service.
"I expect a lot of questions," he said. "I expect to help a lot of ladies think about situations when they're out and about.
"It's going to be a learning experience for all of us."
It would normally take about 40 hours to go over all the information he expected to share during the Wednesday evening class - the first of two. The next class is Oct. 10.
After they learned to fall, Predmore began teaching simple things to keep in mind.
He said the most important thing they could carry was a cellphone, to let people know where you are and when to be expected.
The second important thing they should always do, he said, is be aware.
"Ever get that funny feeling that something wasn't right?" Predmore asked. "Don't ignore that feeling."
He said they should always be cognizant of what they're doing and where they're going.
And, make some noise.
The women moved on to learn techniques for breaking away from somebody who might want to do them harm. Always make noise, he reminded them.
Fifteen pounds of pressure will rip an ear off, Predmore said. That same pressure will snap a knee.
If you feel threatened by someone, don't hesitate to jab their eyes, rip their nose, kick them, he told the group.
Missouri National Guard Sgt. Ashly Cox said CBHH staff enjoy helping service members and their families.
"We like to encourage women to try things like this. And to really empower them with knowledge and mentorship and things they may need like women's self defense," Cox said.
The organization encourages women who may not live in an area where CBHH offers services to seek out people who can organize events like the self-defense class.
"This is empowering. Some of us are single. Some of us may have experienced traumatic situations in life, both inside and outside the military," Cox said. "And we need to be mentally and physically strong."
Not everything a person needs to learn in a normal life is taught in the military, she said.
"We hope to learn some unique self defense that can help if someone comes into a situation that they aren't expecting," Cox said.
Missouri National Guard Capt. Michelle Smith said the organization does a yoga event that helps women mentally and physically. It also offers Operation Baby Box, for expectant mothers. Inspired by maternity packages the Finnish government sends to all expectant mothers, the boxes act as "new baby starter kits," according to combatbootsandhighheels.org.
The organization has offered the boxes for about three years. The boxes include tiny mattresses, so they can be used as bassinets. The boxes contain "new parent essentials," such as diapers, breast pads and other products. CBHH also connects clients with parenting education to go with the boxes.
Expectant parents can go online to Baby Box University, where they can watch instructional videos to learn about safe sleep, breast feeding, nutrition, brain health and other issues, Smith said.
"Everyone comes from different situations," Cox said. "Maybe you have post-traumatic stress syndrome. Maybe you have been in an abusive relationship. Maybe you're homeless. We've helped people from every walk of life - mostly with a connection to the military."