By Pat Culverhouse
A house of worship should be a place of peace; a sanctuary where individuals feel safe and secure. Three local officials want worshipers to know there could be dangers even in those safe havens, and how to be prepared … just in case.
Minden Chief of Police Jared McIver, 26th Judicial District Attorney Schuyler Marvin and Mayor Nick Cox are collaborating to bring a special initiative dubbed “Faith and Security: Protecting the Flock” to the Minden Civic Center Thursday, April 3 beginning at 5:30 p.m.
According to the officials, the special event is designed to help develop a security/crisis team at places of worship and to reaffirm the city of Minden’s commitment to “…fostering a safe, secure and united community where faith and safety go hand-in-hand.”
There is no cost to attend the event, but those who plan to attend are requested to RSVP to jmciver@mindenusa.com or mayor@mindenusa.com. RSVP helps ensure adequate amenities are provided.
McIver said the course will give church leaders and security team members an idea of what law enforcement needs and expects from them, and what the worship centers can expect from law enforcement.
“There are situations where minutes, even seconds can matter to the safety of someone,” he said. “We want to help security teams develop plans for situations that can develop quickly, and help them know how to handle it until we can respond. It’s important to be on the same page.”
McIver said to help security teams learn how to develop the resources available, a number of vendors will be on hand displaying items such as cameras, medical equipment, training material and firearms.
Not all situations are the same, McIver said, and he hopes to generalize his presentation and let security teams customize ideas to fit their particular circumstance.
McIver said the event has been in the planning stages for quite some time.
“We’ve been wanting to do this since I took office. This is training we think is essential to those who are on security teams in places of worship,” he said. “Hopefully, they will never have to use what they learn but if they’re prepared, the chances of a more successful outcome are much better.”
McIver said he hopes to conduct more training for security teams including firearm training, self-defense training and measures that might be used to defuse a critical situation without force.
“We hope to get instructors from our department and other agencies to help with training,” he said. “It won’t be the type of training for certification, but it will be designed to familiarize teams with what they can do.”