When Jon and Terri Strayer first envisioned owning a gun shop, it wasn’t because they wanted another business to operate. They already have a successful, well-established lawn equipment business in Live Oak that keeps them plenty busy. But Jon and Terri both have a sincere interest in personal protection and the tools available for that purpose. That interest has led them through many firearms and self-defense training classes, as well as regular participation in self defense oriented competitive shooting.

They compete in local, regional and national matches of the International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) and Jon is one of a very small number of IDPA Five Gun Master class shooters.

The idea behind Pro Arms, Inc. is to have a firearms and related equipment store that primarily addresses the needs of people who are interested in their own personal protection. This certainly includes guns and gear, but also, through the Training Division of Pro Arms, includes sharing the knowledge that is available for people to make informed decisions about their own protection. Pro Arms staff members teach classes on all aspects of personal protection, including concealed carry, basic firearms safety and skills and other unarmed methods of self-defense.

Jon and Terri also regularly assist with teaching classes presented by the Lethal Force Institute (LFI), directed by Massad Ayoob, and Jon is an NRA certified Basic Pistol and Personal Protection instructor. They have attended classes taught by many of today's best firearms trainers, including Massad Ayoob, John Farnam, Frank Garcia and Andy Stanford, just to name a few. Their vision for Pro Arms is to share that knowledge with their customers and help them make the best selections when purchasing any self defense related products.

But, the vision doesn't stop there. They wanted to involve a number of their friends and associates in fulfilling their mission of helping people protect themselves and their loved ones. Shortly after the idea of a gun shop materialized, they asked friend, fellow shooter and lifelong public safety professional Steve Denney to be General Manager of Pro Arms, Inc.

During his career, Steve has been a supervisor and administrator in military and civilian law enforcement and public safety, as well as the manager of a private healthcare security and safety department. He is also an NRA certified instructor and is a senior instructor for the Lethal Force Institute's Judicious Use of Deadly Force, Stressfire, Handgun Retention and Disarming and Kubotan/Persuader disciplines.

Steve regularly teaches LFI classes, as well as programs presented by Pro Arms, Inc. He also writes a monthly column about firearms and firearms training for the online law enforcement resource and information site, Officer.com. He is a member of the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA) and the International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors (IALEFI).

Steve shares the Strayer's enthusiasm and commitment to making Pro Arms a valuable resource to all of the firearms community.

Speaking of community, the staff and associates of Pro Arms also share their expertise with the Live Oak community by assisting the Live Oak Police Department with presenting women's self defense classes and providing training opportunities for the LOPD, Suwannee County Sheriff's Department and other local law enforcement agencies.

Pro Arms also serves a wider audience by hosting regular Internet podcasts on such subjects as reviews of guns and gear, firearms training and various aspects of personal protection. Participants in the podcasts, in addition to the staff at Pro Arms, are other well known firearms professionals from both the Live Oak community and around the country who have graciously provided their time and their knowledge for the benefit of the podcast audience.

Regular participants in the podcasts are Jon and Terri, Steve, well-known firearms writer, trainer and use of force expert Massad Ayoob, firearms dealer and trainer Herman Gunter, retired police officer and Pro Arms staff member Mike Larney, Chris Christian, the professional hunting, outdoor and gun writer and shooting industry reporter, and Gail Pepin, our intrepid podcast producer.

Gail, by the way, is not just our techno-wizard, but also holds multiple women's titles in IDPA and Glock Shooting Sports Foundation matches from around the country.

Through these and other activities, Pro Arms continues to interact with the community and it's customers, with the goal of providing not just products, but also our experience in their selection and use. It is our ultimate goal to help our friends and neighbors stay safe and secure as they go about their daily lives. Whether its in the store, on the range or in the classroom, you can always count on straight shootin' from the protection professionals at Pro Arms.