My NJ gun ownership journey in photos: Part 1 — getting started

It’s always been my desire to own a gun. Perhaps it’s because I grew up with a lot of anxiety about crime from when I was a little girl until I was a young adult.

I always thought it was crazy that we didn’t have a specific plan in my home for what to do if somebody broke in. I used to ask my dad when I was younger,

“Why don’t we have a gun in case bad guys break in?”

And my dad used to say,

“No. We don’t have guns. That’s not what we do. ..Don’t worry. Mom and I will protect you.” But, how? I wondered.

Throughout the past few years rising anti-Semitic acts, it occurred to me that many Jews, being largely non-violent people, did not only own guns, but were against them.

I always thought this defied logic, since we were vulnerable to violence and hate. And in the last two or three years, I realized that non-violence and passivity don’t necessarily need to go hand in hand. And so began my gun journey.

I always thought it would be so difficult to even obtain a firearm because of all the oppressive laws here in New Jersey. And that even if I owned one, I would never really have the freedom to use it if my family were being threatened.

But recent Supreme Court challenges have made it easier for people to be able to defend themselves here in New Jersey.

I had heard nightmares about trying to get through the first phase of gun ownership—Just getting the firearms license. But in my case, it was simple. I sent in an application to my local police department, and very soon after, was fingerprinted and received a call not two weeks later, saying that for seven bucks I could go and pick up my license. That’s when I realized I was really on my way.

The next step would be learning how to operate a firearm and eventually actually purchasing one. I visited a local shooting range that I had heard so much about. It’s called WeShoot in Lakewood.

It was an amazing experience, because not only do they sell firearms but their training is exemplary. I received my initial training from a retired police officer, named Heidi whom I admire not just for her professionalism, but also for the fact that she was a woman and understood the unique challenges that a female has when operating a firearm.

She taught me every single thing I needed to know about her how the firearm operates, the differences between the different types, and gave me suggestions about which gun and which size ammunition would work best for me when I ultimately purchased.

And after this thorough training, she took me out to the range to practice. And, as a lot of women are, I realized I was really good at it. The owners of WeShoot, Elie Bivas and Mark Abady, did everything they could to make me feel comfortable, secure, and safe during the entire process.

Then they explained to me exactly the steps that I would need to take before I could apply for a carry permit.

The entire process was so seamless and made me even more enthusiastic about gun ownership and more confident in my decision. Of course, my goal is to be super adept and super safe before bringing a firearm into my home.

So I told Mark and Elie they better get used to me because they’ll be seeing me around more often than they may even want to. Step one is now in the books. Now onto step two. Practice, practice, and more practice.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Judi Franco only.

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