What It Takes to Be the Protector Your Family Deserves

First time shooting live ammunition

By George Rodriguez, Founder of Viking 6 Tactical

Being the best protector for your family isn’t about bravado or being the toughest person in the room. It’s about having the courage to consistently do what is right, even when it’s hard, especially when it’s hard. That’s a lesson I’ve learned through years of service, both overseas and here at home.

I’ve spent time deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan and worked the roads as a Vermont State Trooper for over two decades. I’ve seen the worst of humanity and the best of it, sometimes in the same moment. I’ve stood beside heroes, not the ones in comic books or movies, but real ones, men and women who risked everything for others. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, courage isn’t the absence of fear, its action taken in spite of fear.

What Does It Really Mean to Be Courageous?                           

Courage is defined as the mental or moral strength to persevere and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty. But that definition doesn't capture the full weight of what it means to live it. Courage is turning toward danger when others turn away, speaking truth when silence would be safer, sacrificing your comfort, or your safety, for someone else. It’s choosing the hard right over the easy wrong.

I’ve worn a lot of uniforms in my life, combat fatigues in warzones, the green and gold of the Vermont State Police on cold, dark roadways. I’ve walked through the deserts and cities of Iraq, climbed the unforgiving mountains of Afghanistan, and patrolled backroads in Vermont where backup was miles away. I know what it’s like to be scared, to know real fear, the kind where you can smell blood and gunpowder, feel the heat of adrenaline, and hear bullets snapping past your head. I know what it’s like when you still have to move forward when you don’t want to, you can’t freeze, you can’t run, you’ve got people counting on you.

But even with all that, the hardest role I’ve ever stepped into is being a husband and a father.  Because protecting your family isn’t just facing danger, it’s about preparing them for when danger shows up, and you’re not there. It’s about staying calm in chaos, leading when others panic, and having the courage to teach your loved ones how to protect themselves.  That kind of strength doesn’t come from rank or uniform, it comes from responsibility, and the willingness to train and prepare for what matters most.

The enemy isn’t always a person, sometimes it’s fear, complacency, or the lie that “someone else will handle it.”  When danger shows up, most people won’t “rise to the occasion,” most of us want to believe we’ll do the right thing when it matters, that we’ll act from strength and not panic. But in high-stress situations, we don’t rise to the occasion, we fall back on our training, our habits, and our preparation.

And that’s what being the protector your family deserves is all about, training and being prepared for that moment.

Defensive Shooting

Fatherhood: Where It All Comes Full Circle

Having a daughter changed my perspective as a protector. As a Trooper, I saw firsthand the consequences of fear, helplessness, and the victim mentality. I saw what happens to people, especially women and children, who were never taught how to protect themselves or even that they could. I knew I had a responsibility to give my daughter more, to give her the tools to face the world not with fear, but with quiet strength and confidence. I realized something deeper, one day, I won’t be there, one day, it might be up to her. So I had a choice to make, not just to protect her, but to teach her how to protect herself and that’s where the real journey started.

At 4 years old, she began training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Not because I expect her to beat every opponent in a fair fight, but because I wanted her to know she has the right, and the ability, to defend herself. She may never be able to overpower a boy or a grown man, but she has something just as important, confidence and resolve. She knows how to fight back, how to escape, and most importantly, she knows she’s not powerless.

Building a Warrior Spirit

Over the years, we added to that foundation. I’ve spent enough time in martial arts and real-world fights to understand the difference between learning about violence and being able to survive it. Learning technique is important, but stress, repetition, muscle memory and experience are what engrain it and make it instinctive.

She’s sparred, she’s failed, she’s gotten back up. That’s where the warrior spirit is born, in getting knocked down and choosing to get back up again.

At 5, she began learning about firearms. We started with BB guns in the backyard, just basic safety and marksmanship, moving into dry fire drills and VR simulations. She wasn’t interested in shooting live firearms yet, the noise bothered her, and that was fine. We moved at her pace, continuing to train and making sure the foundation was there.

This year, at 12, she told me she was ready. We went to the range, and I watched as all that preparation paid off. Her fundamentals were already solid, her stance, grip, trigger control, everything was there. She didn’t flinch, she didn’t freeze, she focused and performed with calm and control.

Now, our focus has shifted to something I believe is even more critical than physical skills, situational awareness and de-escalation. I’m teaching my daughter the same principles I’ve spent years instilling in Police Officers, Soldiers, and everyday citizens, the best fight is the one you never have to be in. It's not about who can throw the hardest punch or shoot the straightest, it's about recognizing danger early enough to avoid it entirely. You win not when you overpower someone, but when you see the threat before it escalates, make a smart decision, and get yourself or your loved ones to safety without conflict.

That’s real strength, the kind of courage I want her to carry, not only the courage to fight, but the courage to walk away when it’s the smarter choice, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Defensive Shooting

Strength Through Preparation

You may be reading this and thinking, “That’s great, but I’m not a Combat Vet or a Police Officer.” You don’t have to be, you just need the willingness to lead your family with confidence, and to prepare for the reality that bad things can happen, even to good people. You don’t need to be fearless, you need to act in spite of fear, because that’s what courage looks like.

It’s not about teaching your family to live in fear or to walk through life expecting violence around every corner, that’s no way to live. What it is about is teaching them to live with clarity and confidence, knowing that life can be unpredictable, and sometimes unfair. It’s about preparing them mentally and emotionally so that when adversity comes, whether it’s a confrontation, an accident, or a crisis, they don’t freeze or break down. Instead, they act, calmly, decisively and with purpose.

I want my daughter to know that she is capable of facing hard things, not because life is full of danger, but because I’ve seen what happens when people aren’t prepared. As a Trooper, I witnessed what panic and helplessness look like, and I’ve seen the difference when someone, even in fear, had the tools, mindset, and training to respond. That’s what I want for her, and for every family, the ability to respond from strength, not react out of fear.  It’s not about making them paranoid, it’s about giving them the quiet assurance that they can survive, endure, and overcome, not just because they’re lucky, but because they’re ready.

A Legacy of Strength

I’ve worn many uniforms in my life, and I’ve walked through places most people only see in the news, places filled with fear, danger, and uncertainty. The hardest and most sacred uniform I’ve ever worn is the one you don’t see, the role of father and husband where the responsibility doesn’t end when the shift is over or the mission is complete, it’s every day, every moment.

I don’t know what the future holds for my daughter. I pray she never finds herself in a situation where everything depends on what she does next. If that moment ever comes, she’ll be ready, not because she’s stronger than everyone else, but because she believes in herself, she’s trained and she’s seen what it means to stay calm in chaos.  I’m not raising her to be paranoid or afraid of the world, I’m teaching her to see it clearly and respond with purpose. Situational awareness, de-escalation, calm under pressure, these are the same lessons I’ve taught Officers, Soldiers, and civilians for years, but when I teach her, it’s different, it’s personal.

That’s the legacy I want to leave behind. Not medals, not titles, not stories about the things I’ve done. I want to leave behind a daughter who walks into the world unafraid, a woman who knows that danger can be real, but fear doesn’t have to be her guide. A woman who knows that courage isn’t loud, it’s quiet, focused, and practiced.

And one day, when someone asks her, “Who taught you to be strong?” I want her to say, “My dad,” not because I told her to be, but because I showed her how, every day, by how I lived, how I loved, and how I prepared her for the world.

And that’s what it means to be the protector your family deserves.

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Shooting and moving.