Street Smart Celebrates Five Years

Coming together to celebrate the last five years was the main agenda for the Redlands Police Department (RPD) and Redlands citizens, as the community gathered to commemorate the department's Street Smart Program's five years of service. On Nov. 1, the RPD hosted its 5th year anniversary party, with many Street Smart students filling the Redlands Community center's multipurpose room. Many came in Halloween costumes, with the celebration being so close to the holiday, ready to eat and dance. Street Smart, a self-defense program overseen by the RPD, was created in an effort to prevent bullying, help Redlands youth develop self-defense skills and teach children how to exemplify the attributes of a leader, shared program leaders. Street Smart instructor and RPD Officer Alex Paredes oversees the program. "Street Smart serves as an after school program. It is a safe haven for kids, where they can come hang out, learn self defense, build camaraderie, build friends and build confidence. It teaches them perseverance, self control, fighting spirit, courtesy and justice. It builds better people, better citizens. I credit who I am today with a program like this back when I was in high school. When I see [students] come in not very motivated, seeing them grow not only as people but as martial artists, seeing their skills grow and seeing many of them go from being these little kids into matured adults is amazing," Paredes said. To develop self-defense skills, the program uses a martial arts system consisting of an ancient Korean martial arts system combined with Jiu Jitsu. Students ages 6 through 17 participate in the program. "We teach self defense based on realistic situations and use martial arts as a steady background. We want to prevent kids from bullying, from being bullied, and teach them them how to be able to get themselves out of certain dangerous situations," assistant instructor Marissa Dollins said. Street Smart student Kaitlyn Soleski added, "It basically teaches us how to protect ourselves from bad people. One of my friends got jumped and my parents wanted me to be able to protect myself if that ever happened to me, so my parents thought Street Smart would be good. And it is. I love it." Eric Aguilar is a Street Smart student who has been participating in the program since it began in 2008. "I saw a flyer on a wall back in 2008. I came (to the class) out of curiosity and I've been coming ever since. The morale, the discipline and the [unity] throughout the whole program keeps the kids off the street and helps them to make the right choices and turns them into something new," Aguilar said. Uniforms, belts, stripes and medals are all earned, explained instructors. Students also have the opportunity to win medals and trophies as rewards for their accomplishments. Ricardo Solis, whose daughter, Valeria, is a Street Smart student, said, "I love how they teach her to be prepared for any danger and be reliant on herself." Ruben Gallardo, grandfather of student Ruben Elis, said, "This program is excellent. The main part I like about it is that they are all very disciplined. Whenever the instructors aren't here the older kids with the higher ranking belts immediately take charge and the kids listen. I would recommend and encourage every child to participate in this program." Officer Paredes is the program's lead instructor and has been instructing students in this type of martial arts since 1991. He is aided by assistant instructors Estevan Sandoval and Marissa Dollins. Sandoval is a prior student of Paredes's and is the first of his students to earn a black belt. "At first it was all for myself," said Sandoval. "It helped me grow as a person. Now it's grown into more of a passion to pass that on to others, especially in this generation where I feel like there's a lack of mentors. I want to be the one (who's) there for them. The best part is always working with all these kids and being able to impact them. If I can change just one life out of the whole bunch I would be ecstatic, because I know [Officer Paredes] changed my life in a very serious, sort of drastic, way. He just took it and turned it into something so much better than what I thought it could ever be, and so I really want to do that for as many kids as I can." Pardes said one of the goals of the program is to "teach the old ways in a more modern way, and through that hope to bring all those leadership attributes." "This program has taken me on a journey I never thought would come to pass," student Aguilar said. [END] 5th Year Anniversary Party Date: Friday, November 01, 2013 Time: 4:00 p.m. Google Map Event Location: Redlands Community Center Address: 111 W. Lugonia Ave. Redlands CA 92374 Description: Street Smart is celebrating 5 yrs of empowering youth. Attend a potluck w/drinks provided. Lasts until 6pm. CONTACT INFO Phone: 909-798-7572 Email: personalsafety@redlandspolice.org Website: facebook.com/streetsmartdefense1 Original article: With bullying at its climax and suicide rates rising, inspirational programs such as the Redlands Street Smart program are vital to today's society. As years progress and innovations manifest, the world progresses as well both for the good and for the bad; safety rises and danger rises along with it. It would only be fair to prepare children for the dangers that lie ahead and help them develop leadership attributes that set examples for others. For the past 5 years, the Redlands Police Department has provided the community of REdlands with a program that just does that, Street Smart. On the evening of Friday, November 1st, The Redlands Police Department hosted its 5th year anniversary party which, considering the fact it was right after Halloween, eventually became an anniversary/Halloween party for the students of Street Smart. Many Street Smart students filled the REdlands Community Center's multipurpose room in full costume ready to eat, dance, and have fun with their fellow peers. Street Smart is a self-defense program ran by the REdlands Police DEpartment and was created in an effort to prevent bullying, help students develop self-defense skills, and teach them the attributes of a leader. "Street Smart serves as an after school program. A safe haven for kids where they can come hang out, learn self defense, build camaraderie, build friends, build confidence, teach them perseverance, self control, fighting spirit, courtesy, and justice. it builds better people, better citizens. I acquaint who i am today with a program like this back when i was in high school. When i see them come in not very motivated, seeing them grow not only as people but martial artists as well, seeing their skills grow and seeing many of them grow from being these little kids into these matured adults is amazing," instructor of Street Smart, Officer Alex Paredes, said. To develop self-defense skills the program takes on a form of martial arts system which consists of an ancient Korean martial arts system and jujutsu combined. Students ages 6-17 participate in the program and rejoice upon the many great results it brings to each one of them individually. "We teach self defense based on realistic situations and use martial arts as a steady background. We want to prevent kids from bullying, from being bullying, and teach them them how to be able to get themselves out of certain dangerous situations," assistant instructor, Marissa Dollins, said. Street Smart student, Kaitlyn Soleski, added, "It basically teaches us how to protect ourselves from bad people. One of my friends got jumped and my parents wanted me to be able to protect myself if that ever happened to me, so my parents thought Street Smart would be good. And it is. I love it." Not only does it help them acquire martial arts/self-defense skills and leadership qualities, but it also helps them grow as a person. Street Smart has impacted many young hearts of the community and will continue to do so. It provides the students with a safe haven and a group of wonderful people, with a variation in ethnicities, cultures, and ages, creating a wonderful environment. Despite the minor differences amongst the students, they are all united, and that's probably the best part of it all. The bond the instructors have with the students is incredible. The students look up to the instructors and the instructors set a wonderful example. "I saw a flyer in a wall back in '08. then i came out of curiosity and i've been coming ever since. The moral, the discipline and the [unity] throughout the whole program. It keeps the kids off the street and hows them to make the right choices and turns them into something new," 5-year Street Smart student, Eric Aguilar, said. Street Smart students don't buy a single things. Uniforms, belts, stripes, and medals are all earned. It is through hard work that the students earn all these stuff as they must have certain moves mastered. DEspite, the rigor and challenging nature of the program, it is rewarding in so many ways. Learning to master martial arts requires time, dedication, determination, and focus allowing students to develop these attributes along the way. The attributes are long lasting results of this program that will help Street Smart students greatly in the future. In addition, Street Smart gives many of its student many oppurtunitues to win medals and trophies, a reward representing their accomplishments. "I love how they teach her to be prepared for any danger and be reliant on herself," father of Street Smart Student Valeria, Ricardo Solis, said. To add to the idea of just how popular this program is amongst parents, grandfather of Ruben Elis, Ruben Gallardo, said, "This program is excellent. The main part I like about is that they are all very disciplined. Whenever the instructors aren't here the older kids with the higher ranking belts immediately take charge and the kids listen. I would recommend and encourage every child to participate in this program." The main instructor of the Redlands Street Smart program is Ofiicer Alex Paredes of the Redlands Police Department who has been instructing students of Street Smart since 1991. Officer Paredes works alongs side his two assistant instructors, Estevan Sandoval and Marissa Dollins, Estevan being a prior student and first of Paredes' student to earn a black belt. "At first it was all for myself. It helped me grow as a person. Now its grown into more of a passion to pass that on towards others, especially in this generation where i feel like there's a lack of mentors. I want to be the one to be there for them. The best part is always working with all these kids and being able to impact these kids. If i can change jus one of these kid's lives out of the whole bunch i would be ecstatic just because i know [Officer Paredes] changed my life in a very serious sort of drastic way. He just took it and turned into something so much better than what i thought it could ever be and so i really want to do that for as well for as many kids as i can," Instructor Estevan Sandoval said as he shared his passion for passing on the happiness he gained through Street Smart to others. While the 5th anniversary celebration was an event of pure fun for the Street Smart students, the event helped people witness the sense of unity and discipline within the program. The room was all filled with smiles, laughter, and plenty of delicious food. This anniversary marked the 5th one, not the first, and definitely not the last. Many children's lives have been impacted greatly by Street Smart, and for many has become the one place they can go to without feeling judged, bullied, or taunted and leave feeling accomplished. Programs like these should always be abundant because, especially in these years, it is vital to bring back a bit of "old-fashion" attributes to help the future, or as Pardes said they "teach the old ways in a more modern way" and through that hope to bring all those leadership attributes." "This program has taken me on a journey I never thought would come to pass," Eric Aguilar added.