ASHLAND — Ann Brewer has some advice for older people, or anyone else, who wants to be ready to defend themselves from harm.
Brewer, who will be 90 in December, recently became the ranking senior lady on the state’s list of people qualified to carry a concealed deadly weapon.
But, don’t make the mistake of calling her a pistol packin’ granny.
“I’m not a grandmother,” she’ll quickly tell you with a disarming smile.
She does, however, have a message.
“I would like to encourage those people, especially older folks, who own guns to go and take this course so they can carry their guns when they feel it is important — and be legal,” she said.
Brewer said she has no desire to use the skills she picked up in class or on the shooting range.
“I would be very hesitant to shoot any body. That was not my goal to do that,” she said with an amused giggle in her voice. Brewer said she has actually never felt her life was in threat, except possibly once in Africa during her world travels alongside her late husband, Hal.
The idea of becoming certified to carry a gun came from Brewer’s niece, Imogene McGuire and her husband, Robert.
“They had already made plans to do it and they just invited me to do it with them. I was delighted to have that opportunity,” said Brewer, a retired administrator with the Fayette County school system.
“I was delighted to know all the laws ... the legal situation in Kentucky,” Brewer explained, adding she also picked up practical advice for accurate shooting.
Instructor David Sparks of Somerset and formerly of Ashland said his initial impression when he saw Brewer in class was, “If this little old lady fails, how am I going to tell her?”
As it turned out, he had nothing to worry about when it came to Brewer missing her mark.
“She did better than some of the other students. She actually only missed one on her written test,” Sparks said, adding she performed equally well during the actual shooting portion of the CCDW class.
Sparks said he got the impression Brewer wasn’t especially interested in actually carrying a firearm, but seemed more determined to tackle the task and do well.
“She just wanted something to do and she proved she could do it,” he said.
After Brewer had passed her tests and was authorized to carry a concealed deadly weapon, Sparks said he began wondering if she might be a state record-holder. He made a telephone call to ask if she was the oldest person in the commonwealth to hold the concealed-carry license.
“They said she wasn’t the oldest person, although she was pretty close — but she definitely is the oldest female,” he said.
Brewer’s niece Imogene McGuire said she feels better with the understanding her aunt is qualified to defend herself if necessary.
“It was important to me that if Aunt Ann has a gun that she be able to use it safely,” McGuire said, later adding she was personally impressed by her aunt’s performance on the firing range for the final portion of her concealed-carry test.
“You have to hit the bullseye 11 times out of 20. She hit it 11 times before she ever got to 20,” she said. “She hasn’t shot a gun in many years, but she took aim and took her shot and did very well.”
TIM PRESTON can be reached at
[email protected] or (606) 326-2651.
