Our Story
The Range Team
Working in a definitely-haunted indoor range in South Dakota didn’t stop this team from teaching classes multiple times a week together, running a pistol league for several months out of the year, and coaching countless one-on-one training sessions for people from all walks of life and skill levels. Between cleaning guns, answering questions from customers, and maintaining the cleanliness of the range themselves, this team gained the love of the community, which resulted in gifts like cookies, jerky, and getting to shoot some awesome guns that customers brought through that door.
By now, you wont find any of these folks at that gun range anymore, but that doesn’t mean they stopped doing what they loved and they are good at. They each had an opportunity to keep exploring aspects of the gun community in their own ways, to each learn more about the parts that they are good at. Walking through town, we’ve run into some of our regulars, and it warms our hearts to hear how we are missed.
But we aren’t “gone” by any means. You’ll still see us 5 at a restaurant for wings, or a few of us out for a cigar. Occasionally you’ll still see some members of this Original Team come help teach classes here at WMA, because its important to know who has your back, but its even more important to trust them, too.
The warrior Monk Academy Team
Jacob and Natalee met 2019 at the Indoor Range mentioned above. They both were hired as RSO’s for a pistol class. A year and a half later, Natalee got offered a job to work there by Nik Vantine. They worked together for almost 2 years before they started dating at the very end of 2021. The whole range team started to get job offers at various different industries in October of 2022.
Jacob was selling handmade holsters at the time, but he wanted something more. He wanted to be able to put all the knowledge he learned the last few years to work. So he started writing down classes and ended up opening The Warrior Monk Academy in April of 2023. Jacob Proposed to Natalee in July of 2023 and she said yes!
Natalee had been working for ASP since 2018 as an administrative assistant for the CEO and then made her debut as The Range Monkey in April of 2021. Eager to continue on pursuing all she learned from her 6 month instructor development class, she proudly wears the title of Head of Instruction for WMA LLC.
Together, they have made The Warrior Monk Academy into what it is. Taking as many classes as they can and learning as much as they can from their own personal coaches so that our students can learn as much as possible from us.
Our Mission Statement
At The Warrior Monk Academy LLC, our mission is to empower individuals through comprehensive self-defense education. We offer a range of classes, including introduction pistol classes, pepper spray classes, and a criminology class, all designed to equip our students with the knowledge and skills they need to protect themselves and others.
We are committed to continuous learning and seek out trusted and reputable sources to ensure that our curriculum is up-to-date and relevant. By incorporating principles of adult learning theory, we create engaging and entertaining classes that not only educate but also inspire our students to develop life-saving skills.
Beyond our dedication to self-defense education, we are driven by a strong sense of community. Our ultimate goal is to contribute to the well-being of our local community by donating a portion of our proceeds to a battered women’s shelter. We believe that everyone, regardless of their background, is worth defending, and we are passionate about providing a safe and inclusive environment for all of our students.
With our tagline, “You are worth defending,” we emphasize our unwavering commitment to the well-being and personal growth of each individual who walks through our doors. We genuinely care for and love every single one of our students, and it is our privilege to teach them the skills they need to protect themselves and lead empowered lives.
Together, let’s build a community where self-defense is accessible, knowledge is power, and every individual is valued.
So, Why Choose Us?
Student Focused Classes
With Classes Designed to be able to bend and flex to meet the students needs, you can be sure to walk out of our class with the confidence to be able to explain the same subject to your peers!
Evidence Based Learning
Before something gets added to our classes, we review it with peers, read more about it, then we try it out ourselves to really put it to the test! we make sure what we teach you is applicable in YOUR life! our one-on-one sessions is a great place to start that journey and see what works for you!
Wide Variety Of Material
the more classes we’ve taught the more inspired we’ve become to keep building more classes! you’ll never know if your question might just inspire a whole new class that could get released in a year, go check out the newest releases, like holster development and the criminal mind where we jump into some topics that will help you develop your self-defense mindset!
Instructors Who Care
we have low prices, flexible schedules, and custom self-defense classes, because life-saving knowledge should be accessible to all, regardless of status.