Threat Detection Training Event Held for Multiple Organizations in Rockland County

by M.C. Millman

A training in human threat detection was held yesterday evening for is number of organizations in Rockland County. 

The training was given by the Synagogue Security Council of North America (SSCNA) and took place at the Young Israel of Monsey and Wesley Hills Hills. Participants included members from of Chaverim of Rockland, New Square Ershte Hilf, Faist EMS, and others.  

While Congressman Mike Lawler was not able to attend the event, he sent a video message supporting the endeavor and stressing the importance of being vigilant and keeping the community safe. 

The SSCNA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing lifesaving skills and technology to committed members of the Jewish community, helping to create safer synagogues while cultivating cost-free, capable, and effective volunteer first responders within our communities. 

"Our organization,"  Tzvi Waldman, Director of Synagogue Security Council, shares with Rockland Daily, "focuses on creating effective volunteers and enhancing security in shuls, schools, and yeshiva. Our goal is to improve skills and abilities by leveraging the expertise we have with connections with top-class security experts in their fields in various niches in the community and bringing that expertise to organizations and volunteers who are doing security to keep the community safe."

The training seminar, which took place this evening, was given by the world's foremost experts, from Arcadia Cognerati's, Greg Williams, a world-renowned human behavior expert, and Brian Marren, an internationally recognized human behavior subject matter expert. 

The focus of the workshop was learning to detect danger hidden within one's daily routine. Attendees learned how to detect a threat before it happens, utilizing Human Behavior Pattern Recognition and Analysis. Participants additionally learned to enhance situational awareness; proactively detect danger signals unique to people, vehicles, and events, "read" the pre-event indications given off by all humans in any environment, and how to use the gift of time and distance to detect, prevent, mitigate, avoid, or de-escalate encounters before they become dangerous.  

"Danger and opportunity hide in plain sight around us," Williams said during the training, "without the training to see the cues that form the clusters of human behavior, we might walk around clueless. Our training allows the user the ability to see artifacts and evidence and form reasonable conclusions about the most likely and perhaps, more importantly, most dangerous courses of actions evolving in the environments that surround us."

To that end, SSCNA filmed a number of training scenarios around Monsey yesterday morning, as reported by Rockland Daily here, including at Monsey's Exxon station located at 165 NY-59 in Monsey, as well as Pascack Plaza Mall, Monsey's Town Square, and other locations.  The footage will be used in future training curriculum focused on safety and security training.

The deadly terrorist attacks that launched the war in Eretz Yisroel have also resulted in a flood of new requests for training in both security and firearm instruction. The demand for both has steadily grown to match the increased spewing of antisemitism across America, including protests and marches as well as in the torrent of social media threats. The growth of antisemitic rhetoric has resulted in many American Jews reconsidering long-held stances against owning or using guns or taking the time for appropriate safety training for institutions and individuals.

The NYS Jewish Gun Club, located in Rockland, reports the same scenario. 

"Calls to the gun club with requests for safety and gun training have increased by a tremendous amount," Waldman, who is also the founder of the NYS Jewish Gun Club, tells Rockland Daily. "Regular people just want to feel safe."