A grassroots effort in Atascosa County successfully funded life-saving shields for local schools, enhancing active shooter response and community safety.
ATASCOSA COUNTY, Texas — A grassroots fundraising campaign in Atascosa County raised enough money to provide brand new life saving devices for every school district in the county.
Chris Morlock led the effort and he said he didn’t have to twist any arms to get concerned community members involved.
“If you think about it every school has booster clubs and that’s what this is,” Morlock said, adding “They all stepped up.”
Eric Kaiser, with the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office, said proudly “These are game changers when it comes to active shooter response capabilities and we are the first school districts in Texas to receive these shields and the first in Texas to have them donated by an outside entity.”
Kaiser said the Atascosa County School Safety Fund has a sole focus of providing equipment that protects students and staff.
The 300-pound devices were delivered Thursday morning and immediately distributed across the county after a briefing on how they work.
Most of the districts have had aggressive safety protocols in place for years.
For example, signage at Jourdanton ISD warns that their facilities are protected by sworn law enforcement officers: “Officers will use whatever force is necessary to protect the safety of students and staff.”
Kaiser said of a trip to Integrated Ballistics Systems “A few months ago the Sheriff and I went to Dallas because we were buying an armored vehicle and while we were there looking at the truck he showed us these new shields he had built.”
Kaiser said they had not been sold to any schools yet but they were designed after the Uvalde incident at Robb Elementary to address a need that had not been met yet.
“All the way back from Dallas I was telling the Sheriff how impressed I was because these are really a cool tool,” Kaiser said, adding he and others started working to bring them home to their local students.
“Everybody was immediately onboard,” Kaiser said, adding “These are the first Falcon Shields, that are going into an ISD in Texas. Our five districts are the first ones to have them.”
Demonstrating how the shield works, company owner Jim Vincent rolled one right up into the doorway.
Vincent said the custom design allows the main body of the device to make it through any standard door, and then wings on each side can be deployed to protect several officers who need to breach a room during an active shooter incident.
“These wings are against the wall but an officer can look through windows and surveil the room, see where the bad guy is or an injured party and approach that person without risk,” Vincent said.
Each shield, Kaiser said, has a trauma kit and a breaching tool mounted onboard.
With access to the room successfully blocked, Vincent said “The driver, the guy pushing it through, can stand there with a weapon and be ready for anyone who is coming that way.”
To laughter from the crowd, Vincent said “I’ve been doing this 35 years and I think this is my favorite thing!”
Jourdanton ISD Superintendent Tracy Canter said of the community fundraising effort “Let me just tell you I have chill bumps as we stand here. It’s extremely special. The fact that they would come out and take care of our kids.”
Canter said “I think it’s wonderful and it’s a huge support for our kids. It’s one more step in keeping our kids and our officers safe.”
“We didn’t ask for help but they jumped in and helped out and brought this to us and we absolutely love it,” Canter said.
Poteet ISD Superintendent Charles Camarillo said “We’re prepared. We’re ready and we have the tool necessary to handle the situation and fight back and we need to.”
Camarillo agreed that his greatest prayer is that the device would never be needed. “Absolutely. If it just stands around as decoration, so be it,” Camarillo said.
More information about the shields can be found on the company website: www.ibsshields.com