Empowering Girls and Women From the Inside Out
Raising Resilience sat down with Dr. Allison Kress and Master Steph Aduddell, co-founders of the new venture Be Bold Be Brave to find out what they're up to:
Who are you?
Dr. Allison Kress, a nationally recognized Clinical Psychologist, has specialized in teen girls and women for over twenty years and has been featured as an expert contributor and consultant through a number of national media outlets.
Master Steph Aduddell is a 4th dan degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and a 2nd dan black belt in Moo Duk Kwon. She has been practicing and teaching martial artists through her schools for over twenty years and is a Junior Olympics and National Gold Medal Coach.
We’re each trusted and respected in our fields, and it’s been great to hear our clients say that...
together - we’re magic!
What inspired you to create these workshops?
Over the course of our careers, we have found a common thread: young women are not always prepared to make the best decisions in a complicated world.
Factors vary from the people around them not making good choices; the use of drugs and alcohol; the pressures and pitfalls of social media; and exposure to circumstances that can lead to sexual assault. We prepare young women to recognize and avoid dangerous situations in new environments - whether that's going off to college, navigating encounters online, or spending time in a city.
With our common experience, we felt a sense of service and purpose that energized and fired us up to collaborate and create these one-of-a-kind, epic, and comprehensive workshops.
What makes Be Bold Be Brave unique compared to other self-defense programs?
The pairing of a Clinical Psychologist and a Martial Arts Master working together to empower women and girls from the inside out.
The best fight is no fight at all and to achieve this we must feel WORTH defending. We must feel empowered by knowing how to use our voice for ourselves and our sisters.
What takes place in a workshop?
We kick our “inside” portion off with a fun meet and greet and then invite our featured expert boss lady sister speakers to share their knowledge and story. This is followed by small break-out groups that facilitate learning each participant’s value, voice, and realm of control. We serve a catered lunch before transitioning to the afternoon portion, which is focused on the physical “outside” self-defense. This is the part where participants learn how to say NO; take a stance; access street smarts; and use situation-based self-defense. The workshop wraps up with an empowering physical activity and of course a swag bag loaded with awesome take aways.
All of this sounds great, but these topics feel very scary. How do you handle that?
Yes, these topics are very scary. Our goal is to never diminish anyone who has faced (or had a friend face) some of these scary topics. By weaving amazing and inspiring female speakers; fun music; great food; and exciting activities with a welcoming positive energy, our dynamic program led by the Bold Team will create a safe space to learn self-defense from the inside out.
What age groups are your workshops created for?
Middle School (Grades 6-8), High School, College, and Adult Women.
Workshops are broken out by age groups. Here are our upcoming offerings:
August 7th - College Bound High School Girls (grades 10 - 12)
September 25th - Middle School Girls
October 23rd - High School Girls (grades 9 - 12)
November 13th - A special ‘Safe in the City’ workshop for Adult Women
What are the top three things that girls and women have said about your collaboration?
“This is an amazing program but putting the two of you together is what makes this exceptional.”
“Thank you so much for offering this unique program. It’s so incredibly needed!”
“This will help so many people.”
“Two powerhouse women”
“Boss ladies who know their worth.”