Protecting Your Family: Safety Lessons from a Secret Service Legacy

In a world that increasingly demands vigilance, Ashley Hicks, daughter of a former U.S. Secret Service agent, is sharing invaluable insights into personal and family safety. Her perspective, shaped by her father’s 25-year career protecting high-profile individuals, offers practical habits and strategies that go beyond common-sense precautions. This isn’t about living in fear; it’s about cultivating awareness, planning proactively, and empowering yourself and your children to navigate potential dangers with confidence. Let’s explore the key principles and actionable steps that Hicks and other former agents advocate for – transforming everyday routines into opportunities for enhanced security.

Ashley Hicks’ Background and Core Philosophy

Ashley Hicks, a 36-year-old healthcare professional and mother of two residing in Greenville, South Carolina, grew up immersed in a culture of risk assessment. Her father’s career with the Secret Service instilled in her a unique understanding of potential threats and the importance of preparedness. This experience has shaped her parenting style and her approach to personal safety. Rather than fostering anxiety, Hicks emphasizes the importance of equipping her family with the knowledge and skills to recognize and avoid danger – a mindset crucial for navigating the modern world.

Key Safety Habits Ashley Hicks Avoids

Hicks’s safety practices are surprisingly simple yet profoundly effective. They’re not about extravagant measures but about mindful adjustments to everyday routines. Here’s a breakdown of the habits she meticulously follows:

No Names on Kids’ Belongings

Perhaps the most immediately striking habit is Hicks’s commitment to never placing her children’s names on backpacks, lunchboxes, or any visible items. This simple act significantly reduces the risk of strangers easily identifying and approaching her children.

Always Facing the Entrance

In restaurants and other public spaces, Hicks consistently chooses seating that allows her to face the entrance. This ensures she maintains constant awareness of her surroundings and potential approaches.

Vigilance When Securing Children in Cars

When buckling her children into car seats, Hicks prioritizes situational awareness. She faces outward, keeping her back to the car hinges to maintain a clear view of both her child and the surrounding environment.

Code Words for Pickups

Following her father’s guidance, Hicks utilizes a system of code words for authorized pickups. This reinforces the concept of “stranger danger” and ensures that only trusted individuals can retrieve her children.

Avoiding Home Access for Strangers

Hicks steadfastly refuses to allow unknown individuals – particularly those encountered through online marketplaces – into her home, recognizing the potential risks involved.

Family Security Measures

To enhance family security, Hicks’s husband, Michael, carries a registered firearm when they are out together, providing an additional layer of protection.

Empowering Children: Essential Safety Education

Beyond personal safety practices, Hicks emphasizes the importance of educating children about potential dangers and equipping them with the skills to respond appropriately. She believes that empowering children through knowledge is far more effective than instilling fear.

Teaching Critical Information

As her children grow older, Hicks plans to teach them their names and addresses, ensuring they can seek assistance if they become separated from her.

Modeling Awareness and Calmness

Hicks encourages parents to be observant and to plan for potential dangers without fostering anxiety, cultivating resilience and confidence in their children.

Broader Safety Strategies Inspired by Secret Service Principles

Ashley Hicks’ advice is reinforced by insights from other former Secret Service agents, offering a more comprehensive approach to family safety. Evy Poumpouras, a former agent herself, provides particularly valuable guidance, especially regarding digital safety and trusting instincts.

Digital Safety: Limiting Screen Time and Protecting Privacy

Evy Poumpouras strongly advises against giving young children internet-connected devices, highlighting the potential risks from online predators and negative influences. She believes that parents should remain the primary influence in their child’s life and delay digital exposure until they are more mature and capable of navigating the online world responsibly.

Trusting Intuition and Recognizing Uncomfortable Situations

Poumpouras stresses the importance of teaching children to trust their instincts and recognize uncomfortable situations. Parents should model this behavior and cultivate open lines of communication, creating an environment where children feel safe expressing their concerns.

Caution with Sleepovers and Knowing the Families Involved

Recognizing that a significant proportion of crimes against children are committed by individuals they know, Poumpouras recommends that parents exercise extreme caution regarding sleepovers, making sure they are thoroughly familiar with the families involved.

Crowded Place Awareness: Preparation and Logical Thinking

In bustling environments like amusement parks, children should be taught to identify exits and memorize their parents’ phone numbers and home addresses. The emphasis should be on calm, logical preparation, rather than fear-based reactions.

Responding to Threats: Seeking Help and Self-Defense

Children should be instructed to seek help immediately if they are followed or approached, going into a public place and asking staff for assistance. If physically threatened, they should make noise and resist, using self-defense techniques if possible. The goal is to empower them to take action and protect themselves.

Empowerment Over Fear: Building Confidence and Resilience

The overarching principle guiding these safety practices is to empower children and families to make safe choices through awareness, rather than to create anxiety or fear. It’s about building confidence and resilience.

Everyday Safety Tips for Families

Beyond the major strategies, there are several smaller, but crucial, safety tips that can be incorporated into daily routines:

• Approaching Vehicles: Stay alert when approaching your car, avoid distractions, enter quickly, and lock doors, especially at night.
• Home Security: Consider sleeping with your bedroom doors closed for added safety.

Practical Examples and Contextual Understanding

To truly understand the power of these safety measures, it’s helpful to consider some practical examples and the context behind them.

The code words Hicks’s family used for authorized pickups are a practical illustration of a proactive safety measure that creates a layer of protection. Similarly, her mindful positioning when loading children into cars or pushing shopping carts demonstrates her commitment to maintaining visibility and control, reducing the risk of surprise.

Building a Culture of Safety: More Than Just Reactions

Both Ashley Hicks and other former Secret Service agents consistently emphasize that these habits are about building a culture of safety and preparedness, rather than simply reacting to threats. It’s about integrating safety awareness into the fabric of daily life.

By adopting these principles and incorporating them into daily routines, families can significantly enhance their safety and empower themselves to navigate potential dangers with confidence and resilience. It’s a journey of continuous learning and adaptation, but the rewards – the peace of mind and the security of knowing you’re prepared – are immeasurable.