ST. LOUIS (KMOX) — Yolanda Wade spent two decades in the Navy in counter-terrorism, she has a master's in criminal justice with an emphasis in homeland security and now works for Boeing in St. Louis. But when she lived in Denver, she says God moved her to volunteer to examine her church's security.
Her work began when she was attending a church in Denver, Colorado, "And I saw the need. God placed it on my heart and I just started doing it. It was just a desire to want to do more for the kingdom. I would visit churches and I would see the different vulnerabilities and I didn't feel safe. And then I started to read about different attacks that were happening in other churches around the world. So it made me concerned that if it can happen there, it could happen here."
She says churches are soft targets because they are collecting offering and tithes. "Because they are protecting people's personal information on site. They are handling credit card information and checks." She says she tells churches they must think about security on a larger scale.
When she is invited to examine a church, she looks at everything from the ground up starting in the parking lot. "Do they have cameras, what's the placement of the cameras? How are they doing the offering, how they are safeguarding the money, do they have associated business-like schools or daycare centers...how are they being ran in conjunction with the services?"
She says she'll look at inside threats as well. For instance, if a church is doing background checks on those who work with youth.
She also does a walkthrough of each church. "I observed the interactions from greeters to ushers, how the protocols and procedures are carried out. I just watch the flow of the service. And then afterward, I get with the person that invited me and I walked through their administrative buildings and look at their camera system if they have one. And then I do a report afterward and submit it to the pastoral staff to review. After that, they call me back to do a training session with everybody. And I go over active shooter incidents, what could take place in the facility. But then I go over the vulnerabilities that are specific to their facility."
And does she suggest that church security volunteers be armed?
"That's something I speak with each church individually because that is something that may not be covered in their insurance policy. If they were to be armed and their insurance company learns they, they can be dropped or they be told they have to get a high rider policy." Also, she says having armed personnel on a church campus increases the churches liability.
"If your pastor authorizes someone to carry, now the liability is on him so that if a shooting does occur in the church now he can be sued, the church can be sued and the individual can be sued as well. I also talk to them about crossfire if more personnel are armed."
Wade does the risk assessments for free.
"Because God has been good to me. I am retired military and I also work in corporate America, so God has provided other resources for me financially. And the agreement I have with the Father(God) is that I will not charge his people for these services."