By Chris Marvin
Train SMART would not be the gun safety training program it is today without the many veterans who helped create it. Of course, veterans have a certain humility. They show up not in search of praise, but because a job needs doing. And that spirit has been imbued in all aspects of Train SMART, calling on the years of gun safety experience our veterans bring from our nation’s profession of arms.
Built by Veterans, Made for Everyone
Train SMART was derived from decades of military experience. Veterans sketched the curriculum, argued over language, and refused to accept anything but the highest standards. They did this as a gift to all those who want to understand proper firearms handling, use, and storage, but who didn’t have the opportunity to learn from the best at boot camp or in basic training. Train SMART is effectively a pathway for civilians to the same basic standards the military expects from its people on day one: respect the weapon, prevent avoidable harm, own your choices. Civilian gun owners deserve training on par with the professions we entrust with force.
Understanding our roots, this Veterans Day we tip our caps to the Train SMART Leadership Council. All of the council members have served in the military and carried firearms in places and situations with the highest stakes. They bring this earned wisdom into every aspect of our training. Their fingerprints are on everything from the lesson plans and the safety checklists to the insistence that “good enough” is not enough. Many of our instructors are also veterans. In fact, we have learned that the system of training we built attracts high rates of veterans to join our instructor ranks. The constant presence of veterans raises the bar for everyone who takes a Train SMART course.
Reconciling Civilian and Military Training
Military firearms training is rigorous because people’s lives depend on it. Repetition, standard procedures, accountability, and after-action reflection are fundamental in the military, where they are survival tools. Civilians, by contrast and unfortunately, often get anemic exposure: a few hours, a checklist, maybe a background video. It’s like teaching someone to drive by showing them how to start the engine and read a map. That mismatch is dangerous. Train SMART exists because civilians deserve better, and that’s what we intend to deliver.
At the same time, we don’t offer combat courses. We don’t teach tactical entries or house-clearing techniques. This isn’t a gun fantasy camp. Instead, Train SMART’s mission is aligned with the training most civilian gun owners need and the threats that they will most often encounter, like unintentional shootings. We begin where military drill instructors begin: safe handling, secure storage, smart decision-making, and understanding why basic rules exist. This is the scaffolding on which responsible firearm ownership is built, because the biggest risk to your family is not a home invader, but rather your improperly secured firearm. Force protection is an essential military principle that translates to civilian home life seamlessly.
A Small Ask on a Big Day
This Veterans Day, consider a different kind of thank you. Thank the veterans who designed Train SMART by following their advice and acting responsibly around firearms, today and every day. Sign up for a Train SMART course and share the program with a friend who needs it. Our Leadership Council won’t take bows, but they will be satisfied if more people learn to treat weapons with the seriousness they deserve.
We built Train SMART because we believe the best way to honor the profession of arms is to spread its standards beyond the uniform. That’s how you turn gratitude into practice — and it’s how we build a safer country, one fundamental at a time.
Chris Marvin is a former U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter pilot and combat-wounded veteran of the war in Afghanistan. He serves as a Train SMART advisor and Everytown’s veteran lead. No component of the Department of Defense has approved, endorsed, or authorized this program.