Who We Are
Our mission at Gurnee Pistol Academy is to provide a quality training and development experience to the new, as well as the experienced shooter. We do this by providing the knowledge, developing the skills, and instilling a safe and responsible attitude. In doing so, we will train with small class sizes, doing it with integrity and honesty, and reflecting that our students learning experience is more important than profits.
I look forward to meeting you and teaching you all that I know in hopes that you will feel empowered and ready to protect yourself and your family in a crucial time of need.
- Jon Stahl
Sue Pate (left), Jon Stahl (middle), and Jerry Martin (right)
A little bit of History…
Gurnee Pistol Academy, also known as GPA, was founded in 2010 by Jerry Martin. He served in the Marine Corps, is a Vietnam Veteran, and has a lifetime of experience researching and developing training curriculum for various large corporations across the the United States. Jerry partnered with professionals that have military, police, and legal backgrounds to be able to provide the best firearm safety, marksmanship, and self-defense legal training in Illinois.
One day after lunch with his military buddies, they surprised Jerry when they pulled up to a shooting range. Hesitant to handle a firearm after so many years, Jerry gave it a try. After he fired some rounds with his buddies in the range at that paper target, he realized that it was nothing like his military experiences because the target didn't shoot back! A new love for firearms was born and the desire to help others drove him to form Gurnee Pistol Academy.
GPA started in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and relocated to Gurnee Mills Mall within Bass Pro Shops, as soon as the Illinois Conceal Carry License came into law in 2014. Today, GPA operates within 5 Star Firearms in Zion, Illinois for classroom instruction and private one-on-one range lessons.