On Sept. 20, 2025, the sound of gunfire carried across the 110-acre grounds of the Arlington-Fairfax Chapter of the Izaak Walton League of America in Fairfax County, Va. But this wasn’t just another day at the range. It was the Club’s annual NRA Women On Target (WOT) Instructional Shooting Clinic, where 45 women of all experience levels gathered not just to shoot, but also to deepen their understanding of what it means to be shooters. Through live-fire exercises, educational seminars and direct mentorship, the Arlington-Fairfax chapter of IWLA once again demonstrated the possibilities of a long-beloved NRA program.
At the heart of the WOT program events is a commitment to supporting the whole shooter. Instructors don’t just teach grip, stance and trigger press. They also teach judgment, responsibility and the deep connections between mindset, marksmanship and the law. And another NRA program, Refuse To Be A Victim, was incorporated to translate situational awareness and personal safety into practical and practicable routines.
The second pillar of the WOT experience is hands-on, one-on-one live-fire training. At Arlington-Fairfax, women received individualized instruction across disciplines including pistol, traditional rifle, AR-15, shotgun and field archery. Some tried out shooting for the first time. Others, such as members of a local chapter of Armed Women of America, came to broaden their skills, meet new people and try new firearms. At the rifle station, students tested several platforms, including a rare historic wall gun, while AR-15 instructors demonstrated how the platform’s configurability makes it ideal for shooters of smaller stature. On the shotgun range, first clays broke quickly, followed by seconds and thirds. Pistol bays emphasized fundamentals of stance, grip and trigger press, while archery offered a quieter challenge with recurve, compound and crossbows.
This year’s event welcomed a new clinic director, Sarah Smith, who took over from longtime director and current club president Pamela Meara. Sarah first encountered WOT just a few years ago as a volunteer helping with administrative work.
“One of the first things I noticed was we needed more female instructors,” Sarah noted. “I’m a lifelong shooter with a passion for training but I’d never married the two ideas. Women on Target was the final nudge I needed. I jumped into training and certified in basic pistol and by the following year’s Women on Target, I was on the line.”
Lois’s story also began with WOT.
“I was an an attendee at Women on Target in 2023. I went home and said, ‘I am buying a pistol.’”
Today, Lois is certified to teach several NRA disciplines and has been instrumental in forging a strong relationship between the clinic and her local chapter of Armed Women of America.
That virtuous cycle is the real legacy of WOT. It doesn’t just create better shooters; it creates leaders, mentors, responsible citizens and capable advocates who understand that education doesn’t stop when you leave the range.
A Model Worth Repeating
WOT has always promised to meet women where they are, as we saw at the Arlington-Fairfax clinic. This event proved what many in the NRA community already know: WOT is more than an event. It’s a movement. To learn more about Women On Target, visit wot.nra.org.
