Cheektowaga woman teams up with fitness studios to empower women through self-defense

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Six months ago, Kelly Gandt’s life was changed forever.

On March 2, a man followed her home from a bar in Buffalo, attacked her in her driveway in Cheektowaga and dragged her into his vehicle. She then grabbed the steering wheel, caused the car to crash and ran away to safety.

On Wednesday, 24-year-old Abel Gebrehawaria was sentenced to five years in prison for kidnapping.

Gandt said she still has nightmares about what happened and has spent a lot of time struggling with PTSD, feeling like she has to look over her shoulder whenever she goes out, but she’s done living in fear.

“I think it’s really important to fully own my story authentically and to be able to have a voice if I’m encouraging other women to have a voice and come forward with their stories,” she said.

Gandt is channeling that toughness to empower other women. She’s teaming up with Hype Fitness Studio and SPAR Self Defense to offer a self-defense class to make sure women have the skills and confidence to protect themselves.

“That was actually the first time I had come forward with my face when I shared my story, and it had really kind of been the first time I talked about it in detail to people I didn’t know,” Gandt said. “I felt I had to do that because I wanted to help advocate for women and women’s safety, especially toward violence, domestic violence and abuse.”

With the support of the Hype Fitness community, she found the strength she needed to speak out.

“That is something that has really helped me find my voice and to not be hiding anymore,” Gandt said.

Gandt has been sharing her story to women in-person and on social media and is an advocate for victims of violence.

“What had happened and where she is now I think speaks volumes to how strong she is,” said Rachael Veronda, an instructor at Hype Fitness Studio. “I think a lot of the times we think, oh it’s not going to happen to us, or maybe not someone close to us, so it was a very big gut check and just realizing this can happen anywhere.”

“When you come in for a class you’re working on self-development and learning how to be a stronger individual, but leaving knowing how to defend yourself offers something to a higher level that I’m very proud to hold in this space,” said Stefanie Kopecki, the owner of Hype Fitness Studio.

After taking a class, Gandt said she’s seen women have more pride in their abilities to stand up for themselves.

“There’s a lot of women out there who don’t use their voice when they’re assaulted or they don’t feel comfortable approaching their attacker, or they don’t feel that they have the resources to be able to prepare themselves in the event that it happened to them,” Gandt said.

If you or someone you know needs help, Crisis Services is available 24/7. Reach them at their Erie County hotline at (716) 834-3131 or their Niagara County hotline at (716) 285-3515. More resources can be found here.

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Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work.

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