Faith Arms empowers women while welcoming all

From the outside, Faith Arms could pass as a tattoo parlor. The name is ambiguous, too, but a close look at the shop’s sign says it all: a gun with angel wings. Owner Margrette Townsend’s middle name is Faith, and her father is a minister in Florida, where she and her husband, Brandon, are from.

In addition to selling firearms and accessories, Townsend travels seven states to train Walmart workers to bake and decorate cakes. It’s an odd combination, she admits – part Martha Stewart, part Annie Oakley – but her passion for shooting and women’s rights led her to open Faith Arms last winter and obtain her Federal Firearms License last month.

“Most women don’t feel they can get into guns and shooting and be taken seriously,” Townsend said. “There was nowhere in Tea to go where you can go in and look at guns and nowhere women could go in and ask questions without feeling inadequate. I want to empower women to not be scared of guns, and it’s better to have a gun and not need it than to not have it and need it in today’s society, unfortunately.”

Located in the Tea Medical Plaza at Heritage Parkway and Figzel Dr., Faith Arms caters to customers seeking a firearm for protection or recreation. Townsend’s choice of gun is different from many others,’ she admitted.

“I prefer revolvers. It leaves less room for mistakes if you have a big guy coming at you with a semi-automatic. All you have to do is pull the hammer back and shoot,” she said. “Older people with arthritis and many women can’t rack the guns like they used to. To me it might be showing them a different gun than what they’re used to, but it’s definitely better for them.”

With a selection of guns ranging from rifles and long-range guns for competition to handguns, Faith Arms also carries cases, ammo and powders, custom leather holsters, magazines and a collection of concealment purses of which Townsend is particularly proud.

Continue reading by logging into your e-Edition at teaweekly.com