Meet the Team

Our Instructors

When you train with us, you learn from career law enforcement professionals and certified instructors who have spent their lives keeping people safe. They bring real-world experience to every class, on the range and in the classroom.

Sergeant Gary L. Carr

Chief Instructor and Range Master

Hometown: Crestwood, IL

• Retired Police Officer
• USCCA Certified Firearms Instructor and Training Counselor
• Licensed by the State of Illinois
• Certified Police Trainer (ILETSB)
• Master's in Public Safety Administration
• Bachelor's in Law Enforcement Management

Gary L. Carr is a career public safety professional who began his career in 1976 at the Willow Springs Police Department and retired in 2011 at the rank of Sergeant. He attended Northwestern's School of Police Staff and Command and their Executive Management and Senior Leadership programs. As owner and chief firearms instructor at Illinois Concealed Carry Training, his goal is to make sure students leave with more than just a handgun. He provides current, actionable information from a police perspective so students stay physically, morally, ethically, and financially safe if they ever have to use a firearm in self-defense.

Dr. Tatiana (Tatum) Parker

Instructor and Range Master

Hometown: Chicago, IL

• Educator
• USCCA Training Instructor
• Licensed by the State of Illinois
• Auxiliary Deputy Sheriff (Calhoun County)
• PhD, Molecular Cytogenetics and Toxicology (University of Illinois)

Dr. Tatiana Parker is formally trained as a molecular cytogeneticist and toxicologist. She has represented Sound-tech Suppressors at SHOT Show and has extensive training through the Center for Domestic Preparedness and the Department of Homeland Security in emergency and agricultural terrorism response. She serves as an auxiliary Deputy Sheriff with the Calhoun County Sheriff's Department, consults for indie film productions as a biological expert, and is a certified USCCA Firearms Instructor.

Joe Cistaro

Instructor and Chief Range Master

Hometown: Blue Island, IL

• Police Officer
• USCCA Certified Firearms Instructor
• Certified Police Firearms Instructor and Range Master

Joe Cistaro is a 28-year veteran police officer who patrolled Blue Island, Illinois early in his career. He served on the City of Blue Island's S.W.A.T. team and Motorcycle Unit, and spent four years in the United States Army as an Armor Crewman. With more than two decades as a firearms instructor, he currently protects the traveling public across Cook County and five collar counties, bringing that experience into the classroom and onto the live-fire range to keep students safe, informed, and on target.

Sergeant Eric "Iggy" Keyes

Instructor and Range Master

Hometown: Chicago, IL

• Police Officer
• NRA Certified Police Firearms Instructor and Range Master

Eric "Iggy" Keyes has worked in homicide, narcotics, and as a SWAT team member, and is highly proficient with a range of firearms, particularly the 1911 pistol and the AR-15 rifle. A father of two, he serves as a police officer in Chicagoland and as a firearms instructor at Illinois Concealed Carry Training and the Metropolitan Police Self-Defense Institute in Chicago. He was featured on Season 4 of the History Channel's Top Shot and has spoken in the media about violent crime prevention and gun owner training.