“Staying Alive Survival is in the preparedness business. Our 6 field manuals and training resources are available as instant digital downloads under our Tactical Blueprints™ line — including a complete bundle with all 6 guides. Currently 45% off for launch.
ABOUT TODD MEDINA
My name is Todd Medina. I have been competing professionally for nearly 3 decades winning multiple World titles while holding many world records. Since retiring from competition I have been coaching both professional and amateur athletes
I have known Marisa Schaffer for the last 10 years. We both share a common goal to empower and educate others to become confident through training in self-defense. Marisa is an impassioned voice for change on domestic and criminal violence and teaches others survival techniques which will greatly increase a victim’s odds of surviving an attacker.
Psalms 144:1 “Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacher my hands to war, and my fingers to fight.”
DEFEND & EMPOWER
Self Defense, Situational Awareness, Pepper Spray Certification Training and Customized Emergency Action Plans for Homes and Businesses.
After attending the Staying Alive Survival’s
“Pepper Spray Certification Course” I feel significantly more confident and informed on the precautions and proper safety and efficacy techniques of using my pepper spray for self-defense. Situational awareness was emphasized along with the target practice of a proposed assailant. Practicing various
real-life scenarios were very impactful and I highly recommend this course!
Alisa L.
Keeping Colleges, Schools, Churches & Businesses Safe!
Train to Survive.
Meet the Founders
Hello — I’m Marisa Schaffer, Founder of Staying Alive Survival.
Family-owned. Field-tested. Based in Orange County, California.
I started back in 2014 at local gun shows — one booth, one conversation at a time — helping people build out their everyday carry (EDC) setups and think through their personal security. But for every person I reached across that counter, I knew there were ten more out there who felt unequipped and unprepared.
So, we built Staying Alive Survival with one objective: save as many lives as possible through practical self-defense training, tools, and preparedness resources — reaching far beyond what a single booth ever could.
My commitment to service runs deep. My father served in WWII, and those roots instilled in me a lifelong duty to protect, serve, and prepare. With 20+ years of experience spanning real estate, risk management, human resources, and office and safety management — backed by a 20-year commissioned Notary Public license, licensed CCW holder status, and active CERT member, practical preparedness is second nature to me. Combined with 28 years of martial arts training, I’ve learned one truth above all: skill must be sharpened intentionally, it doesn’t stay sharp on its own. As a certified pepper spray instructor and self-defense coach, I built this company to help everyone unleash their inner warrior.
Today, that same personalized guidance lives on in Tactical Blueprints™ — our line of field manuals built from real-world training experience, available as instant digital downloads on Etsy.
There is nothing more dangerous than an opponent you don’t know.
Meet Nickolas Calefato — Co-Founder & Lead Field Assessor
Nick brings hands-on, trade-level expertise to everything Staying Alive Survival builds. A Union Journeyman
Carpenter and former commercial construction foreman, he specializes in structural security, surveillance system
placement, and safe room design — the kind of insight that comes from actually building structures, not just studying
them.
Nick runs our in-person RVA — Residential Vulnerability Assessment — walkthroughs for Orange County
homeowners, applying the same CPTED-based methodology found in our TB-005-RVA field manual, backed by real
construction and structural knowledge most security consultants don’t have.
There’s a difference between knowing what to look for and knowing how a house is actually built.
What People are saying
Our Perimeter Defense Team (The Real Bosses)
Kash: Head of Perimeter Surveillance & Early Warning Systems
Thor: Chief of Tactical Enforcement & Heavy Defense
Get Our Free Home Security Risk-Rating Cheat Sheet
A one-page preview of our TB-005-RVA field manual — 5 quick checks you can run on your property today.