Our stories

Are you wondering if Hilliard Taekwondo Academy could have an impact on your life or the life of someone you care about? Many of our students or their parents have shared with us stories about the changes in their lives, and the lives of their families, as a result of the training they’ve received at our school. There are too many to share every great story we get, like how students with mild autism have succeeded beyond teachers', therapists' and parents' expectations and very shy students have become more confident. Here’s a peek into what Hilliard Taekwondo America has done for just a few of our families.

Read about:

Picked on by the school yard bully
Team sports were hurting his self-confidence
Painfully shy
Bullied at the swimming pool
My child is becoming a bully
Become more responsible
Adult afraid to try that first class
Getting ready for kindergarten 

Another student started hitting my daughter at school
A mom of one of our students shared with us a story related to her by a teacher at her daughter’s elementary school.  A boy started punching her daughter during recess on the playground. Without really thinking about it, the girl swung her leg up and did a crescent kick block, pushing the boy’s arm aside so he couldn’t hit her again, and she told him loudly to back off. The boy was so surprised that he stopped trying to hit her and just stood there.  The teacher, who saw the incident from across the playground, intervened and asked the girl where she learned to defend herself. When she discovered the girl was a student at Hilliard Taekwondo America, she said she was impressed with the way the girl had defended herself so quickly and without hurting the other student. Do you know someone who could benefit from learning how to defend themselves?

Team sports were hurting my son’s self-confidence
A dad told us how his son loved sports and tried out for all kinds of teams … baseball, basketball, soccer. But, although he loved sports and practiced a lot, he wasn’t very coordinated, so he often sat on the bench while the best few kids played all the time in all the games. As a result, his son was losing his self-confidence. They decided to give martial arts at Hilliard Taekwondo America a try. Within the first six weeks the dad commented that his son’s self-confidence was back and that one of the first questions he asked every day was “Do I get to go to taekwondo tonight?!” His dad told us how pleased he was that his son was able to participate in every activity in every class he came to. And that we noticed, and praised, the improvements in every student … not just the students who are the most naturally talented, coordinated or able to perform the skills the best. Do you know someone whose self-confidence needs a boost from a more positive environment?

My daughter was painfully shy
A mom shared with us that she was concerned about how shy her daughter was, that it would be difficult for her to make friends, speak up in school and stand up for herself if she was picked on. There were small changes within the first several weeks. She learned to partner with other students in class, shake hands and thank someone for being her partner. We helped her learn to use her voice assertively and that it’s okay to make mistakes. She reached short term goals of getting tape added to her belt for learning skills, achieved the intermediate goals of moving up in rank and earning new belts, and finally of becoming a black belt. Was the journey easy? No. There were bumps along the way with testings not passed the first time. But she learned to not give up. Do you know someone who needs the encouragement and self-confidence that can come from learning how to overcome set backs and achieving goals?

My son was picked on at the pool
A dad shared with us that his son, who is one of our students, was at the swimming pool with relatives. An older, bigger boy he didn’t know grabbed him by the leg in the pool and was dragging him around.  Our student broke the older boy’s grip and assertively told him to stop. But the older boy grabbed him two more times. Our student got loose and told the older boy to stop. Finally, when grabbed again, by the wrist this time, our student put the older boy in a wrist lock (painful, but not harmful) and told him loudly to knock it off. The older boy apparently decided that he shouldn’t pick on our student anymore and left him alone the rest of the day. Do you know anyone who is being picked on and needs to learn how to stand up for himself?

My daughter was a behavior problem
A dad shared that his young daughter was becoming a bully and they were wondering if martial arts would help or make the situation worse. Within several weeks of signing her up for our program, the family started noticing an improvement. Her temper was getting better … not perfect, but better. And she was starting to use more peaceful ways to resolve problems. Over the following months and years her self-control gradually improved as we gave praise when she demonstrated the positive qualities of the tenets of taekwondo: courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and indomitable spirit, and as we also enforced immediate consequences for negative behavior. Do you know someone who could benefit from a program designed to help them learn self-control and self-discipline, while also helping them build self-confidence?

My son needs to learn more responsibility
A mom shared that she was concerned about her son’s lack of initiative. He was a likable kid and had friends. He was doing well in school and the teachers enjoyed having him in class, but the mom could see that he had a tendency to let others take the initiative and do things for him. Over the years that he’s been a student in our program, he’s learned to work toward goals that no one can earn for him and overcome challenges that no one can fix for him. And when he entered our leadership program, he had to set an example for younger students and take the initiative in helping set up and run drills. That willingness to learn to become more responsible helped give him the confidence to overcome the setbacks that are often in the journey to becoming a black belt in martial arts. Do you know someone who could use a confidence booster to be able to set and work toward goals?

I’m a mom. I can’t do this!
We had a mom who signed up her children for our program and really wanted to try it herself because she thought it look like a great workout that could help her lose weight and get in shape, but admitted she was afraid to try it. She was concerned that everyone else in the teen/adult class would laugh at her, that she wasn’t in good enough shape, that she wouldn’t be able to learn any of the skills, that everyone else would already have friends in the class and she wouldn’t know anyone. We convinced her to try one free class. As soon as that class was over, she signed up. She said that even though we told her everyone would be friendly and helpful, she was surprised at how many of the students introduced themselves to her, asked her to partner with them for drills and made her feel like she was doing a good job. Every time she comes to class, other students greet her by name and encourage her in the workouts. Do you know someone who could benefit from a friendly, motivating workout program?

 My son is going to kindergarten next year
A mom brought in her son because he was going to start kindergarten the next school year. She knew he was bright enough because he could read and talk at a fairly high level, but he had difficult taking turns, sharing, being patient and focusing. She signed him up for our Little Dragons program and within a few weeks she could already see a difference. He learned to stand at attention, answer up with “yes, ma’am!”, was able to wait his turn in line to do the obstacle course, could follow a series of instructions, learned part of a martial arts form, learned how to respond to a bully and practiced focusing on hitting a ball through a hoola hoop. As an added bonus, the hopping on one foot, jumping, ducking, blocking and running across a line of targets improved his balance and coordination. And he had a great time in every class! Do you know a 4- or 5-year-old who could benefit from self-discipline, self-control, focus, and balance drills to help them get ready for school?

 These are just a few of the many stories we hear from our families about the positive impact our program has had on them or their sons and daughters. Our students are learning to stand up to bullies, make better decisions, have better self-control, focus better at home and in school. Adults are losing weight, getting into better shape, including being able to run marathons, 5ks and triathlons, and keep up with their kids. Teens are gaining self-confidence and leadership qualities. Families are finding an activity that just about ecademy today!