January 20th, 2017
We pride ourselves on Bringing Out the Best in Everyone We Touch and Making Every Life Matter. Part of that is finding out the needs, wants, and interests of those we serve, and helping them fulfill their dreams. So when we discovered that a few of our Guests were interested in Taekwondo, we partnered with the amazing team over at Changs Taekwondo America in Methuen to give our Guests an Outrageously Memorable experience.
Last March, our Guests began training with Grandmaster Chang and Instructor Torres.
“They’re great instructors. I enjoy seeing them every week,” said participant Scott S, pictured above.
This week, that training led them to their Yellow Belt test.
“I was so nervous going in,” said Scott S. “But they have a lot of confidence in me. And I do the best I can.”
Scott performed a perfect Poomse and executed all called techniques before getting to the final piece of his test, breaking a board with a hammer fist strike.
“That was my favorite part,” said participant Ramon M. “It felt good. I felt strong.”
Participants George A. and Emil P. said earning their yellow belts made them feel happy and confident.
Ivette Rosario, a Colleague who was lucky enough to participate, described the test. They began with relaxation, then exercises, practiced punches and techniques, then they were required to show, one-by-one, a technique they’ve learned. The instructors then called moves that everyone had to execute. And finally, they engaged in breaking the board with the hammer fist strike.
“They were so excited and so happy. You could see it on their faces. And the way they were motivating each other was awesome,” said Ivette.
Another Colleague who participated, Ramona Pichardo, said, “I’ve been with ATI for 10 years and this was the best experience I’ve ever had in my job. I felt so confident. They felt so confident. I was so proud of them and myself.”
The entire class passed, earning their yellow belts. Check out photos from the yellow belt test and ceremony below.
[…] this year, in January, our Guests earned their yellow belts at Changs Taekwondo America, and this month, they took things a step further, breaking their way […]