Tae Kwon Do
Tae Kwon Do at the J
For over 4 years now we have been offering Tae Kwon Do at the J. It began when Robert Wilson became the initial instructor. Mr. Wilson brought a great deal of knowledge and experience to the program right away. He is a fourth degree black belt and had been training for many years. Mr. Wilson left our program to pursue his career goals and the program continued to motor on over the next few months, with the help of Sandi Smith. Sandi soon left and we were left without an instructor; that is when our current instructor Thomas Hardin stepped up and took over.
Thomas has been with the program for over two years now and it has flourished under his leadership and instruction. With a current roster of over 20 students per week and a steady influx of new students joining each session, Tae Kwon Do is as strong as ever.
Thomas was born in Kansas and moved to Missouri when he was 10 years old. He grew up in Union, Missouri and began his Tae Kwon Do training at the age of 16. Thomas trains in the Kukkiwon of South Korea style of Tae Kwon Do. He has earned the rank of 3rd degree Black Belt over the course of his 13 years of training. Thomas is also the acting Secretary of the Gateway Moo Do Kwan Organization which covers Missouri and is verified by the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).
Thomas has earned many medals and accolades during the past five years competing in tournaments and competitions. He has two gold medals and two silver medals and he recently qualified for the 2008 USA Taekwondo forms team and will be competing in Detroit, Michigan later this year. He has also coached several students to gold, silver and bronze medals in many of the same tournaments.
When not teaching, Thomas spends his time with his wife Jessica and their eight month old baby Royce, while also caring for their two nieces and nephew full time. Thomas strives to be the best teacher he can be and to be a better human being as he learned from his instructor many years ago.
the details...
Tae Kwon Do - Little Ninjas
4-6 yrs old
Acquire strength, confidence, knowledge and control through the ancient
art form of Tae Kwon Do. Contact:
Chris Horan, 314-442-3498.
Th 7/31/08-10/2/08
10/16/08-12/18/08
Fox 5:30-6:15 pm
Sa 8/2/08-10/4/08
10/18/08-12/20/08
Fox 1:30-2:15 pm
$62m/$90p*
Tae Kwon Do 7 yrs and olderAcquire strength, confidence, knowledge and control through the ancient
art form of Tae Kwon Do. Children under six participate in the
Nationally accredited form called Little Ninjas. Contact:
Chris Horan, 314-442-3498.
Th 7/31/08-10/2/08
10/16/08-12/18/08
Fox 6:30-7:30 pm
Sa 8/2/08-10/4/08
10/18/08-12/20/08
Fox 2:30-3:30 pm
$50m/$80p*
*A one time uniform fee of $35 is due for new students and that amount is paid to the instructor.
I truly enjoyed the Maccabi Games experience. My host family was so helpful and nice and we got along great! I enjoyed meeting and competing with athletes from all over the world. I loved being with all Jewish teens—the feeling of everyone celebrating Judaism was great.
--Michal Goldstein