Happenings from 2022 and 2023
Southbury Taekwon-do Winter Schedule
Registration has opened for the Winter 2024
semester of Taekwon-do. Due to New Year's Day falling on Monday, January 1, the first class of this semester will start Wednesday, January 3.
All classes are held at the Parks and Recreation Building located at 561 Main Street
South, Southbury, CT on Mondays and Wednesdays:
- 6:00 pm - 6:45 pm Beginners (Ages 7 through Adult)
- 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Advanced (Ages 7 through Adult)
Please note that certain safety precautions are still in effect. These include the following:
- Students are asked to not drink directly from the building's water fountains. Instead, you may use the water fountains to fill your water bottles.
- The Senior Center side of the building will be off limits. We may use the P&R lavatories located off the mat room.
- No one is allowed to attend classes if they exhibit any symptoms of any illness. This includes parents and other family members.
- Students must sanitize their sparring equipment prior to use in class.
We recommend that students bring with them a towel to help remove perspiration. Parents are asked to minimize the number of non-participants that they
bring with them, when possible.
Featured Article on Destruction
The November 2023 edition of HOONLYUN:
The Journal of the United States Taekwondo Alliance is featuring an article written by Southbury Taekwon-do Chief Instructor, James De Carli and ITF Master Simon Scher,
the chief instructor at Northampton Martial Arts in Northampton, Massachusetts.
The article, "Breaking Down Board Breaking," discusses all aspects of destruction in martial arts, including the different types of breaks, how each type works,
how to optimize your striking force, and "forging" your body to prevent injuries.
Special Breaking Seminar
On Monday, September 18th, Southbury Taekwon-do held a special seminar on board breaking.
Students were presented with the underlying concepts behind how wood breaks, how to orient the board for optimal efficiency, the importance of proper trajectories,
the different types of breaks and how each delivers force to the target, as well as understanding the differences in breaking wood, concrete, and bricks. The finest (and most fun) in mass destruction!
Southbury Taekwon-do Fall 2023 Schedule
Registration has opened for the Fall 2023
semester of Taekwon-do. Due to Columbus Day and municipal elections, there will be no classes on October 9th or November 6th.
All classes are held at the Parks and Recreation Building located at 561 Main Street South, Southbury, CT on Mondays and Wednesdays:
- 6:00 pm - 6:45 pm Beginners (Ages 7 through Adult)
- 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm Advanced (Ages 7 through Adult)
Please note that certain safety precautions are still in effect. These include the following:
- Students are asked to not drink directly from the building's water fountains. Instead, you may use the water fountains to fill your water bottles.
- The Senior Center side of the building will be off limits. We may use the P&R lavatories located off the mat room.
- No one is allowed to attend classes if they exhibit any symptoms of any illness. This includes parents and other family members.
- Students must sanitize their sparring equipment prior to use in class.
We recommend that students bring with them a towel to help remove perspiration. Parents are asked to minimize the number of non-participants that they
bring with them, when possible.
Southbury Taekwon-do Summer Schedule
Registration has opened for the Summer 2023
semester of Taekwon-do. Due to the Labor Day holiday, there will be no classes on Monday, September 4.
Please note that certain safety precautions are still in effect. These include the following:
- Students must bring their own water to class since the water fountains in the building have been turned off.
- The Senior Center side of the building will be off limits. We may use the P&R lavatories located off the mat room.
- No one is allowed to participate in class or even enter the building if they exhibit any symptoms of any illness. This includes parents and other family members.
- Students must sanitize their sparring equipment prior to use in class.
We recommend that students bring with them a towel to help remove perspiration. Parents are asked to minimize the number of non-participants that they
bring with them, when possible.
New Promotions for Spring 2023
June 21st, 2023 saw over a dozen students earn promotions. Ceremonies were held at the Southbury Parks & Recreation Building in Southbury.
These promotions acknowledged the skills and knowledge developed by the students in such areas as offensive and defensive techniques, patterns, age-appropriate
self-defense, and power breaking. Congratuations all! Well done.
Special Stretching Seminar
On Monday, June 5th, Southbury Taekwon-do was honored to have Master Simon Scher conduct a special stretching seminar.
Master Scher -- an internationally known
flexibility instructor, 7th degree black belt, and chief instructor at Northampton Martial Arts in Northampton, Massachusetts -- explained the principles behind
flexibility in the human body and then guided the participants in a series of stretching activities. By the end of the session, every one of the participants
demonstrated increase extension and flexibility. A very worthwhile evening, indeed!
National Instructor Award
On May 27, in Orlando, Florida, Master De Carli was honored at the 31st annual World Head of Family / Sokeship Council awards ceremony.
The Council is comprised of accredited, internationally recognized Masters
and Grandmasters of various martial arts from across the globe. The “Korean Martial Arts Journeyman of the Year” is a national instructor recognition.
Featured Article in HOONLYUN Magazine: "Concussions and the Martial Artist"
The May 2023 edition of HOONLYUN:
The Journal of the United States Taekwondo Alliance is featuring an article written by Southbury Taekwon-do Chief Instructor, James De Carli.
The article, "Concussions and the Martial Artist", discusses how inadequate the martial arts community is at detecting and responding to concussions
as well as discusses what we, as martial artists, can do to help identify and prevent such severe trauma.
New Promotions for Winter 2023
Southbury Taekwon-do held its latest color belt promotions on March 22 at the Southbury Parks & Recreation Building in Southbury.
Promotions were in recognition of successful testing performed a week earlier before Master James De Carli and a panel of distinguished black belts.
Students demonstrated their skills in fundamental techniques – such as hand techniques, kicking, and blocking – as well as forms, sparring, age-appropriate
self-defense, and board breaking. All-in-all, sixteen students advanced one step closer to earning black belt honors.
Southbury Taekwon-do Spring Schedule
Registration has opened for the Spring 2023
semester of Taekwon-do. Due to the Memorial Day holiday, there will be no classes on Monday, May 29 although there is a tradition that the school marches
in the town's Memorial Day Parade.
Due to the ongoing COVID endemic, certain safety precautions are still in effect. These include the following:
- Mask use is optional although recommended.
- Students must bring their own water to class since the water fountains in the building have been turned off.
- The Senior Center side of the building will be off limits. We may use the P&R lavatories located off the mat room.
- No one is allowed to participate in class or even enter the building if they exhibit any symptoms of any illness. This includes parents and other family members.
- Students must sanitize their sparring equipment prior to use in class.
We recommend that students bring with them a towel to help remove perspiration. Parents are asked to minimize the number of non-participants that they
bring with them and to wait outside the building or in the mat room, when possible.
While we whole-heartedly support these safety protocols, we will re-evaluate them as conditions change. In the meantime, we expect everyone to adhere to these new policies.
Master De Carli Inducted into Hall of Honors
On Saturday, January 28, 2023, Southbury Taekwon-do instructor, James De Carli, was inducted into Action Martial Arts Magazine's
Hall of Honors during a ceremony in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Master De Carli was recognized for "Excellence in Publishing in the Martial Arts" for his numerous
contributions to such noteworthy publications such as HOONLYUN:
The Journal of the United States Taekwondo Association and Totally TaekwonDo magazine.
Seminar Raises Money For Shelter
On Saturday, January 7, 2023, the current and former instructors of Southbury Taekwon-do conducted another seminar on 'Safety and Self-Defense'. The participants,
who ranged in age from teens to mid-seventies, learned about topics such as:
• Recognizing and avoiding dangerous situations
• Using safety devices such as pepper sprays and personal alarms
• Utilizing escapes from grabs and holds
• Legal concerns and 'Stand Your Ground' laws
• What to do after a violent encounter
The seminar also raised money for Safe Haven of Greater Waterbury, Inc., a non-profit organization that
provides emergency shelter and free comprehensive support services to victims and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. Safe Haven relies heavily on
support from our community. If you would like to make a donation, please make Checks payable to:
Safe Haven of Greater Waterbury
P.O. Box 1503
Waterbury, CT 06721
You can make donations online using Safe Haven's website, SafeHavenGW.org.
Southbury Taekwon-do Winter Schedule
Registration has opened for the Winter 2023
semester of Taekwon-do. Due to New Year's Day being observed on Monday, January 2, the first class of
this semester will start Wednesday, January 4.
Due to the ongoing COVID endemic, certain safety precautions are still in effect. These include the following:
- Students must bring their own water to class since the water fountains in the building have been turned off.
- The Senior Center side of the building will be off limits. We may use the P&R lavatories located off the mat room.
- No one is allowed to participate in class or even enter the building if they exhibit any symptoms of any illness. This includes parents and other family members.
- Students must sanitize their sparring equipment prior to use in class.
We recommend that students bring with them a towel to help remove perspiration. Parents are asked to minimize the number of non-participants that they
bring with them and to wait outside the building or in the mat room, when possible.
While we whole-heartedly support these safety protocols, we will re-evaluate them as conditions change. In the meantime, we expect everyone to adhere to these new policies.
New Registration Website for Southbury Park & Rec
Please note that the Southbury Park & Recreation department has started using a new online
registration system so links to the previous system will no longer work. To register for Taekwon-do classes, you must first create a new profile. Taekwon-do classes
are in the 'Sports and Fitness' section.
New Promotions for Fall 2022
Congratulations to all of our amazing students who earned promotions at the December 2022 test week. Well done!
Moss Takes Gold!
Congratulations goes out to Demetric Moss, who took a home the gold sparring and a silver medal in forms at the 6th annual
CMA Founder's Championship in Fairfield, NJ. Well done, sir!
Featured Article in HOONLYUN Magazine
The November 2021 edition of HOONLYUN:
The Journal of the United States Taekwondo Association has featured an article written by Southbury Taekwon-do Chief Instructor, James De Carli.
The article, "Taekwon-Do and Science: Frogs, Joe Rogan, and the Left-Handed",
discusses the misinformation and dogma we as martial artists must face when looking for answers in our art.
Birthday Wishes for GM Kim
Happiest of birthday wishes to Grandmaster Suk Jun Kim
from all of us at Southbury Taekwon-do!
New Promotions for Spring 2022
Congratulations go out to the students who received promotions after the June test. Your hard work and perseverance have paid off. Well done, all!