St. Louis Family Martial Arts Academy

Most of our students are back in school this week. Getting back to the structure and routine of the school day is always good for our children but we also know they’ll need a little physical activity as they adjust back into their normal routine.

Experience also tells us that the confidence that comes from our martial arts program Carrie’s over into both their school work and social activities.

All this week we’ll be focusing on fundamentals for student progress and of course we’ll be mixing in plenty of fun drills this week.

We won’t be doing a lot of high repetition this week due to the heat and instead we’ll be focusing on quality technique and a little fun stress relief too!

CFC at work!

More CFC

Last nights Chick fight club event was a huge hit. There were 37 participants last night working on focus pad drills and learning about leadership.

While the focus was on our teenage and young leaders it’s important to note that none of that happens without our terrific adult instructors and role models.

Amanda Nesselbush was one of our teenage leaders over twenty years ago and is such a great teacher.

Jane Lingafelter is such a positive force and has so much wisdom to share with our students.

Sarah Self is one of our best teachers who works with all of our black belt candidates preparing them for their exams and the responsibilities of being a good black belt.

Sarah Wylder wasn’t present last night but she too is a huge part of the development of all of our students.

Chick Fight Club tonight! 6:00-7:30

Tonight is a special event with our teen and youth leaders sharing some of their favorite drills. Come join us and have a good time training and maybe enjoy a sweet treat at the end of the workout!

We will be sparring in every class this evening beginning with the 5:15 children’s class.

Brown and black belt leaders are welcome to come help us run rings tonight in every class.

We will be sparring in all classes on Thursday this week beginning with the 5:15 class.

CHICK FIGHT CLUB FRIDAY! 6:00-7:30. Our teenage and young leaders will be sharing their favorite combinations and drills under the supervision of our adult leaders. This will Be a really fun event. Sign up at the front desk!

And finally, a couple pictures of important friends who came to support the students on their exams.

Our new second degree black belts!

Every black belt exam is special and memorable in its own way. This weekend’s exam was no exception. Sarah, Simon, and Luke Self all earned their second degree black belts together. The three oldest Dresser children also earned second degree black belts (Joseph, Olivia, and Andrew). Bailey Nardoni earned his second degree black belt with his dad sitting on the board and Noah Schweitzer, one of terrific teenage role models, also was promoted to second degree black belt.

The new first degree black belts were so well prepared that they put on an outstanding performance and display of what it really means to earn a black belt. Ryah, Logan, Evan, Landon, Shane, and Peyton all had a special day. We’re so proud of them.

Black Belt Exams tomorrow morning - August 12th!

Doors open at 9 a.m. Exams begin at 9:30 a.m.

Guests are welcome to attend. Seating will
Be limited so please bring your own chairs. We expect the exams to last up to 5 hours. If you’re looking for a good time to come watch where you’ll see a little bit of everything you might want to plan on coming around 11:30 - but feel free to spend the whole day if you like.

A black belt exam is a special event. Students have prepared for this day for several years. This group testing on Saturday includes some of our hardest working young students and there will be lots of kicking and forms talent on display tomorrow. We’re really excited to see them perform!

We had a very fun group for our final camp this summer. Our leaders (Henry, Adelyn, Olivia, and Owen) did a great job organizing their teams and making everything fun.

We’ve got a really fun group in our camp
This week. It’s not all fun and games though. We also have some great discussion time after lunch every day talking about attitude, behavior, courtesy, integrity, self control, perseverance, indomitable spirit, making friends, and being good role models. Our leaders this week or doing a great job leading their groups!

Day one of samurai camp was a blast!

Our final Samurai summer camp of the year is this week. Class is from 10:00 - 2:00 Monday through Thursday.

Remember to bring your lunch and a couple drinks.

You DO NOT need your uniform. Shorts and a t-shirt is fine.

If you’d like to join us for camp there are still some openings. You can register minday prior to the camp if you feel like joining in the fun.

We had a great time with Landon, Zoe, and friends at Landon’s birthday party this weekend. They were a great group to work with - and of course Landon and Zoe were the great role models and examples we already know they are. It was great to see Khloe again too!

We promoted over 50 students to new belt levels tonight. All of the students did really well. Our new yellow and orange belts displayed a lot of kicking talent. Our new green belts all had really strong stances and basics, and the intermediate green, blue, and brown belt students all performed at a very high level. Congratulations To everyone!

A special thank you and shout out to Collin, Brady, Gavin, and Jacob. They’ve done such a great job teaching and preparing the students. We’re blessed to have them play such a huge role in the student’s development.

As always thanks to the parents and families for their support. It’s a great thing to see so many people supporting and encouraging each other. It’s all of you that make our school such a special place

Exams tonight.

Students testing for yellow, orange, green, and 7 green (green belt with black stripe) - 6:00 p.m.

Students testing for blue and brown belt ranks - 7:15 p.m.

Tonight’s exams or very large groups. Seating will be limited so please bring your own chairs.

Students should wear their full uniform and bring something to drink.

Please arrive fifteen minutes prior to exam start times.

Sparring this evening during the 7:40 class. All other classes will be working on basics and exam material.

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY

IMPORTANT EXAM SCHEDULE CHANGE FOR FRIDAY, August 4th.

It has turned out to be an even larger exam group for Friday than anticipated. While it’s exciting to finally be back to our pre Covid exam numbers I don’t want this week’s exam to be overly crowded.

STUDENTS TESTING FOR YELLOW, ORANGE, GREEN, AND GREEN/BLACK BELTS WILL STILL BE TESTING AT 6:00 p.m. please arrive at 5:45 for the exams.

STUDENTS TESTING FOR ALL BLUE AND BROWN BELT LEVELS WILL BE TESTING AT 7:15 p.m. Please arrive at 7:00 for these exams.

I apologize for the late schedule change but this will allow us to run a more efficient exam and provide a better rank promotion experince for everyone. I still expect to have all exams completed by no later than 9:30.

If this schedule change is inconvenient for anyone please see me and we’ll make special arrangements to accommodate you.

Mr. Trower

All classes this week will work on student progress working towards new belts. Exams this Friday, August 4th, at 6:00 p.m.

Sparring tonight at 7:40. Remember to bring your gear!

All this week we’ll be working on exam material in preparation for next week’s exams.

Exams are Friday, August 4th @ 6:00 p.m.

Black Belt Exams are Saturday, August 12th @ 9:30 a.m.

Sparring this Thursday is at 7:40.

Sparring class tonight at 7:40. Remember your gear!

Summer Day Camp classes this week Monday through Thursday from 10:00-2:00.

No uniforms required. Shorts and a t-shirt are fine

Remember your lunch and drinks.

Parents are invited to watch the students perform at 1:00 on Thursday.

All other classes this week will follow our normal class schedule. We’ll be working in exam material all this week. Sparring will be at 7:40 on Thursday.

Our Pujols Family Foundation classes all broke boards this week too! Wednesday’s Day class and both of the evening advanced beginner and advanced class participated this week.

We had a great first night of board breaking last night. While quite a few students successfully broke boards there were just as many or more who realized it’s also a very challenging thing to do. I want to compliment all of our students for giving it a try. Our white belt group in particular showed some great kicks. Thanks to Collin, Jacob, Brady, and Gavin for doing such a great job teaching our beginner students.