Hi everyone! I'm Sensei Jess. I was a shy, scared, anti-social little kid. My confidence and self-esteem were virtually non-existent. When I started middle school I met my first bully. She would pick on me in the locker room and in the halls almost every day. I was too scared to stick up for myself so the tormenting went on for months. 

It all changed when I started karate. I had finally found something I liked and felt I was good at. I found my voice and started coming out of my shell. After a few months of training I was able to stand up to my bully and she never messed with me again. My whole mindset changed. Instead of wanting to hide behind others I wanted to lead them. Instead of wanting to sit and watch TV all day I wanted to exercise and get stronger.  Instead of shying away from difficult things I was excited for challenges and was confident I could overcome them. 

I have been training in martial arts for over 12 years and have earned my 3rd degree black belt. I have a background in traditional Okinawan karate as well as modern sport martial arts (all those cool jumping, spinning, "ninja" moves you may have seen on TV). I started training when I was 12 and quickly fell in love with the art. I was inspired by my instructors and almost immediately knew that I wanted to give back to the martial arts community and become an instructor myself one day. I saw such a huge and positive change in myself in such a short amount of time and it became my mission to share this art with others. 

I’ve seen so many of my students come into the dojo scared, shy, lacking confidence, and become strong young leaders in a matter of minutes! That’s the power of martial arts. Karate teaches people many important life skills. Here are a few that I value most:

Confidence
Respect (for others and oneself)
Goal setting
Perseverance
Control (of both mind and body)
Self-discipline 
Effort
Empathy

I like to teach these values through fun, high-energy drills and games. I always talk about how we can use these skills to become better martial artists, but also better children, students, siblings, friends, and people. 

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to reach out! I look forward to meeting you and starting your martial arts journey soon!