Making the Season Bright

This was a month of giving back to the community. ATA Martial Arts of West Chester adopted 4 children through St. Agnes Parish and filled up a bag of Holiday gifts for each child. We also collected many gifts for the children's mothers and fathers. The gifts truly helped make the families' seasons brighter by allowing them to have new gloves, hats, clothes, scarfs, and other necessities so that they may live more comfortably this winter.

We also did our annual bell ringing for the Salvation Army this month. We stood in front of the West Goshen K-Mart for 4 hours on a Friday night and collected a lot of money. Although it was very cold outside, the Leadership Team was proud to represent ATA in uniform and spread Holiday cheer.

A special thanks to everyone who contributed a gift and helped ring bells!

Trunk-Or-Treat & Halloween Celebration

Friday, October 30th, the families of ATA West Chester celebrated Miss Boulden & Mr. Jouan's favorite time of year by Trunk-or-Treating and playing games. We had a Halloween Celebration inside the school as well as, Hayrides and Trunk-or-Treating outside the school. Everyone came in costume and enjoyed seeing Miss Boulden & Mr. Jouan dressed up as crazy doctors. The night concluded with a demonstration and tons more treats!

Also, the Thursday night before our celebration, we made our first appearance in the West Chester Halloween Parade and handed out over 500 goodies and treats to the children in the area. We broke boards and did special demonstrations throughout the night. A special thank you to Mr. Ciarlello, Mr. Salotti, & Mr. Herzog for making it possible for us to have a trailer of hay and for helping us stay safe while having fun!

Purple Belts in ATA West Chester

On Saturday October 24th, ATA West Chester hosted their 5th Belt Promotion since their Grand Opening on January 2nd. Seventy students demonstrated their skills and advanced to new belts. Everyone had a top notch performance and we are very excited to see the school's original students change to purple belt! We even had a student test for her 2nd degree black belt! It was an amazing event. Also, a special thank you to our sponsor Suntricity Power for being a part of our big day and handing out Gatorade to the students. The next promotion will be Wednesday, December 23rd! We look forward to seeing you there!

ATA Teams Up With The Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania

Each Friday of October and November, ATA West Chester has teamed up with the Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania. We taught various workshops such as Kidz 'n Power, Introduction to Martial Arts Training, Bully Education, Girls Health & Fitness, & Self-Defense to the different troops in the area. The girls, ages 7-17, have really enjoyed Miss Boulden's guidance. Upon workshop completion, the girls received an ATA badge to display on their vests & sashes. Way to go girls! We cannot wait to host the workshops again next year!

Workout with Senior Master Dilegge

On October 4th, Senior Master Dilegge and Mr. Abasolo visited ATA West Chester all the way from Little Rock, Arkansas (where ATA International Headquarters is). They are originally from Newark, DE and have known Mr. Jouan and Miss Boulden for about 20 years.

Senior Master taught a bonus Sunday leadership class to the students. Everyone had a great time! The class consisted of advance techniques, sparring drills, and ATA FIT. Senior Master Dilegge and Mr. Abasolo said ATA West Chester is in great shape and everyone is doing great! Keep up the awesome work everyone!

Mr. Jouan & Miss Boulden's 9 Green Tips that KICK BACK!!

Going green can not only be fantastic for the environment, but great for your pocket. Here are some Green Tips that can really kick back:

1. Recycle all old ink/toner cartridges to Staples. For each cartridge they give a $3.00 credit for a future purchase!

2. Recycle any old cellular telephones & chargers to battered women's shelters. They can program the phones to dial out in emergency situations. That payback is really worth it!

3. Clean out pantries/kitchen cabinets every 6 months and donate soon to be expiring food or food no one in your household eats to local food pantries that can use them immediately to help the less fortunate. Some places will give you a tax write off.

4. Use old and tapered clothing/towels as dust rags instead of spending money on expensive substitutes that end up in the trash after use.
BONUS- Get a few times use out of a rag by washing it.

5. Instead of throwing things away, have a yard sale to make some quick cash. One person's junk is another person's treasure! Set a S.M.A.R.T. goal and develop a game plan for the day.

6. Use scrap paper to print on-- save a tree & save a few dollars in paper each month!
BONUS- Print your weekly good habit sheet on a piece of scrap paper like the Cross family.

7. Set up E.F.T.(Electronic Fund Transfer) with your monthly expenses(i.e.- electric, water, health care, etc.). You will save money on stamps, checks, return address labels, and envelops as well as decreasing the amount of paper being used.

8. Giving someone a gift or receiving a gift? Recycle your giftbag! No need to spend money on new ones for every occasion.
BONUS- Wrap a gift in the Sunday comics before you recycle the newspaper.

9. Some places, like Trader Joes in Wilmington, DE, have free raffles for people who bring their own reusable bags to shop with. You can win giftcards weekly!

Go Green Ambassador #2- Christoph Grosse

Name: Christoph Grosse
Hometown: Downingtown, PA
Rank: Green Belt

1. Take batteries and old, unused cell phones to places where they can be disposed of safely

2. Carpool when going to school, work or Taekwondo class

3. Keep chargers for handheld electronics unplugged when not in use

4. Turn off water while brushing teeth

5. Go through your neighborhood and pick up trash

6. Turn off lights that are not being used

7. Replace all the standard light bulbs in your home with compact fluorescent ones

8. Replace household cleaners with environmentally friendly cleaners

9. Recycle all paper, glass and plastic products

Go Green Ambassador #1- Max Ashby

Name: Max Ashby
Hometown: West Chester, PA
Rank: Green Belt

1. Recycle EVEN more in and out of home

2. Walk to Taekwondo class

3. Turn off fans when not in room

4. Keep stereo unplugged

5. Use a reusable waterbottle

6. Only take 2-5 minute showers

7. Hang clothes to dry outside instead of using dryer

8. Use manure for soil

9. Mow the lawn with a push lawn mower

1st Annual School Picnic

Yesterday was our first annual ATA West Chester school picnic at East Bradford Park. We had over 80 students and their families attend. We were fortunate enough to have the rain stop for us! We kicked off the picnic by introducting the jahng bong(long staff) to the students and having a seminar taught by Mr. Jouan. The students discovered that they really like the jahng bong as the newest leadership weapon for their training curriculum.
After the seminar everyone ate. We had so much food!!! The picnic was potluck, so that means that each family brought a dish to share. Some of the tasty foods were pulled pork, hamburgers, hotdogs, baked ziti, chicken fry, pasta salad, chili, cookies, brownies, and more. We ended up having so much food left over that we donated the extra food to Safe Harbor in West Chester. Safe Harbor provides hot meals and food for those less fortunate.
The picnic was a great chance to have the students and parents mingle outside of the school and off the mat. Many new friendships were made and many stomachs were filled!

Visit from Mr. Jason Morgan(A.G.R.E.E.)

On Wednesday, September 9, 2009(9-9-09) we celebrated the importance of the number 9 in the Korean culture by inviting special guest instructor and 4th degree black belt Mr. Jason Morgan to teach Leadership class to the Junior and Adult Leadership Team. Not only did Mr. Morgan give us all a great workout, but he challenged us to follow the ATA A.G.R.E.E. campaign and begin practicing more environmental self-defense outside of ATA. He asked each student to go home and write down 9 specific goals that they can do to help save the environment over the next 9 weeks and then hand it to Miss Boulden or Mr. Jouan. The first students to complete the task receive an ATA Go Green! badge as well as an individual post on the ATA Martial Arts of West Chester blog. Keep an eye out for these Go Green ambassadors!

For more about the ATA A.G.R.E.E. campaign visit http://atagreen.blogspot.com/.

Going Green!

On Saturday, August 29, 2009 ATA Martial Arts of West Chester promoted 60 students to new ranks with the highest ranks being green belts! Our sponsors were Kalei Learning & Brain Training Center as well as Brown's Clothing. We had 2008 ATA X-treme Weapons World Champion Miss Sarah Modiano of ATA Hamilton, NJ as our special guest judge. She demonstrated her dynamic bo staff form and also judged each student's performance at the test. We raffled off an authentic white Philadelphia Eagles Jackson jersey as well as a private lesson gift certificate in order to prepare for the upcoming Delaware Regional Tournament. A funtime was had by all who attended!

Also, check out our article in the Fall 2009 issue of the ATA World Magazine on page 10!

Ice Cream Party

This past Friday night was our first annual Ice Cream Party! Mr. Jouan & Miss Boulden brought the ice cream and each family brought a topping to share! We had a wide range of goodies including chocolate syrup, M & Ms, gummie bears & even nerds! The students and their families really enjoyed creating their own masterpieces. The evening concluded with a few rounds of musical chairs and limbo. A great time was had by all!

Summer--New Belts, New Leaders, New Schedule

This past weekend was a busy weekend at ATA Martial Arts of West Chester. Friday night we had our End of the School Year Parent's Night Out. It was a lot of fun! We did many martial arts workouts as well as playing kickball & dodgeball outside, eating pizza, and playing ninja reflex on the Wii. The children had a blast!
On Saturday morning we had our belt promotions for Tiny Tigers and then promotions for Junior, Teen, & Adult students immediately following. We had over 50 students acheive new ranks and reach new goals. We were very grateful to have Deputy Anthony Schubbeio from the West Chester Sheriff's Department to be our attitude judge.
Also, a special congratulations to Mr. Walker Holman for being the first student at ATA West Chester to earn his Junior Leadership collar. We are very proud of everyone who promoted and a special thank you to all the parents and families who make this all possible for your children and self.
After the belt promotions on Saturday, we did our annual Father's Day Workout. The dads did a great job and were very intense. The students loved training side by side with their dads and holding targets.
Monday started our new schedule! We now have intermediate classes for all the students who promoted to the camo belt level! We are very excited!

Open House

Saturday, May 16th was our first annual Spring Open House. We kicked it off at 12:30 with a Dynamic Kicking Seminar, at 1:30 we did the ATA Kidz n' Power program, and then at 3:00 we did a Board Breaking Seminar. We had over 100 visitors throughout the day! We gave out free hot dogs, potato chips, pretzels, and Wawa drinks all day. We also had a live DJ, as well as having many local businesses in attendance such as the new Learning Rx and the First National Bank. The West Chester Police Depatement & Fire Department were there to show off their vehicles and to talk with the kids. It was fantastic! We also did fundraising activities for the Avon Breast Care Fund. We had a bake sale, wood boards for a donation, facepainting, and an hourly mega raffle. At the end of the day we raised over $250.00! We surpassed our $200.00 goal! We could not have done it without our loyal ATA families and close friends. We are glad everyone enjoyed themselves!

Mother's Day Workout

On Friday, May 8th, we had our first Mother's Day workout here at ATA West Chester. We had many students, moms, and even grandmothers come to the class. The students, moms, and grandmas did basic techniques and self-defense, held targets for one another, and even had the chance to put together the first four techniques of Songahm 1!! Some of the moms and grandmas can kick really high! We were very impressed.

A few of the moms and grandmas are attending regular class this week. All month of May any ATA mom can train for free in any beginner class! We look forward to seeing some new white belts in class. It is great to train with your family!!

We will see you at the next event, our open house, this Saturday, May 16th from 12PM-4PM. We will have many exciting classes and free WaWa food! We cannot wait!

Celebrating the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle's 25th Year Anniversary!

This past Saturday Mr. Jouan , Miss Boulden, fellow instructors from Region 110A, and a few students went to Citizen's Bank Park before the Phillies game(Go Phillies!) to help build excitement for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle's 25th Year Anniversary! Michaelangelo, Raphael, Donnatello, & Leonardo were all there posing for pictures. They also brought their party bus which served as a free mobile museum. The turtles are bringing themselves and the party bus to many other major US cities. The next stop on their tour will be in Detroit.

ATA & the Turtles had a great time doing many demonstrations to get the crowd fired up before the game. We gave out many free goodies including comic books, buttons, and masks. The turtles even made an appearance on the field too before the game started! How cool! Cowabunga!
For more information about the turtle's mobile tour or for more pictures, please visit www.ataonline.com/tmnt!

Regional Tournament in New Jersey

This past Saturday 10 students competed in a Regional Tournament in Lincroft, NJ. Each student did a fantastic job and went home with a trophy! We are so proud of our West Chester ATA students for trying something new and challenging themselves in their martial arts training. Tournaments are a great way to build confidence as well as measure the quality of technique and skill. We hope all of the students are excited to support the next tournament in July, and then Master Stewart's tournament in September. Let's bring home some hardware!

Sparring Seminar

Monday, April 6th was our first ever Sparring Seminar at ATA Martial Arts of West Chester. We were very lucky to have 4th degree black belt special guest from ATA Long Island, Miss Michele Boulden. Miss Michele Boulden, who is also Miss Maria Boulden's sister, did many beginner sparring drills with the students who have the ATA safety gear. The students worked on footwork, blocking and countering. Everyone worked out non-stop for the entire hour and it is safe to say that all in attendance worked up a good sweat! We know we will have some Pennsylvania State Sparring Champions in the next couple of years!

Bring-A-Buddy Break-A-Board

This past Saturday, March 21st, was our Bring-A-Buddy Break-A-Board event. It was a total blast. We had over 40 buddies in attendance. We practiced palm heels, elbows, front kicks, and side kicks. Everyone broke their boards and even got the instructors to sign them afterwards so that they may have them as a keepsake. Breaking your first wood board is a memorable milestone in your martial arts training. We are very excited to share that with the students of ATA West Chester and their buddies.

If any of the students and/or their buddies would like for us to come to their classroom for a Show & Tell about their board breaking experience, we would be more than honored to do so. We can even let you break a board right in front of your classmates! Be sure to stay tuned for our next event...

Our First Belt Promotion

Saturday, February 28th was our very first belt promotions! We promoted 25 students to orange belt. We had 6 Tiny Tigers, 13 Juniors, & 6 Adults. Mr. Jason Morgan from the Elkton, Maryland school was there helping out the Tiny Tiger testing and cheering on his 5 year old cousin who tested for her orange belt. Also, our very special guest, Master Doug Stewart, our instructor, was there to help judge the Juniors & Adults. The students were very excited to see him! Everyone had a great performance and we heard nothing but good things from parents and families who were in attendance. We are also grateful for our sponsorship and support from First National Bank and Lorgus Flower Shop. Our event was a success!

Valentine's Day Parent's Night Out

Saturday, February 14th was our first Parent's Night Out. It was such a success! We had 15 children arrive at 5:00PM and stay until 9:00PM. We worked out, played games, ate pizza, watched Kung-Fu Panda, and so much more. Everyone's favorite part was at the end of the night when we did Paper Breaks. That is when we used our martial arts techniques that we had practiced all night to break paper. Many of the kids were very surprised with their ability and power! We cannot wait for the next Parent's Night Out when we celebrate the end of the school year.

School Tour

We hope that you enjoy the video tour of the new ATA Martial Arts School! After only 2 weeks of being open we currently have over 40 students in our Tiny Tigers, Juniors, Teens & Adults Programs. Thank you for the support from the community, previous students, family, friends and ATA International Headquarters as we begin changing family's lives one black belt at a time.

Now Open!

After much hard work, ATA Martial Arts of West Chester is finally open and teaching classes! We are so excited to finally show the community what they have been waiting for! Our initial classes went well and we look forward to working with and getting to know the students more and more. Friday we had all of the Tiny Tigers train in one class, and then after that, about half of the Juniors & Adults came to train for their class. On Saturday, the rest of the Adults came. Everyone seemed to have a fun time getting to know the intructors and the new friends in their class. Master Stewart, our previous instructor from Newark, Delaware, came to observe and wish us his best wishes. We were so glad that he could be a part of our special day!