TWENTY YEARS OF TAE KWON DO

                                                                  Robert McDowell
                                                                 Testing for 6th. Dan
                                                                    December 2012

    Pilsung! My name is Bob McDowell and I am the head instructor and owner of the Edgewood Branch of Jung's Tae Kwon Do and today I am testing for my 6th. Dan. I can honestly say this is my last test. This is a special test today. There are three Masters testing for 8th. Dan today, but I think the most special thing about this day is that I am testing with my friend Stacey Bendickson.
    This is my last essay I will ever write so I have a lot to cover. I hope you enjoy. How I Got Started My life changed forever in February of 1993. I do heating and air conditioning work for a living. One cold morning I was fixing a furnace in Delhi. I was on my knees for about an hour, and when I got done I tried to get up off my knees and I couldn't. The gentleman who lived there was in his 80's and he helped me to my feet. This really bothered me as I drove back to the shop. I was 34 years-old and in terrible shape. That night I was reading the Edgewood Reminder and there was a story about the Tae Kwon Do class in town. I remembered when I was 18, I took Karate classes in Dubuque and I really liked it. I asked my wife if I could join and she said, "yes". My first class had me very nervous. I was the oldest student there, but my instructor Mr. Lanny Kuhse made me feel right at home. Two weeks later I was a Yellow Belt. I really loved Tae Kwon Do and I was getting better all the time. After I got my Green Belt, Mr. Kuhse said he was not going to teach anymore. Quitting was not an option to me, so I started driving to Garnavillo for class where I met Mr. Andrew Johnson. Mr. Johnson helped me very much and I received my Black Belt from him in December 1996. I also made a decision about my Tae Kwon Do future. I wanted to open my own school!
   My First Night I started planning to teach in Edgewood in the fall of 1997. I had worked out an agreement with the Edgewood Country Club to use their reception hall for the winter. I also had been running ads in the newspapers of the local towns. I was going to have my first class, January 8, 1998. The night of my first class had arrived and I had four students signed up, plus my oldest son Tyler. My wife asked if she should come to help. Lucky for me I said, "yes". We were getting set up and my first three students arrived. their mom had bought them classes for a Christmas present. A couple more came in that I didn't know, then a few more came in the back door. Soon I had 26 White Belts signed up! I will never forget that first night. That night changed my life forever. The New Dojang Classes went great. I was having class four nights a week and on Saturday. Spring arrived and so did my first problem. I couldn't use the country club anymore because of weddings and other activities there. Having 44 students is great unless you don't have a place to teach them. During the summer we used many different locations, but always had conflicts and nothing seemed like a good place for us. In July I sat down with my wife and we discussed building a school. I suggested in town, but she suggested why not build it in our backyard? We live south of Edgewood about a mile, and have five acres in the country. I thought that was a great idea! I went to the local bank, Community Savings Bank, for a loan. I was very lucky again, the Loan Officer was the wife of one of my students and their son was also in Tae Kwon Do. She knew what I was all about. They talked it over and the bank approved my loan.
    Construction started in August and we had our first class on November 3, 1998. It was wonderful. We had our very own place with nobody else that we had to share it with. It was a true dojang. I guess the strangest part about this was that Master Jung had no idea that I was doing this. At the December test I went to Master Jung's office with a picture of my new dojang. I will ever forget the look on his face when he realized what I had done. I didn't think what I had done was a big deal until that very moment. I then knew I had done something very special. Grand Opening February 8, 1999, just a little more than one year after I had started teaching Tae Kwon Do, we celebrated our Grand Opening of the new Edgewood Jung's Tae Kwon Do Academy dojang. We had an entire day of demonstrations, board breaking, forms and free-sparring. The parents of students and my wife had lunch for all of our guests during the day. Finally at 1:30 in the afternoon a very special guest arrived. Grandmaster Jung made the trip to our dojang from Cedar Rapids. When he entered, he stood there for a few moments just looking around the then he started smiling. I took him on a tour and he had many questions on the building, its construction and the price.
Master Jung is a businessman, so he had some very good questions for me and was very impressed with the new school. Master Jung spent the afternoon with us that day and made it very special. I received a plaque from him that still hangs by the door. I never thought what I was doing was anything special until I listened to Master Jung. He was so proud of our new school and he has never failed to mention it whenever he is talking about Tae Kwon Do. To me, I just needed a place to teach. But this little white building in the middle of an Iowa cornfield has become very special; not only to Master Jung, but to all the student who helped in its construction and the students who continue to learn Tae Kwon Do there today.   
KBS Television In the summer of 2000, I had another special moment in my Tae Kwon Do life. I received a phone call one evening from Master Jung. He told me KBS Television from Seoul, South Korea, was coming to the US doing a documentary on Tae Kwon Do. He said they would be filming in Cedar Rapids at the main school and he had told them about a dojang in a corn field that they should see. I was shocked when he told me they would be filming at my school the following Thursday night! The next week we were all very busy getting the place cleaned up for our guests. My students were excited and nervous about what was happening. The entire town was buzzing that the Koreans were coming!
The night they came was perfect. It was a beautiful and warm summer evening. The KBS TV crew was amazed at the first thing they saw when they pulled into our yard. I had run a South Korean flag up the flagpole in our yard. They thought that showed a lot of respect to their country. Filming went very well. I had 30 students there for the
taping and they put on an excellent demonstration. Master Jung was also there helping to direct and he was full of energy that evening. I got to watch the TV show later that year and I was totally amazed at what I saw. KBS had gone all over the world taping this show. There were many famous athletes and martial artists featured in the one hour show. Right in the middle of it was a five minute segment about the Edgewood School.
I was very humbled after watching it. Master Jung said they told him visiting Northeast Iowa was the favorite part of their trip. To this day I am truly amazed by that show. There are many people from South Korea that Master Jung has introduced me to, and several of them recognize me from the show. Being on this show meant a lot to me and I have to thank Master Jung for bringing KBS to my school. China and the North Korea Trip In April 2005, Tae Kwon Do celebrated its 50th. birthday. I was very lucky and honored to get to go on this trip with Master Jung and ten other Black Belts from Iowa. Seeing all the sites and being able to stand on the Great Wall in China was incredible! We traveled into North Korea. It was very sobering to be in a country that doesn't like us, but to be welcomed like we were, was wonderful. North Korea had some beautiful and old Tae Kwon Do shrines. But it's also a very poor country. The North Korea Incident Part of the China trip was also a trip to North Korea. One of the sites we went to visit was the Mausoleum of Kim Il Sung. It was a huge place all made of marble. When you take the tour you stand on a moving floor and are required to be quiet. Halfway through the tour we came to a security zone. We had to all walk through a metal detector. I
watched everyone walk through and then it was my turn. When I went through all the lights and an alarm went off. I stopped and was wondering what was going on when I was grabbed and pulled into a room. I was pushed up against a wall and three soldiers had their guns pointed at me. I was terrified. They were asking me questions, but I didn't understand them. They searched me and found a small clock in my pocket. They thought it was a bomb! I finally convinced them what it was and they pushed me out of the room. I caught up with the group and was so happy to see them. Master Jung felt bad that day that he wasn't there to help me, but he has told the story of that day many times and has always enjoyed a big laugh about it! Hall of Fame December 13, 2005, I was inducted into Jung's Tae Kwon Do Hall of Fame. This was an incredible honor for me. I was the 13th. Black Belt to receive this honor. When you look at the 12 names before mine, it is a truly humbling experience. There are some true pioneers of Tae Kwon Do on that list. It makes me feel very special that Master Jung gave me this award. I look at that plaque every night before class. Two weeks before I received it, my father passed away and Master Jung went out of his way to attend the service. When I see that award, it brings good memories and reminds me of two very special people in my life; my father and Master Jung. Colorado Trip Every year we go on a trip to Colorado to Master Jung's mountain cabin, Eagle's Nest.
It has become an annual event for my family and my school. The Edgewood school usually has the most people there. We enjoy whitewater rafting, hikes in the woods,
and working out at Bear Rock. Last year we went on a gold mine tour that was awesome! We also do a lot of work at the cabin. A couple years ago we painted the entire cabin in one afternoon. I think the best part of the trip though is all the personal time my students get to spend with Master Jung! 2012 Eagle's Nest trip-Bear Rock Tournament Director Seven years ago Master Jung asked me to be the tournament director for his annual tournament. The first year was a lot of work getting everything figured out and trying to make it better. I asked Master Jung about making it an open tournament so I could invite more schools. He thought that was a good idea and the tournament has gotten bigger every year. My favorite part of this is donating money to charity every year. We have done some great things to help people with this tournament and I am happy to have a small part in that. Tournaments I LOVE tournaments! I don't compete anymore but still enjoy going.
I was never any good at sports in school and I am sure that is because I didn't have any confidence in myself. That is something that you really gain in Tae Kwon Do. I am a different person from when I was in school. I wish I had known Tae Kwon Do when I was a teenager.
Things really changed for me when I went to my first tournament. I was an Orange Belt and went to Des Moines to the Eric Heintz Black Belt Academy Tournament. I was very nervous during forms and board breaking and didn't do very well. In free-sparring I found something I really liked and I was good at it. I won the silver medal that day and I was hooked. I started going to tournaments all the time and it was fun. I enjoy seeing friends I have made at tournaments and I have taken my students all over the United States to compete. We have worked hard and done very well; even at very large tournaments.
I have had two unforgettable moments in tournaments I have gone to. I have won over 200 medals and trophies, and two really stand out to me. In 2003, I won the AAU Men's Black Belt Lightweight national championship, beating the ten-time national champ 7-5. I decided not to compete any more after that, but in 2006, I competed with my son Tyler. We won the Iowa Tag Team Championship. It was great to do something like that with my son. I don't think I will ever lose that urge to compete; even with the younger guys. My Boys I was blessed with two of the best sons a father could ask for. They are both Black Belts. Tyler started when he was six-years-old and is a very special student to me. When I started teaching he was a Blue Belt and I had 26 White Belt students. Tyler told me something then that almost no student would do. He said he would not test until the white Belts caught up with him. He would help me teach them. He was a very big help to me.
Tony, my youngest, helps me now. He is now my Assistant Instructor. When he started Tae Kwon do, he was only four-years-old. I put a uniform on him and put him in the back row. I didn't pay much attention to him; it was mostly babysitting. But then one night at class, I saw he was doing Chung-Ji. He had taught himself by watching others. I had him test for Yellow Belt and he did a great job. My two boys do very good in school and are excellent in sports. They both have told me it was from their Tae kwon Do training. It has been a very big and important part of their lives. Very few
students can say their dad is the instructor and dojang is in the backyard. I am very happy to have been able to give this to them and have this be a part of their family history. Mr. Tony McDowell, Grandmaster Jung and Mr. Robert McDowell My Black Belts I am very proud of this! I have been teaching for fifteen years and I have promoted fifty people to the rank of Black Belt. Here they are:
Tyler McDowell 4th.
Tony McDowell 3rd.
Gina Owens 3rd.
Jess Aulwes 2nd.
Matt Harbaugh 2nd.
Fisher Woodley 2nd.
Jennifer Lancaster 2nd. Hunter Woodley 2nd.
Bryce Wulfekuhle 2nd.
John Christiansen 2nd.
Hannah First 2nd.
Jay Funke 2nd.
Nick Althoff 2nd.
Roland Evans 2nd.
Merrill Guaraneri 2nd.
Jane Christiansen 1st.
Gina Oberbroeckling 1st.
Trapper Woodley 1st.
Carter Aulwes 1st.
Morgan Ricklefs 1st.
Nanda Vilabois 1st.
Holgar Stickel 1st.
Johannes Oehmichen 1st.
Emmaly Fenton 1st.
Gary Hilsheim 1st.
Nate Eiben 1st.
Stacia Totman 1st.
Michelle Grundmeyer 1st. 49th. and 50th. Black Belts Jane Christiansen and Gina Oberbroeckling with Mr. McDowell. Both have gone on to earn 1st. Dan. Shelby Totman 1st.
Katie Mousel 1st.
Katlyn Orivs 1st.
Michelle Orvis 1st.
Megan Chopard 1st.
Emily Martens 1st.
Gary Meade 1st.
Mike Breitbach 1st.
Katie Breitbach 1st.
Rhys Evans 1st.
Bridget Breitbach 1st.
Domenic Boe 1st.
Mike Weston 1st.
Lauren Weston 1st.
Theresa Breitbach Temp.
Lucas Chase Temp.
Tony Breitbach Temp.
Haley Bergan Temp.
Tyler Ries Temp.
Brittany Backes Temp.
Staci Fritz
Barb Cole  

Tae Kwon Do Times I have had many opportunities in Tae Kwon Do because of the relationship I have with Master Jung. I have mentioned a few already and I have more to share. One is Tae Kwon Do Times magazine. The summer after I opened my new dojang, Master Jung called me wanting me to write a story about the new dojang for the magazine. As always I was thrilled he wanted to do something for me, but this time I was going to do it a little differently. I wanted to have an article in the magazine, but I wasn't going to write it. I wanted this to be from my students. I had two girls in my class who were Brown Belts. They were also best friends and liked doing things together. So I gave them the job and challenge of writing a story for a major magazine. The did a great job! Northeast Iowa is known around the world for the baseball move "Field of Dreams". Katie Breitbach and Emmaly Fenton borrowed from this and called the article a "Tae Kwon Do Field of Dreams". I loved the article when it came out and I have it framed and hanging in the dojang. Just another example of what Master Jung has done for me.
My Tattoo April 10, 2012, I probably made one of the biggest decisions ever in Tae Kwon Do. I got a tattoo!
I wanted to get a tattoo, but could not decide what I wanted to get. You have to remember tattoos are forever. I could not decide on a design until one night before class. I was getting dressed and looked at my school patch in the mirror. Before I knew it, I had it on my left chest! But when I looked in the mirror I wasn't balanced. I needed another on the other side! So I went back and got the other school patch put on my left side. Also, this time I had her add Tae Kwon Do in Korean down the center. And the finishing touch:
Master Jung's signature over my heart! Master Jung was very moved when he saw what I did and is very proud of my artwork. He shows it to a lot of people! Also, I was again honored to be in Tae Kwon Do Times magazine with an article on my tattoos. Just a little way to show my love of Tae Kwon Do and to honor Grandmaster Jung.
My Life Tae Kwon Do, how different would my life be without it? Very. I have changed many lives over the years because of what I do. People have met, gotten married and had children because they met through Tae Kwon Do. My oldest son Tyler met his girlfriend in Tae Kwon Do and they are getting married next year. That in itself makes me so happy that I got into this and decided to teach.
I have met people who are like family to me now. Almost half of my life has been dedicated to this. Both my boys have spent their entire lives in Tae Kwon Do. BLACK BELT FAMILY Jennifer Lancaster and sons Fisher, Hunter and Trapper Woodley As instructors we need to keep in mind that we are role models. That we are like school teachers; shaping and changing young minds and old ones too!
I'm very happy today! My sons are here, my Black AULWES FAMILY mom Jess with Ella, Carter, Lily and Claire Belts are here, my students are here, all watching me
test for 6th. Dan! I'm honored to be testing with Stacey Bendickson; a very good friend of mine.
I'm also honored to be testing before these Grandmasters today, and to my inspiration, Grandmaster Jung.
Thank you,
Bob McDowell Grandmaster Jung's visit to the Edgewood Branch of Jung's Tae Kwon Do on Nov. 15, 2012