About AKJ Karate

Our Mission

AKJ Karate is building the foundation for great lives through excellent professional martial arts training in an environment where anyone will feel welcome.

Our Vision

AKJ Karate's vision is to enrich lives through martial arts. We want to show our students how to apply the skills they learn from martial arts to every part of their daily lives. Every technique, drill, mat chat, and game is geared toward the life skill of the week. Skills that will be taught are:

We seek training and knowledge from international masters of the arts so that we may pass that information on to our own students. I want to bring the masters to our school so that our students may train directly with them.

Our History

Mr. Thomas achieved his First Degree Black Belt on April 27, 2002 after two and a half years of training. In 2003, his church approached him about starting a karate class in the new family life center that was under construction. He politely declined. He declined the church three more times. Then, they asked him to evaluate another instructor that had approached the church to use the new family life center. He agreed to go to watch this instructor teach a class at another local church. He did not like what he saw in this class and did not feel that it was a good match for his church. He reported to the church that this was not a good choice for them. A week or so later he was having lunch with one of his daughters and discussing the proposed karate program at the church. When asked how the evaluation went, he replied, "I did not like what I saw. What we really need is someone who knows our system of karate."

His daughter seized the opportunity. She said, "How often were you going to help the other guy? Once a week? Why can't you teach at our church?" Then she prayed over their lunch and asked God to make Mr. Thomas see that he was the one to start the program. The tears started to flow and at that very moment Mr. Thomas decided to start the karate program at Zion Baptist Church. He went back to the church and asked if he could build the program and they happily said yes. Mr. Thomas began to teaching classes at Zion on February 23, 2004.

Over the next three years the karate program grew to the point that changes needed to be made. Classes needed to be longer in order to separate the advanced belts from the beginner belts. Currently, our kids (ages 5 to 12) class averages 40 students and our teen/adult (ages 13 and up) class averages 12 each week. In these classes, there is an established curriculum for the karate training. Belt appropriate documentation is given to each student to enforce skills learned during class. Additional training in Kempo and Modern Arnis (The Filipino Art of Stick Fighting ) is provided for the adults.

Continuing Education

Mr. Thomas has continued in the art by attending weekly classes training under Master Robert Quinn, world renowned martial arts instructor. In 2005, Mr. Thomas attended the International Modern Arnis Summer Camp held in Brevard, N.C. During this week, he received training from seven international masters.

In 2006, he attended the World Filipino Martial Arts Festival held in Tagaytay City, Cavite, Philippines. This two week session was taught by twelve various international masters.

In 2007, Mr. Thomas was awarded his second degree black belt by Mr. Quinn. He traveled with Mr. Quinn to train in Iloilo City & Guimaras Island, Philippines for two weeks with several masters in Modern Arnis.