Freeport's Lindsay in Karate HOF
NORTH HUNTINGDON — Elizabeth Lindsay grew up in the Ninja Turtle era — and never grew out of it.
The 2003 Freeport graduate began taking karate at age 5 and has maintained a passion for the martial arts.
“Kung-Fu, The Karate Kid, Ninja Turtles, all that stuff was on TV,” Lindsay said. “I was into it big-time. From age 2, I bugged my parents about letting me take karate classes.
“When I was still bugging them three years later, they gave in.”
Lindsay was 11 when she earned her first black belt. She is now a fifth-degree black belt and runs her own studio — C.S. Kim Karate in North Huntingdon.
She was also inducted into the national Black Belt Hall of Fame recently, becoming only the fifth woman to earn that distinction.
Master C.S. Kim of Monroeville is part of the National All Martial Arts Championship, which is where Lindsay's Hall of Fame honor came from. She took part in a long interview process with nominees from all over the country and won out.
Lindsay has won six individual world championships. She began running her own business — C.S. Kim Karate — at age 22.
She took her first martial arts class at the C.S. Kim Karate school in Natrona Heights.
“I'm so young to be going into a Hall of Fame,” the 33-year-old said. “But I'm so proud. I love how the martial arts empower women. I looked up to women in this sport when I was younger ... I could tell they weren't going to take any crap from anyone and I loved that.
“This sport makes you an incredible fighter, spiritually and physically.”
But it wasn't always that way for Lindsay. She recalled her first year in junior high, when kids were talking about what sports they were into.
“When I said karate, they all said, 'that's not a real sport' ... That was a sad moment for me,” she said. “I mean, I've been kicked, punched, broken fingers, been kicked in the ribs ... that's not a sport?”
She did try different sports in high school. Lindsay ran track her freshman year at Freeport and broke her ankle her sophomore year. She played softball for two years, soccer for one.
“My brother was an athlete, my sister was a majorette and cheerleader,” Lindsay said. “They had varsity jackets and I was a little jealous, so I tried different things.”
But she missed karate — especially went she went away to college at Mercyhurst University.
“I looked for martial arts clubs on campus and wound up getting involved in some off campus,” Lindsay said. “Martial arts clubs are friendly, family-oriented. I had grown to miss that.”
When she graduated from college, Lindsay admitted she was conflicted about what career path to pursue. She returned home and helped out at a few C.S. Kim events just to be involved with the sport again.
She soon learned the karate school in North Huntingdon was going to close if no one stepped up to take it over.
“I had started working a little at the Natrona Heights school, just to get my foot in the door, just to assist and help out,” Lindsay said. “Next thing I knew, I was being offered a chance to run my own school.
“My parents' support in this venture was fantastic. They encouraged me and I decided, even at 22, to go for it.”
When Lindsay took over the North Huntingdon karate school, there were 20 students and most of them rarely showed up. Today, she has over 100 students — and a rewarding career.
“I love the positive betterment of individuals, helping people be the best they can be” she said.
“I'm always going to try to be better at helping people. Change someone's mind about suicide, bad health decisions, make someone feel stronger physically, more confident as a human being, all of those things.
“The martial arts have positively influenced my life. My goal is to do the same for as many people as I can.”
