Journey to South Korea
CRANBERRY TWP — Butler County martial arts enthusiasts traveled to the birthplace of their discipline — tae kwon do — in July.
Forty students of the Young Brothers Tae Kwon Do schools, including many from Butler County, as well as former Steelers linebacker Greg Lloyd, traveled to South Korea, where tae kwon do was developed in the 1940s.
“Tae kwon do is the art of self-defense with a focus on discipline and respect while giving confidence,” said Audrey Gavula, head instructor at the Young Brothers Cranberry Township school, who made the trip with her husband, Erik, the headmaster instructor.
The group, representing students and masters from the schools, or dojangs, including those in Butler, Cranberry Township, Mercer and Gibsonia, spent a week from July 21 to July 27 visiting historical sites connected with the creation of tae kwon do.
The group was guided by Grandmaster Young Bo Kong, president of Young Brothers and a Cranberry Township resident. He was assisted by the head instructors at each school.
Chip Sargent, a Young Brothers student and Wexford Elementary School technology and gifted teacher, said Young Bo Kong and his brother, Young Il Kong, were instrumental in promoting tae kwon do throughout the world after its creation in 1945 and worked with the discipline's founder General Choi.
Sargent, who traveled to South Korea with his son, Ryan, 17, said “We flew from Pittsburgh to Chicago and from Chicago to the Inchon Airport right outside Seoul. It was a 13-hour flight.”
“We had a dedicated bus tour with an English-speaking tour guide,” said Sargent. “We just followed that itinerary. We got up in the morning and went to the first place and kept going to night.”
Beginning the day after their arrival July 22, Sargent said the group visited two universities, Yongin and Yeongsan where the Americans learned tae kwon do techniques and watched a performance by the Yeongsan tae kwon do demonstration team.They also visited historical landmarks including Anapji Pond, a pleasure garden built to commemorate the unification of the Korean peninsula where SillaDynasty kings and queens spent their leisure time; Bulguksa Temple, one of the oldest surviving Buddhist monasteries; and the Hyeonchungsa Shrine, dedicated 16th century naval hero — Admiral Yi Sun-sin.“He invented the covered battleship,” said student Ronnie Sankey of the revered mariner. “Throughout Korea, he is highly esteemed.”“What I enjoyed the most was when we went to the home of Admiral Yi Sun-Sin,” said Sargent. “The Ninth Pattern (of tae kwon do) is named after the admiral. We actually did the pattern at his house.”“Patterns are to help you develop the skills,” said Sankey, who is also a science and gifted teacher at the Butler Junior High School. “There are certain moves you have to do before progressing to the more challenging of the color belts.”“We lined up in the courtyard of the house and performed the pattern named after him,” Sankey said. “I still get goose bumps just thinking about it now.”The trip, Sargent said, “enhanced my understanding of tae kwon do and my appreciation of tae kwon do and where tae kwon do came from.”Sargent said he was most impressed by the culture of South Korea.“I think I was impressed at how polite the people were. I would love to go back again,” Sargent said.
That was a sentiment shared by Sankey.“The country was absolutely beautiful,” she said. “The palaces were absolutely beautiful.”“It was amazing to see all of the palaces and other buildings built after they were destroyed by the Japanese,” Sankey said.“Just seeing Seoul City, how clean it was for so many people,” said Gavula, when asked about her favorite sight on the trip. “Just seeing how they respect their country and respect their land.”Sargent said the group was even able to meet Young Il Kong, who lives in South Korea.Young Il Kong participated in a demonstration team led by General Choi, the “father of tae kwon do,” that traveled to 127 countries to introduce the world to tae kwon do more than 30 years ago.“It was incredible,” said Sargent. “I was able to say hi, share a meal. He was on some of the excursions with us.“He talked to us about the importance of continuing to train which, at 71, he still does every day.”Sticking to training shouldn't be a problem for Sargent.“I've been studying tae kwon do for eight years. I studied martial arts in high school and was interested for eight years, I studied martial arts in high school, and I was interested in getting back into it, and when my son was 9 years I thought it was time to start studying it together,” Sargent said.“Tae kwon do is really a way of life. It teaches courtesy. Before every class we begin with the tenants of tae kwon do which are courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, and indomitable spirit and modesty,” he said.“As well as what you gain from tae kwon do physically, Grandmaster Kong stresses being a good citizen and a good person and following the tenets of tae kwon do in all parts of your life,” Sargent said.
South Korea is an East Asian nation on the southern half of the Korean peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea.Slightly larger than Indiana, the country is mostly hills and mountains with wide coastal plains in the west and south.Its populace of nearly 49 million people is homogenous Korean except for about 20,000 Chinese.The population is Christian 31.6 percent (Protestant 24 percent, Roman Catholic 7.6 percent), Buddhist 24.2 percent, other or unknown 0.9 percent and none 43.3 percent, according to a 2010 survey.South Korea over the past four decades has demonstrated incredible growth and global integration to become a high-tech industrialized economy.In the 1960s, South Korea's gross domestic product per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. In 2004, South Korea joined the trillion dollar club of world economies, and is currently the world's 12th-largest economy.Initially, a system of close government and business ties, including directed credit and import restrictions, made this success possible. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption.The Asian financial crisis of 1997-98 exposed long-standing weaknesses in South Korea's development model including high debt/equity ratios and massive short-term foreign borrowing.
Korea adopted numerous economic reforms following the crisis, including greater openness to foreign investment and imports. Growth moderated to about 4 percent annually between 2003 and 2007.Korea's export-focused economy was hit hard by the 2008 global economic downturn, quickly rebounded in subsequent years, reaching 6.3 percent growth in 2010.Following the December 2012 presidential election, the incoming administration faced the challenges of balancing heavy reliance on exports with developing domestic-oriented sectors, such as services.The South Korean economy's long-term challenges include a rapidly aging population, inflexible labor market and heavy reliance on exports — which comprise half of its gross domestic product.The Military Demarcation Line within the 4-kilometer-wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953. There have been periodic incidents with North Korea in the Yellow Sea over the Northern Limit Line, which South Korea claims as a maritime boundary.<i><b>From CIA World Fact Book</b></i>
Sharing their snapshots are tae kwon do masters Ronnie Sankey, a Butler Junior High School teacher, and Audrey Gavula and student Ron Sargent of Cranberry Township.
