As 2021 comes to a close, I find myself thinking of all the change and growth that we have experienced this year. It has been an incredible journey!
The beginning of 2021 was chilly indeed, with classes in the garage offered rain, snow, or shine. I can't tell you what a relief it is not to worry about the weather when planning for class!
By spring 2021, we had expanded to four class offerings, and we were about at capacity in the garage.
In April we had our final belt test in the garage. It was at that occasion that we announced our plans to move to a new facility over the summer.
In May, we signed the lease agreement on our new dojang! We began construction right away. We did a lot of the work ourselves, with help from family, and for the rest relied on professionals who helped transform the space into Grand Valley Taekwondo.
June 1st, we moved classes over to the new studio. We had literally finished construction the day before! We spent the next couple of weeks putting together the finishing touches on our new space.
Then June 18-19th we held our grand opening. It went wonderfully, and so many incredible people joined us that weekend. We were absolutely thrilled.
Following the grand opening we launched our new class schedule, which included our first classes for adults, and our fan-favorite family classes. In August, we held our first belt test in the new studio.
In October we took a sparring team to Utah to compete. Our fighters each performed well, and brought back experience to our studio so we can continue growing!
Two weeks later we hosted our own tournament for the first time: the Grand Valley Games! We got to enjoy a performance by the Beyond Force demonstration team from Utah, then the team helped adjudicate as our students competed in board breaking and poomsae. The tournament was a great success and we are so proud of everyone who competed!
The rest of the year has gone by smoothly, and it feels safe to say that we are getting into a comfortable rhythm with our classes. We had our final belt test of the year right before the holidays, and it is fun to see how much everyone has grown!
It has been an incredible year of growth, learning, and so many firsts. We are so grateful for the amazing people who have been a part of our lives. We have many exciting plans for the coming year, and can't wait to go on this journey together with our GVT family.
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