News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Ethan Ferwalt, Amy Barry, Jayme Kaczmerek, Anessa Stotts and Jeremy Buller earned black belts. photo provided
Earning a black belt in a martial art is a significant accomplishment, representing years of dedication and passage of a test that is often grueling - as much psychologically as physical.
Five taekwondo practitioners with Outlaw Martial Arts recently stood that test and passed, earning the honor of wearing the belt - and the satisfaction of knowing that they have accomplished something remarkable.
Anessa Stotts is just 14 years old, and she achieved her black belt after eight years of study.
"My friends did it and it looked really fun," Stotts said of her introduction to the martial arts.
Anessa's dedication helped her make it through four or five months of preparation for a seven-hour test, under the supervision of Outlaw Martial Arts founder Marty Kaczmarek, known to his students as Master K. She acknowledged that when she received her black belt there was "a lot of water-works. It just means a lot to me."
She loves training at Outlaw Martial Arts.
"It's a big family, and we all get along great," she said.
Stott has no intention of resting on her laurels.
"My future goal is, of course, to get my 8th-degree black belt," she told The Nugget.
She wants to teach, like the man who inspires her.
"Master K is my biggest role-model in my life," she said.
Amy Barry is soon to turn 46. She took up taekwondo about five years ago.
"I was looking for some way to get some exercise, and my son had been doing it since the first grade," she said.
That's a very common way for an adult to find their way into the martial arts, and Barry found it satisfying.
"I enjoy the taekwondo and I do the Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) and some judo as well," she said. "It's a great way to get a great workout and learn self-defense as well."
Barry plans to continue the practice, and in fact she recently competed in her first BJJ tournament, earning a second-place finish.
Jeremy Buller, too, moved into taekwondo after enrolling his son at Outlaw Martial Arts, where he wanted the youth to learn self-control (it worked).
As a nurse, Buller finds the capabilities he has gained practical.
"It was just another way of keeping myself safe," he said.
Martial arts is a family affair - his 11-year-old daughter, his 9-year-old son, and his wife also participate.
"Marital arts is a journey, and you take it as far as you want," he said.
He plans to continue the practice.
Ethan Ferwalt is a senior at Sisters High School, and he has been practicing taekwondo for seven years. He says that it has a positive impact on everything in his life.
"You'd be amazed how many areas martial arts applies to," he said.
Self-confidence, discipline, decision-making, follow-through: all are required in the dojo and all are beneficial in other areas of life.
Ferwalt feels that the practice - and earning his belt in what he acknowledges was a very challenging test - are a gift to him.
"I have the confidence - that I've pursued martial arts, that I've become good at it; I'm a leader in the community," he said. "I can always take solace in that."
Ferwalt found the hour of meditation the most difficult part of his seven-hour test, where, he says, "I was being pushed to my limit many, many times. It was tough."
Ferwalt, too, wants to teach martial arts, and he's looking at colleges with an eye partly on what martial arts opportunities will be available to him.
Jayme Kaczmerek earned her third-degree black belt in the most recent round of testing.
She identifies one key trait to success in Taekwondo - a trait that the practice itself inculcates:
"To persevere is probably the biggest thing," she said. "Not giving up; to keep going when it gets tough or beyond tough. I strongly stand by that in my personal and my martial arts
life."
Kaczmerek is also training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and some judo.
Like the other black belts, Kaczmerek sees benefits that go way beyond the dojo.
For adults, she says, succeeding in learning martial arts is a big shot of self-esteem, because so many start never thinking they can do it. With perseverance, they do.
The supportive, demanding community of marital artists helps people face ALL of the challenges in life.
"It goes hand-in-hand," she said. "It parallels beautifully. You get a dose of us for an hour and you go out in the real world and use it; you practice it."
For more information about Outlaw Martial Arts, visit outlawmartialarts.com.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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