VAILLANCOURTS KOREAN MARTIAL ARTS AT THE NORDBY CENTER FOR RECREATION

The Vaillancourts Korean Martial Arts Program at the Nordby Center for Recreation (NCR) in Huron, South Dakota is taught by Dana and Mary Ellen Vaillancourt.  The primary course of instruction includes classical Tang Soo Do, which is the precursor to Taekwondo.  Mr. and Mrs. Vaillancourt are nationally/internationally-ranked Master Instructors in Tang Soo Do and trained and taught under the tutelage of one of the most senior Tang Soo Do instructors in the world, Grand Master Jae Joon Kim.  Grand Master Jae Joon Kim, who passed away in January 2007, was a 9^th dan (or degree of black belt) in Tang Soo Do and Taekwondo (Kukkiwon) and was the founder of the World Moo Duk Kwan Tang Soo Do Federation.  After Grand Master Jae Joon Kim’s death, the Vaillancourts joined the International Association of Korean Martial Arts (IAKMA) under another famous senior Tang Soo Do and Taekwondo Grand Master, Chung Il Kim.

Dana was promoted to the rank of 7^th dan (#14676) in Tang Soo Do by Grandmaster Jae Joon Kim and Mary Ellen holds the rank of 5^th dan.  The Vaillancourts Nordby Center for Recreation program is a recognized school under the IAKMA. With over 60 years of combined martial arts experience, the Vaillancourts are two of the most senior practitioners of Tang Soo Do actively teaching in the northern Great Plains region.

The Vaillancourts are also no strangers to traditional and modern sport Taekwondo and also hold black belt certification and affiliations in Taekwondo.  Both Dana (7^th dan) and Mary Ellen (5th dan) have black belt certification with either the Kukkiwon (World Taekwondo Federation) in Seoul, Korea and/or with the Amateur Athletic Union’s (AAU) National Taekwondo Program.  While familiar with the methods and merits of modern sport Taekwondo, the Vaillancourts stress the more traditional training methods of Korean self-defense and self-improvement and place less emphasis on the sport aspect. 

Due to the Vaillancourts high rank, teaching experience, and organizational affiliations, students at the Nordby Korean Martial Arts Program can test and earn rank in both Tang Soo Do and Taekwondo in Huron.  This means that students do not have to travel out-of-state or out-of-town to be promoted at either the gup (pre-black belt) or dan (black belt) levels.  The Vaillancourts also can certify people in Tang Soo Do and Taekwondo up through Master Instructor levels directly through national (AAU Taekwondo Program) and international (International Association of Korean Martial Arts and Kukkiwon/World Taekwondo Federation) certifying bodies.