Cohen’s Optical

KAIZEN KARATE

There’s No Better Place to Grow

BY GABBY GREGORY

Are you a parent who needs a safe, trustworthy, and reliable place to send your child (or children) after school this year? Or, are you a parent looking for a healthy outlet for your rambunctious and/or unruly child’s seemingly never-ending energy?

If you answered “yes” to either of these questions, then you need to reach out to Sensei Sachiko Marquez and Dominick Maldonado at Kaizen Karate, where children in the after-school program don’t just train in the Goju-Ryu style of karate, but also receive help with homework, increase socialization skills, and learn some of life’s most important lessons.

More than Karate

At Kaizen Karate, your child will not only receive training in martial arts, but also in self-improvement. Why? Because karate instructor and General Manager of the dojo Sensei Sachiko Marquez credits much of her success as an adult to the lessons that she learned as a young karate student training in Okinawa, Japan under the guidance of her father, Anthony Soke Marquez. Soke himself was trained directly by the esteemed Master Masanobu Shinjo, whose karate lineage traces back to the real-life Mr. Miyaga from the blockbuster movie The Karate Kid. “Karate taught me discipline,” Sensei Sachiko attests, continuing, “It taught me respect, and taught me how to lose graciously.” At Kaizen Karate, then, Sensei Sachiko explains, “My goal is to teach them karate [and] to get them to a belt, obviously. But… the true goal is to teach them life lessons. So everything that we do in karate, we try to relate it to life... We talk about bullying, we talk about teamwork, [and] we talk about sharing feelings.”

The co-owner of Kaizen Karate, Dominick Maldonado, also stresses the importance of maintaining this comprehensive educational experience at the dojo. Dominick grew up with Sensei Sachiko in Okinawa, where he trained under his father, Domingo Hanshi Maldonado, who was a student of Masanobu Shinjo as well. Dominick says, “Karate is foundational. You can have the most beautiful kicks and punches. But if you come into that dojo, and you don’t know how to get along with others, and you can’t show respect, and discipline, and self control, if you can’t show those things, you go nowhere in a dojo.”

A Family Legacy

The multifaceted approach at Kaizen Karate is especially important to Dominick not only because of his own martial arts roots, but also because of his familial connection to Kaizen Karate itself. Dominick’s father, Domingo Hanshi Maldonado, was the beloved chief instructor at the dojo since the early 2000s. Domingo, sadly, passed away suddenly from cancer earlier this year. Teaching his students at Kaizen Karate was one of Domingo’s greatest loves and passions, so it should come as no surprise to learn that he achieved a perfect 5-star rating on both Google and Facebook for the dojo.

Of course, then, Dominick, is committed to carrying on his father’s incredible legacy, along with Sensei Sachiko and her father, Anthony Soke Marquez. Soke, the other co-owner of the dojo, was Domingo’s best friend. Indeed, Soke and Domingo served in the military together, and then decided to train under Shinjo together too. When Soke learned of his friend’s death, then, he came together with Dominick and his daughter, Sensei Sachiko, to come up with a way to honor Domingo, who Sensei Sachiko remembers as a “second father.” She adds, “[Domingo] had an unbelievable amount of patience. Kids were his specialty. He just had a way of getting the most out of you without having to make you feel uncomfortable or like you were under pressure. He had a heart of gold.”

An Adaptive Therapeutic Martial Arts Focus

The skills and wisdom being imparted at Kaizen Karate aren’t restricted to speci c age groups or ability levels. In fact, Sensei Sachiko specializes in teaching children and adults with disabilities. She learned from her father Anthony Soke Marquez, whose rst ever karate student was a boy in a wheelchair. Soke, who has karate schools all over the globe and is the chief instructor at Kaizen Karate, is known as the leading pioneer of instruction in Adaptive Therapeutic Martial Arts, having founded a nonpro t for that same initiative called Possibilities Unlimited International. He and Sensei Sachiko have taught countless children and adults with disabilities, including, but not limited to, Down Syndrome, autism (verbal and non-verbal), ADHD, Williams-Beuren syndrome, ADD, and more.

“I want people in Port St. Lucie to know,” Sensei Sachiko passionately expresses, “that if you have children with any type of special needs, then we specialize in being able to teach any disability. There’s no disability that cannot be trained. The expectation is not that a child with special needs is going to be able to perform at the same level, but they can still experience it.”

By tailoring their karate instruction to a person’s speci c needs, Sensei Sachiko and her father are able to open up a whole new world of opportunities to both children and adults who have special needs. “What we do is we adapt to their disability,” informs Sensei Sachiko, continuing, “And you’ll see the things that they can learn and how they can grow. These kids and adults deserve to have the same programming and the same bene ts that are for just, and I hate using these words, ‘mainstream’ kids… they just deserve the same opportunities.” The school year is about to start, so contact Kaizen Karate to enroll your child in their active, advisory, and accommodating after-school program! There’s no better place to grow.

Kaizen Karate and Fitness Dojo is located in the Shoppes of Victoria Square plaza at 275 SW Port St. Lucie Boulevard in Port St. Lucie. The dojo is open Mondays-Thursdays from 2PM-9PM and Fridays from 2PM-6PM. For more information, call 772-248-9290 or visit facebook.com/kaizenkaratepsl.

EARLY BIRD SPECIAL

Open to All

Kaizen Karate is the perfect place for children to go after school! They will lead not only a healthier lifestyle as they engage in consistent physical activity, but also a more ful lled one as they learn key life lessons. Additionally, they are safe in the hands of Dominick, Sensei Sachiko, and Soke, who are honest, caring, and experienced professionals who have worked with people from all walks of life. And, if nances are of concern, then don’t stress! Sensei Sachiko urges anyone and everyone to reach out if interested in Kaizen Karate, saying “We work with families. We’ll gure it out.”

1FREE WEEK of after school program $20 SAVE Sign up for after school program *With the purchase of 1 month. Expires 9/2/22 during Summer camp for savings. Normally $80 now $60 Copyrighted© My Living Media. 2022 All Rights reserved. To Advertise call 772-247-6849 VOL. 547 P 5