Lincoln Karate Clinic Celebrates 25 Years of Martial Arts Success
LKC started in 1998 with an idea by Scott Walls to have a training facility based on the ideas of practicing karate in a safe and fun atmosphere while at the same time using innovative concepts that will enhance the student experience. As a fun and perhaps nostalgic look back at the last 25 years, here is a list of 10 memorable events for LKC:
- October-1998: Of course this it when we held our first classes for a handful of students at the former location of 40th and Old Cheney. We held our first classes inside of World Gym. It was so exciting to be training in such a nice facility with a great group of people who just wanted to train hard.
- Black Belts! Seeing a student progress from white to black belt is a great journey to witness. And, while LKC has had many black belt tests, there was one particular test where a man name Jim, a close friend of Scott Walls and LKC earned his 1st degree black belt. What made this moment so special was that Jim had also been diagnosed with ALS and this would be his last active moment in a dojo. We were honored to be in his presence and see him earn this great achievement.
- The Move!-World Gym announced its closing and LKC had to find a new home and quickly! The location we are at now was the new home we found and it has been a fantastic place to expand.
- The expansion-In 2006 and opportunity arrived and LKC was able to expand into the next door space. We tore things down and built up other things (walls, ceiling, flooring, etc.) and the new dojo was born. Still a fantastic memory.
- The Kids from Far Away-At one point, LKC had more young students from Bosnia and other countries, than from America! The kids (all now adults) were from different parts of the world but had come to Lincoln for a new start. It was a dynamic and amazing period of time and I am so grateful for having these great kids at my school. I still talk too many of them to this day and several of them earned their black belts at the school.
- The Successes-Over the past 25 years, we have seen so many students overcome challenges and accomplish great success and we attribute some of this to their time in karate. It is amazing to see a young person gain confidence, or a child who was bullied who is able to overcome this problem. Seeing adults who trained as a teen become successful in their career or even bring their own children back to LKC to train is a huge reason to celebrate!
- Growing Pains-In the beginning, we had a small number of students and it was easy to run a simple operation. As we grew and expanded, systems of operation had to keep up. We are still learning, still growing and will continue to do so. Never stop learning.
- Instructors: LKC has had some amazing assistant instructors helping Sensei Scott Walls throughout the years. Many of moved away into other part of the U.S. but they will forever be a part of the LKC experience.
- Past Students: Many students have come and gone from LKC for a variety of reasons. Each student brought their own unique personality into the mix of the LKC family. You are thanked for your past training.
- Current Students: “A black belt is a white belt that never quit.” Each time you train you get better and raise the bar for Taishin Karate. Thank you for being a part of this journey.
LKC offers programs for children and teens with each group having a separate class time. Classes are based on three primary areas: Karate techniques and exercises, character development and self-defense/awareness training. In addition, LKC offers exclusive programs for students providing weekly lessons on anti-bullying strategies and child predator awareness training in order to offer a comprehensive martial arts education in a fun and entertaining fashion! Interested potential new members can call 402-483-5425 (KICK) to enroll under the LKC 25th Anniversary special!