Taekwondo is about a lot of things. It?s about balance and harmony between the physical and the spiritual, tolerance, rising above challenges, and standing up for and protecting the innocent. It?s not about violence, domination, and winning at all costs. Paul Hickerson, a trained marital artist and martial arts instructor upholds these philosophies with his weekly Taekwondo class for adults with developmental disabilities.
Hickerson is the director of residential services at the Elizabeth Richardson Centre in Springdale, Arkansas. The centre assists physically disabled adults with accommodation, jobs and life skills. He spent 5 years in Japan, where he studied various martial arts disciplines, and has a master?s degree in rehabilitation counselling from the University of Arkansas. He interned at Richardson Industries, which is how he came to be involved with the Centre.
He first became aware of the need within the disabled community for martial arts training when he was an assistant Taekwondo instructor in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. He had his first disabled student, but at the time, the student was struggling with some personal problems outside of his disability, and the training just wasn?t feasible. The experience left a lasting impression on Hickerson, however, and is the reason he campaigned so hard to get the martial arts club started at the Centre.
The club was started in August 2006, and has gone from strength to strength. There are only 10 core members, but they are fiercely disciplined and seldom miss a class. Hickerson is determined to see them all succeed as martial artists. As he says, he runs a real school, and is not there just to make his students feel good about themselves, although that is a natural by-product of regular martial arts practice.
Hickerson claims that even though progress is slow, all of his students have improved immeasurably since the class first started. His allegation is proven by the fact that nine of the ten students have all achieved yellow belts. His tenth student, Wendy Smith who is in a wheelchair, has advanced further to a green belt.
Physical activity is a vital component in maintaining health, a fact which holds even more truth for those who face the challenge of being physically disabled. With his background in rehabilitation, Hickerson knows the importance of balance and dexterity in maintaining ease of movement and independence. He also says that as people with developmental disabilities tend to age more rapidly than the average population, keeping strong and fit is even more important.
Hickerson is justifiably proud of his students. He?s seen them grow physically stronger, become more disciplined in their lives, and learn to work together as a team. All of which goes to show that with a little determination, there is nothing in life that can?t be done.
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