By Arianna Hooker
First Baptist Brandon Church has been hosting martial arts and self-defense classes for the past 19 years with Heavenly Warriors Martial Arts through its Ministry and Activities Center.
Heavenly Warriors Martial Arts is a family-oriented program owned by Ron Brown. He is a lifelong practitioner of martial arts. Ages for the program start at 6 years old and range through adult ages. On Monday and Thursday nights, classes are found in the Ministry and Activities Center in the First Baptist Brandon Church with three different programs. The children program is for ages 6-9, the junior program from 9-12 and the adult program is for 13 and older.
The Heavenly Warrior Martial Arts program is like a traditional martial arts program, combining several different martial arts styles to ensure the most well-rounded black belts are established.
Children’s classes are based on tae kwon do teachings, a Korean form of karate. The junior courses focus on tae kwon do, kali — a Philippine martial art — and self-defense techniques. The adult program combines tae kwon do, kali and muay thai — a martial art from Thailand — along with self-defense techniques that go up to every belt level.
Brown has been a martial arts practitioner for 43 years and is a 7th-degree black belt. Brown said that with Heavenly Warriors Martial Arts, he is “building a legacy by trying to make good citizens out of kids and to give adults the confidence to tackle challenges in their lives.”
He said, “Heavenly Warriors Martial Arts strives to develop students into more complete human beings. We believe in showing respect and courtesy to all, courage to serve God and country and being responsible for our actions.”
Brown wants his Heavenly Warriors Martial Arts students to be good citizens and examples in society and to always tell the truth. He wants his students to make the hard right over the easy wrong choices.
“We teach students to have self-discipline in their training, which will spill over into all aspects of their lives,” said Brown.
Heavenly Warriors Martial Arts not only strives to ensure the most well-rounded black belts are formed but also that students are formed into better human beings.
Monthly tuition is $20 a month, and promotional exams, held every three months, are $25 to cover the cost of certificates, medals, boards and belts.
