Tae kwon do teaches much more than just self-defense

Published 11:15 am Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Martial arts helped Patrick Crocker find his path in life, and now he wants to help others in the same way.

Crocker, 40, started taking tae kwon do when he was 15 years old.

“I just wanted something to do to stay active,” he said.

By age 17, Crocker had earned his first-degree black belt and had started a two-year program to learn how to teach tae kwon do. He was a certified instructor at age 19, and by 21, he was teaching full-time.

It has been his career and his passion ever since. He bought Gardendale Tae Kwon Do in January 1997, at age 23, and has not looked back.

Crocker, who lives in Dora, said he has taught thousands of students in the past 19 years, and he has seen the martial art change lives.

“It improves self-esteem and confidence,” he said. “Once they accomplish a goal, like earning a new belt, they realize they can do bigger and better things.”

Crocker said tae kwon do also teaches leadership skills.

“The program as a whole is about leadership — in your home, school, church or wherever you are,” he said. “It helped me have the confidence to help other people. It gave me a desire to be better than what I was because I always have a goal to reach for.”

Crocker said he and the other instructors at Gardendale Tae Kwon Do instill five tenets into their students: courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and an indomitable spirit.

“These are the things you have to do to be a leader,” he said.

Crocker said a few things set him apart from the competition, including a focus on teaching “authentic, traditional Chang Hun tae kwon do.”

He said Chang Hun tae kwon do, a Korean martial art, has been passed down for 3,000 years.

Crocker said another important aspect of Gardendale Tae Kwon Do is that “we don’t sell belts.”

In other words, people earn their next-level belt by through hard work. Crocker said one father moved his son to Gardendale Tae Kwon Do because his son had received a brown belt from another school, but the dad didn’t think his son had actually earned the high-level belt.

Another parent, Beverly Joiner, enrolled her daughter Alena Joiner on Alena’s fourth birthday.

“I wanted Alena to be able to protect herself, and I knew the discipline, physical exercise and being a part of a group, or family, would be beneficial to her development,” Joiner said.

Four years later, at age 8, Alena has earned her second-degree black belt.

“Kids need to be challenged,” Crocker said. “If you set the bar high, they’ll meet those expectations. If someone gets their black belt here, it’s because they earned it.”

Most of his students do not stick with it. Crocker said it takes 18-24 months to earn a black belt, and 90 percent of his students quit before they get theirs.

“It takes two years of hard work and dedication,” he said. “Most people don’t have the ‘stick-to-itiveness’ to finish.”

Crocker has earned his seventh-degree black belt, which makes him a senior master. Ninth degree is the highest possible rank. He is the equivalent of a three-star general in the U.S. military.

His instructors have plenty of rank too. On his staff are instructors who have earned their fifth-degree, third-degree, two second-degree and a first-degree black belts. They have a combined 80 years of experience.

Crocker said tae kwon do can be a lifelong practice that is good for a person’s health and fitness, as well teaching discipline and leadership.

And he said it is not just for kids. He has plenty of adult students.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for the older students,” he said.

Crocker said that years ago, he tried teaching tae kwon do in Hoover. Even though he could make a lot more money there, it wasn’t for him.

“I’ll never get rich teaching in Gardendale, but this is my home. These are my kind of people,” he said. “This is where I want to be. Money doesn’t always mean success. To me, success is knowing I have made a difference in people’s lives.”