James Taekwondo - South Suburban YMCA is a member club of Iowa State University, under the leadership of Grandmaster Yong Chin Pak.  The club at the South Suburban YMCA was formed in the 1970’s by Master Tony Marlowe. When Master Marlowe moved away in the late 90s, the program was continued by Master John Beals and his wife, Janice. Upon Master Beals retirement in June of 2002, the program has continued under the instruction of Master Lewis James Jr.

The Taekwondo club at the South Suburban YMCA was formed to provide residents, primarily of the south side of Des Moines, with a positive, safe and affordable activity. Taekwondo is the Korean weaponless art of self-defense thought to be several thousand years old. Taekwondo promotes tolerance, respect for self and one another regardless of race, color or creed. Our students are never trained to attack or provoke a confrontation. By instilling in our students the confidence to know they can walk away, they are in a better position to avoid a violent confrontation. In the event that a physical confrontation is not avoidable, we train our students to defend themselves and escape.

In a society where the rules are ever changing, we offer a sense of belonging with a club/family type atmosphere. Each student and instructor refers to one another as "sir" or "ma’am" and shows respect by bowing and shaking hands when greeting one another. Taekwondo can provide attainable goals in the form of advancement in rank. Each rank has specific requirements and each student is provided with training and encouragement to advance in rank. Nothing is "given". The students must earn the opportunity to test for promotion. We hope to provide an atmosphere that allows each student to feel good about his or her accomplishments. Our students do not test until they can confidently demonstrate their knowledge of what is required for their rank to the satisfaction of the instructors and themselves. Class participation and positive attitude are also very important determining factors. The ultimate goal of each student should be to attain the rank of black belt. This goal will take a minimum of 2 ½ to 3 years to attain.

We currently have students ranging from age 6 to the late 50's. Our club is primarily made up of relatives, including siblings, spouses and parents. We like to think of ourselves as a "family" club. The club size has fluctuated over the years with a core membership of approximately 30 students. We hope to increase our numbers in the upcoming years.

Because of the nature of it, Taekwondo is not for everyone. Some find our rules too restrictive. Some might find our philosophy of showing and giving respect as a sign of weakness and not "cool". Some find the process of practice and repetition of Taekwondo techniques "boring" and "unnecessary".

Most of our advanced students have been involved in the program for a number of years. We believe that we have played a role in their development as good martial artist as well as good, well-rounded citizens. We encourage our junior students to do their best in the classroom at school as well as in Taekwondo. We provide positive re-enforcement to our students and stress the importance of getting a good education. We provide some incentives in the form of recognition to those students who make good grades in school as well as those who make significant improvement in grades. We strongly believe that "KNOWLEDGE IS POWER".