What people are saying about our adults classes

I have never before been in a martial arts studio like TKC. Its adult classes are entertaining, enriching, tiring, and I always came out of every class proud to be both a martial artist, a member of the TKC family, and a person in general. Kudos to Master Fariborz and TKC!

As a 42 year-old with 14 years at the same sales company, I felt limited in a profitable yet unchallenging routine. I lacked a passion that I could share with others, and one day I found it: Team Karate Centers. I thought I would just learn about self defense. But not only that, I soon realized the martial arts involves physical fitness, and mental and emotional benefits as well. I learned how to focus on tasks, prioritize, control my emotions and set goals with a step-by-step formula. I found that the way Team Karate Centers presents the student curriculum can be applied to how I approach challenges at work and at home, as well as elsewhere. Add to this an attention to positive character development and the program provided me with a complete formula for success in many areas of life. Besides: The uniform, whether White Belt or Black, looks pretty cool. The learning never stops, so I look forward to many more years as a Student of Sensei Fariborz Azhakh.

Sensei Fariborz,

I want to thank you for everything you and Team Karate Centers provided me over many years. Self confidence and friendships to name a few. Although my physical health (two back surgeries since January 2010, third being scheduled for early April) has prevented my continued training and participation I want you to know that I speak highly of you, your instructors, and your school at every opportunity. I keep one of your guest passes in my wallet and haven given several to interested friends and coworkers.

Dear Mr. Fariborz,

I've been meaning to send you this letter of thanks for a few months now. I wanted you to know how thankful I am for TKC. You've created a home for all of us there. From my time at TKC I learned what family means, and through the curriculum I learned about myself.

When my husband and I moved to California 8 1/2 years ago, we didn't know anyone in the area. We swore that as soon as everything fell into place we would move back home to be with our family and friends. Well life can have a way of sweeping you up and moving you along, and we found ourselves still in CA and raising a family of our own. I started at TKC when some friends of mine told me that they were going to start taking classes there. My own daughter had been taking karate at another studio, and it was something I'd been interested in trying out.

I started out completely out of shape and totally inflexible, but I was quickly hooked on everything about TKC. I love how the instructors make you feel like you really can do anything - maybe not right away, but through hard work and determination, you will improve, and you can achieve your karate goals.

It wasn't long before those lessons started influencing my life off the mat. Through the TKC curriculum, you share with us the tools that are available to make a positive change, not just in our own lives, but in the lives of others. I learned that I can be responsible for creating the outcomes that I desire. You do realize that it's your fault that my family and I ended up buying a home and moving away to Washington state, don't you? It was time to take action, and we finally made it happen. Life doesn't have to sweep you up in its current. Now I've moved on to some other important goals in my life, and I'm working hard on keeping commitments to myself - my own personal challenge. There will be a black belt in my future!

Leaving TKC was so emotional for me. I hadn't realized how important everyone there had become to me, or how we had all touched each others lives in the short year that I spent there. One of the most important lessons I have taken away from TKC is that family is more than just being related by blood. I will always remember the love and support my TKC family showed for me and my family. I wish you all the best.

Respectfully,

Fariborz empowers me to become a better person with challenges, honesty, and time. In conversations on and off the mat he shares insights that challenge my perspective and spur me to grapple with new questions. As I form my own responses to these questions, inevitably I reach a new depth of insight that informs my life-experience. In class he teases me, which motivates me to try harder and reminds me that our relationship goes beyond the teacher-student dynamic.

Fariborzs honesty keeps me accountable. When we talk about how to improve my life, he offers suggestions that raise my standards and orient me in the direction I want to go. Also he calls me on my shortcomings in a way that makes me feel cared for rather than judged. This requires a level of strength and compassion that is hard to find in a mentor, let alone a friend.

As a present father, husband, and master instructor, there are endless demands on Fariborz time. Yet he always sets aside time for me when I ask to speak with him. This makes me feel respected and valued as a person, which reinforces my sense of self-worth.

Fariborz is a friend and mentor who models a behavior that I try to apply in my own life.