The Life of Tae Zee Park

The Life of Grand Master
Tae Zee Park

Many years ago, in South Korea, a shy young boy named Tae Zee Park watched helplessly as a bully hit the young boy's mother. Even though the community rallied together to run the bully out of town, Tae Park decided then and there that he would be ready the next time someone tried to hurt his family. So young Tae Park learned a little soccer and a little boxing-but he learned to love Tae Kwon Do.

The Early Years

Tae Park started Tae Kwon Do lessons when he was twelve years old. Five days each week for at least two hours a day, young Tae Park would practice basic patterns, kicks and forms. He wanted to be strong and responsible and to hold his own among his six brothers and sisters. Very few of the other students in his class worked as hard as he did.

When Tae Park was sixteen, he became one of the youngest first degree black belts in Korea. At his first degree test, he was awarded the highest points in forms and free-fighting-but his goal was to become even better. He left his home and went to the central studio to practice and study. After earning his second degree, Tae Park entered his first tournament.

Tournament Fighting

Korean martial art tournaments were very dangerous. Participants risked serious accidents-even death~to win because winning meant great honor for the fighter's school and it's reputation. Everyone knew who the tournament winners were, and they were granted many special privileges.

Each Tae Kwon Do school sent their top one or two fighters to compete. Each fight consisted of three three-minute rounds. As long as a competitor won, he could progress to the next round. If he lost, he went back home. In addition to being very good, tournament fighters had to be very strong and in excellent shape. Sometimes a competitor would have fought for five days in a row to qualify for the final rounds.

Tae Park completed his formal education at Sung Kyun University, where he majored in Government. In addition to his scholastic pursuits, this very special school allowed him to study Tae Kwon Do up to five hours a day. All 350 people in his freshman class were black belts. Tae Park was one of only two or three students picked for special training as part of the university team. He and the other team members worked very hard and received many high honors. In 1964 and 1965, Tae Park was the top tournament fighter in all of Korea.

The once shy little boy had grown into a strong and brave young man.

Professional Tae Kwon Do

After graduating from the university, Tae Park was recruited for the Korean army's Tae Kwon Do Team.

For the next three years, his full-time job was to represent Korea in international tournaments. He had become the equivalent of a professional athlete. Everyone knew his face and he was very well respected.

After army service, Tae Park taught for one year at the Korean National Teachers College where he earned his sixth dan. He had loved practicing Tae Kwon Do and now he loved teaching it to others.

On to America

When Tae Park first came to America, he taught martial arts at Kent State University in Ohio. He later moved to Michigan and began teaching Tae Kwon Do at the YMCA in Jackson. It was there that he learned about America from his students. Tae Park would teach them his martial art- and his students would teach him the English language and American customs. He learned what Americans believed and how they made decisions. This co-dependence on his students helped form life-long bonds.

Founding the Tae Park Institute

Mr. Park had proven in Korea that he was an excellent fighter and teacher. But now he was in America where the people's ways and customs were very different. He started his first Tae Kwon Do class in 1974. But it closed after only two months. Mr. Park believes that the advanced techniques he taught were too difficult for beginning students, who quickly became frustrated and stopped coming to class.

Mr. Park changed his style and concentrated on the basics when he reopened his school. He continued to teach in Jackson and expanded to Hillsdale College. As the Tae Park Institute grew, Mr. Park focused on building a strong supportive organization that would produced black belts with solid leadership skills. As the years passed, Tae Park opened schools in Springport, Grand Rapids, Hillsdale, Jackson, and Ypsilanti.

Tae Park Institute Today

Twenty years have passed since Tae Park came to America to teach Tae Kwon Do. Today Tae Park Institute has schools in Oklahoma, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Wyoming, Ohio, Texas, New Mexico, Alaska and many Michigan school locations. There are over 1,500 black belts with 30 Master Instructors.

Grand Master Park's students speak of him with great pride and respect and view him as a father figure and mentor. As one of Tae Park's master instructors has said, "The Tae Park Institute will survive a long time because of Mr. Park's high caliber physical ability, intelligence, compassion, and family-like loyalty toward his pupils."

Tae Park and his wife, Hwy Park, currently live in the Ann Arbor area. His daughter Na Lee attends the University of Michigan, and daughter Na Na, a Wellesley College graduate, works at a low firm in New York City. Tae Park's son, Won Hee, a graduate of Harvard University, is employed at IBM.
Written by Valerie Lucas, 3 dan with contributions fnm Lynn Bernard, 6 dan. Edited by Mary Petertyf, blue belt.