Hi there! My name is Master Valerie Holley. As we prepare for our Grand Opening, I thought this would be a good opportunity to introduce myself and our school.
Eighteen years ago, my best friend invited me to try out a taekwondo class at her mother's dojang. I didn't immediately take her up on it. She invited me a few more times over the following months. One day, we were with her family when it came up again. I put her off. Her dad asked me why, and I shrugged and said that I would get around to it. A few minutes later, I was presented with a paper circle inscribed with to the words "to it." Smirking, he said, "There you go: a round 'to it.'"
Amused, I agreed to try out a class. It should come as little surprise to you that I loved it.
As a color belt, I developed a fierce love of competition. I attended numerous tournaments and earned as many medals, including golds at the state and regional championships. Competition taught me many things, including perseverance, overcoming fear, and learning how to overcome loss and disappointment. Honestly, I learned more from the matches I lost than those I won. But I did like the shiny prizes that came with winning!
I earned my 1st degree black belt in 2005, then I took a couple of years off to focus on college. After school, I found my way back to my old studio and started taking classes again. A few months later, my master instructor came to me with an offer: one of her instructors was getting married and leaving, so, would I like to teach a couple classes a week? Before that, I had assisted other instructors, but I had never taught on my own before. I hesitantly took on this new challenge.
To my surprise and deep gratification, I loved teaching. I loved the day-to-day interactions with my students, and over time, I discovered the profound joy that comes from seeing my students progress along their black belt journey: seeing them grow and overcome challenges; seeing their martial arts and leadership skills blossom; seeing them achieve what they thought impossible.
My own journey continued: I earned my 2nd degree black belt in 2010 and my 3rd degree in 2012. Each of those experiences pushed me in new and exciting ways.
I started taking on more classes, and when my master instructor offered me a position as the school's program director, I jumped on board with great enthusiasm. I worked full time for her for the next five years.
One day, a guy walked into the studio while I was working. He was a black belt, but I didn't know him, which was odd. His name was James Holley. Turns out, he'd started taking classes right when I'd left for college; he'd earned his black belt and then left the studio right as I came back from school. So we'd just missed each other.
Over the following months, as we attended black belt classes, tournaments, and leadership retreats, James and I became friends. Eventually, we started dating, and very shortly afterward, we got engaged. Our wedding was attended by an unusually high number of black belts, and we carried on a tradition of cutting our cake with a katana.
Taekwondo has been an integral part of our marriage and our family. In 2015, we tested together for James's 3rd degree and my 4th degree black belt, which was an incredible experience.
Shortly after that, we moved to North Carolina so that James could attend Duke Law School. While there, I taught private self defense lessons. James and I kept up our skills by practicing together at home.
After law school, James accepted a fellowship in Utah. My master instructor welcomed me back, both to teach and to advance. Alongside two of my dearest friends, I tested for my 5th degree black belt (while 7 months pregnant).
We moved to Grand Junction in 2019 when James accepted a permanent position here. Knowing that this was where we were going to put down our roots, I had in the back of my mind a plan to start a taekwondo school here. But at first, the plan was to get started in 5-10 years. There were a lot of good reasons to wait - financial, but also the fact that by this time, we had three young children. I didn't think I could manage them and a business. So it was going to stay on the back burner.
Then our oldest son started kindergarten, and he started getting bullied at school. I was deeply troubled that my 5-year-old was dealing with this, and I realized that I couldn't wait. He needed self defense skills now.
So in January 2020, I started teaching taekwondo lessons in my garage. We started very small: just a handful of friends around my son's age on a little square of mats. I still didn't have plans to grow, but it's hard to keep good things to yourself. We kept growing, and that 5-10 year timeline started changing pretty rapidly. And here we are!
Taekwondo has changed my life. I have watched it change the lives of so many: students, friends, and mentors. I am passionate about sharing the incredible benefits that it has brought to me: confidence, discipline, focus, strength, fitness, drive, and joy. I am deeply committed to sharing basic self defense skills that everyone in our community needs. My mission is to empower individuals, so that they may become their best selves.
I am excited about the next stage of our journey as Grand Valley Taekwondo, and I hope that you will join me for an incredible ride.
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