Shelburne BW Taekwondo was established in September 2015 by Bernie and Linda Karsch. Bernie, a 4th degree black belt, and Linda a 2nd degree blackbelt, created Shelburne BW Taekwondo after his life long passion with the sport, holding experience in both recreational and high performance training.
Shelburne BW Taekwondo was created with the goal of providing the Shelburne community a fun, high energy, and family friendly martial art that any skill level could try and benefit from. Taekwondo is for all ages and everyone is welcome. Whether you are interested in a single membership or want to get the whole family involved, we have a memberships for you. Click here to get in touch with a team member to discuss the right membership for you!
Shelburne BW Taekwondo is an official member of Taekwondo Ontario. We practice WT (World Taekwondo) style Taekwondo. Our tournament and recreational styles of training create a balanced training environment that can be catered to those who want to compete or to those who wish to remain recreational.
Instructors
Master Bernie Karsch & Mrs. Linda Karsch
The martial arts have been a life long passion of mine. I first entered the art of Karate in the 80’s, then later while attending a black belt grading for Taekwondo, my desire for the art of Taekwondo was ignited. There are many different styles of martial arts and each one has its own special and unique method of application. Taekwondo is fast with high kicks and quick movements. It is fun to practice and is well suited for almost anyone, regardless of age. I spent time over the years attending classes and competing in tournaments, all while moving through the ranks at one of the oldest and most respected schools in Southern Ontario – Bluewater Taekwondo. Next came a job change and move. The decision was made to open my own small school. After a year of planning and with the help of Ontario Taekwondo, Masters of past schools and my wife Linda, we had our first class at our local arena. Mats needed to be set up and taken down each class. In the beginning it worked well, but my wife and I only had two students. From there it grew and within six months we had 25 steady students and we kept growing. For three years we held classes and belt gradings at that location, each night having to deconstruct the mats and store them. Now we have our own dojang with 80 regular students, a junior fight team and our third set of black belts. We are active in the community and attend many local events through out the year.
There are many challenges when working with young people, but also, many rewards. I am truly grateful for this opportunity to work with people while doing what I love to do, and that is Taekwondo.
Mrs. Leah Sobon
Leah began her journey in martial arts at the age of 20 mainly in the art of kickboxing (however, she has experience in multiple disciplines). After a few years and colour belts in kickboxing, Leah desired to train in a more competitive art, which is where she found taekwondo. Training at Young Choung Taekwondo (Toronto) proved to be one of the most gratifying, challenging, rewarding, and exciting experiences in her journey with TKD. After moving away from the city, Leah missed being involved in taekwondo, which is where she found Bernie and Linda Karsch, owners of Shelburne BW Taekwondo. Leah offers valuable teaching experience towards traditional and competitive students. This is Leah’s fifth year teaching and being part of SBWTKD. Being part of the SBWTKD family is something that Leah is eternally grateful for as she has met many wonderful friends and new family thanks to the great sport of Taekwondo. Cheers to many more years at SBWTKD.
Shelburne BW Taekwondo 