1. Why did you decide to go to UGA?

I originally fell in love with Athens as a junior in high school when I’d visit my friends there
during their freshman year. But having graduated from high school a year early, I wasn’t eligible
to enroll at Georgia. So after getting my Associate’s degree from Reinhardt College (now
University), I was able to transfer to UGA in the Summer of ’97 and finish my degree where so
many of my friends and family had gone.

2. What was your major?

Bachelor of Fine Art, with a concentration in Painting and Drawing

3. What did you learn at UGA that prepared you for running your nonprofit?

Most of what I learned at UGA was centered around developing relationships with people of a
wide variety of viewpoints and backgrounds. I was an art major and I lived only a couple of
blocks from downtown, so I had a lot of contact with the art & townie crowds. But I was also a
ministry leader at the Wesley Foundation and did on-campus speaking at Tate Plaza most weeks,
so I spent just as much time around the academic and the evangelical crowds as well. Going to a
school with such a massively diverse ideological cross-section of the population was probably
more valuable than anything I learned in any one particular class, I’d say. This has served me
well here in Charlotte as I run Disciple Dojo, particularly in online and social media interaction.
We are a Christian nonprofit, but we serve families from a number of cultural, religious, and
political backgrounds and seek to build bridges where many seem more interested in building
walls.

4. What made you want to start this nonprofit?

I have been a lifelong martial artist. Back in Athens I trained and competed in mostly
Taekwondo (shout out to Barnett TKD Academy!), but had studied a variety of styles since I was
about 8 years old. I knew firsthand the benefits the martial arts instilled in kids, especially when
it comes to avoiding bullying and gaining confidence. For the past 12 years my focus has been
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (shout out to Leadership Martial Arts on South Tryon!) where I have been
training and teaching regularly. But over the past 4-5 years I became burdened for the plight of
international refugees, as well as for creating friendships across religious and cultural lines—
particularly between Christians and Muslims. I spent some time in the West Bank in 2014 and it
was there where I got the idea that would eventually become #RefugeeJitsu. I was walking
through Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem and found myself thinking, “I wish these kids had a
Jiu-Jitsu camp or program where they could come and channel their frustration, aggression, and
drive…but in a way that gave purpose and confidence that so many kids never develop in healthy
ways.” When I got back home, I couldn’t shake the idea and eventually reached out to Project
658 (a local nonprofit that helps refugee families assimilate here in CLT) about doing a weekly
anti-bullying Jiu-Jitsu class and periodic women’s self-defense workshops. They were 100% on
board. So I raised some initial funds and started #RefugeeJitsu in December of 2015. We are
now up to around 20+ kids a week from all over the world and continue to grow as more families
find out about the program!

5. Why Charlotte?

I moved her in ’03 to finish my M.Div at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. I had done my
first two years at our main campus in South Hamilton, MA. But I was ready to get back closer to
home. I interviewed for a position with Leighton Ford (Billy Graham’s brother-in-law and one of
my early mentors here) and though I didn’t end up getting the job, the idea of moving to
Charlotte took root. I didn’t know anyone in the city, but it immediately felt like home once I got
settled in. 15 years later it is the city I have lived in longer than any other and has definitely
become my home! It also has a fairly vibrant international refugee community

6. What makes CLT a great place for alumni to call home?

CLT is such a great city! It’s not the sprawling traffic nightmare that Atlanta can be, but it still
have the feel of a major metropolitan area. It’s close enough for day trips to the beach or the
mountains, and is only a 3hr drive from Athens…which is great for tailgating trips in the Fall!

7. Is this something you always wanted to do?

The funny thing is that while I’ve always loved training and teaching martial arts as well as
doing ministry, I NEVER wanted to teach kids! I always gravitated to adult education and adult
training. But from day one with #RefugeeJitsu I have fallen in love with these kids and their
families! I sometimes tell people that only God could make me enjoy teaching middle
schoolers…but it’s true! I love our Tuesday nights and it is always the highlight of my week!

8. What advice would you give to fellow alumni looking to start a nonprofit?

I would say that once you identify a need in the world that coincides with a passion in your heart,
start doing something—anything—tangible to address that need, no matter how small or
insignificant it may seem. Then watch for doors to open and see how it grows from there.
Obviously, my Christian faith provides a theological framework for such an outlook; but anyone
who simply wants to play an active role in doing good in their community can have a bigger
impact than they realize.

And once the need is identified and you have a vision for what you want to do, surround yourself
with a wise and skilled Board who can help you in the areas where you lack ability or experience
and who will not simply be yes-men. Find people who you trust to challenge you, who have your
best interests at heart, and who are fully on board with the vision you have for your organization.
My Disciple Dojo Board is simply amazing and we literally would not exist without their
experience and guidance!
9. What is you future plans?

As we continue to grow, I’m hoping to get the funding needed to hire logistical and
administrative help and paid internships. As a 501c3 nonprofit, we are 100% donor supported
and are especially in need of regular monthly “Dojo Donors” at various financial levels. This is
an ongoing need for any small independent nonprofit, but I believe as people see what we are
doing through our #RefugeeJitsu program and the effect it is having in the lives of these kids,
they will want to help us #KEEPROLLING! I hope to help raise up a generation of future
leaders and valuable members of the Charlotte community. I hope to help kids whose families
have come here fleeing hardships we can’t fathom—as well as those from right here in the
Queen City who come from challenging economic or family situations—realize that they can
achieve great things in life and that this is their home and their city as well. I hope to inspire
others to reach across whatever lines we are told divide us and seek out genuine relationships
with people whose paths we might not normally cross in our own personal lives. I hope to use
the incredible sense of unity, trust, friendship, and community that Jiu-Jitsu generates to connect
families who have come here seeking a better life for their kids with people here in the city who
can come alongside them as friends and fellow human beings created in God’s image as they
make their way in a new culture.