GREENFIELD — Instead of sparring with other students, martial artists faced off against 2,021 boards on Saturday during the Greenfield Tae Kwon Do Center’s 23rd annual “Break-athon,” battling the wood in support of a familiar cause.
Through per-board pledges and flat donations, Saturday’s event raised $2,914 — similar to last year’s number — in support of Warm the Children, an annual winter clothing drive. Over the course of its first 22 years, the Break-athon raised a total $120,155, according to the center’s founder, owner and instructor David Johnson.
Warm the Children is a group of 27 nonprofits across the country that seek donations from their local community to provide winter clothing and footwear for local children in need. Warm the Children programs typically ask for a local newspaper and service organization to sponsor the effort. In Greenfield, the Recorder is that newspaper, and the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts and Community Action Pioneer Valley are the affiliated service organizations.
The Recorder partners with local retailers to provide gift cards to beneficiaries of Warm the Children with the money that is raised. The Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts oversees the account containing donations, and Community Action is responsible for the distribution of gift cards to families. They can be used in the store or online to buy clothing for each qualifying child, 12 years old or younger.
Last year, the fundraiser provided new coats and clothes to about 625 children in Franklin County and the North Quabbin region. Warm the Children recipients are suggested by various social service agencies and community organizations.
The Greenfield Tae Kwon Do Center’s Break-athon and a Greenfield Kiwanis Club golf tournament represent the two primary annual fundraisers for Warm the Children.
In an area with long, bitter winters, “It really makes me very happy to be able to participate in [the Break-athon] every year, making a difference for the kids,” black belt instructor Jillian Tozloski said while tallying broken boards and donation totals.
According to Tozloski, a few kids who received clothes through Warm the Children grew up to be students at the center.
“It’s just wonderful when it comes full circle that way,” said Tozloski, who holds the record for most boards broken at once with a driving axe kick that sliced 15 boards.
After kicking, foot stomping, elbow striking, punching and palm striking the boards in half, the students dropped the broken boards in a pile in the center of the dojo. At the event’s close, the pile stretched almost 5 feet high.
Instead of tossing them in the trash, the Greenfield Tae Kwon Do Center will sell the broken boards and extra wood scraps as bags of kindling for $10 each, another boost of funds for Warm the Children. With 120 bags to sell, the dojo expects to raise another $1,200 from kindling.
Attending his fifth Break-athon, student Jason Constantine of Greenfield said Warm the Children is “allowing kids to be kids without worrying about being warm.” He said he enjoys contributing to the cause by breaking boards, a safe outlet for anger and aggression.
“It’s been a really nice place to come and be one with myself,” Constantine said of the school. He added that he appreciates the structure and discipline of the classes, and the instructors who believe in his potential.
“The teachers are knowledgeable and invest a lot of time in you,” echoed longtime student Jeff Findlay. “There’s no preconceived notions when you come through the door. They welcome the new students and build from what you are.”
After training at the Greenfield Tae Kwon Do Center, Findlay left the studio for about 30 years until his daughter Lila Findlay started looking into martial arts. He thought back to his taekwondo days, and now the two drive from Northampton to learn together in classes for students of all ages.
“This is our little thing,” Jeff Findlay said with a grin.
“It’s father-daughter bonding,” his daughter agreed.
Many students like Lila Findlay walked in with jitters on Saturday picturing their first board. But after 50 breaks, she said, “I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished so far.”
“It empowers her,” her father added.
Greenfield resident Angelica Desroches took turns breaking boards with her son.
“Instead of sitting on the sidelines, you get to do it, he gets to do it, and you get to motivate him more,” Desroches said. As her son sliced another board with a foot stomp, she said she has watched his confidence grow since he started training at the studio.
As a teacher, Tozloski said she sees a shift in students from when they first walk into the Break-athon and when they leave with dozens of broken boards under their belts.
“It’s great once they actually get in the swing of things and realize that they’re a lot more capable than they thought they were,” Tozloski said. “The body language changes, their facial expressions are just so much happier, there’s a little bit of a perk to their step.”