CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On May 1, 2019, the United States Taekwondo Grandmasters Society awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award for the first time to a woman, Great Grandmaster Dr. Tae Yun Kim, for “outstanding leadership achievement, meritorious service” at the 14th Annual Hall of Fame Awards gala attended by guests from around the Unites States.
Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim is the first woman ever to receive this award. Its significance is highlighted by the fact that she is one of the first female martial artists in the entire history of the martial arts to reach the rank of Grandmaster.
Born in 1946 and called a “curse” in her village because she was a girl; today, Dr. Tae Yun Kim is called the “Hope of Korea.”
Surviving the Korean War, she was one of the first females to start training in the martial arts in Korea. Eventually she became one of the highest-ranked female martial artists in the world.
She was an International referee and coached the first Unites States women’s Taekwondo team at the 1978 Pre-World Games in Seoul, Korea (and won gold, silver, and bronze medals).
Though from birth she faced severe challenges and prejudice as a woman, she went on to be named “Woman of the Year” in California and to win a Susan B. Anthony Award, both a Gold and Silver Stevie Award for Women in Business, an American Business Award Gold for Lifetime Achievement and many more.
Dr. Kim rose from not speaking English arriving in America, to becoming an international speaker and author.
She climbed from performing janitorial work as a first job to becoming chairman and CEO of a global technology company, Lighthouse Worldwide Solutions.
“It is an honor to receive this Lifetime Achievement Award from the U.S. Taekwondo Grandmasters Society,” said Great Grandmaster Dr. Kim. “My culture has never given any respect or recognition to women. The first generation of martial artists to come from my country are now in their 70s and 80s, many have already passed on. Those who remain are realizing there is more to life than the physical aspects of Taekwondo. What I have been teaching my entire life focuses on harmony of body, mind, and spirit in Taekwondo as a way of life.”
For more information on her Jung SoWon Martial Art Academy: https://jsw.com/who-is-tae-yun-kim/
The mission of the United States Taekwondo Grandmasters Society is to preserve and promote the tradition of action philosophy in Taekwondo education and to manage the national governing organization of Taekwondo in the United States.
Lighthouse Worldwide Solutions
Headquartered in Silicon Valley, California, Lighthouse Worldwide Solutions is a global leader in the contamination control monitoring industry. It develops systems monitoring the ultra-clean environments needed to manufacture semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, and other extremely sensitive products worldwide. Lighthouse conducts business in more than 70 countries. Chairman and CEO, Dr. Tae Yun Kim, founded the company in 1982.