The history of Academy of Life and Leadership Taekwondo & Grand Master Barb Kunkel
Opening a Taekwondo school never crossed my mind when I was younger, but looking back now, it’s where I was headed all along. It’s amazing to see all the different challenging life circumstances and people God used to bring me to a place where I can plant seeds of success in the lives of people around me. A place where I can come alongside kids, teens, parents, adults, and families and let them know they are not alone. They can rise with confidence and face the challenges that inevitably come. I can help them reach powerful life goals and discover the champion within each of them.
Growing up, I played a wide variety of sports and eventually specialized in basketball. I just knew basketball was my future. I received several college basketball scholarships and was able to choose one near my home in Tacoma, Washington. Dreams were coming true! Even in my first year playing college ball, when I injured my knee and needed surgery, I was determined to come back strong and live out this basketball plan. But then the next year, I injured the other knee. “What in the world!” Full reconstructive surgery on 2 knees challenged my dreams, to say the least. But I was still determined. My knees needed to be strengthened, and I was told martial arts was the way to go.
I entered the martial arts world through Karate, with the goal of getting back to the courts. Soon, however, I discovered Taekwondo and found a new passion on the mats. And it wasn’t just the sport of Taekwondo, but it was also the lifestyle. My life took a new direction, and I didn’t look back.
My New Passion
I trained 5-6 hours every day, and in 1993 I made the U.S. National Taekwondo Team. Over the years I would be on the team 8 times. But that wasn’t my only goal, so in 1995 I quit my day job and moved to the Olympic Training Center (OTC) in the beautiful city of Colorado Springs, becoming the first-ever female Taekwondo athlete to live at the OTC. I was chasing down my new dream of one day making the U.S. Olympic Taekwondo Team. And can you believe, I made it the very next year in 1996. It was the first year Taekwondo was to go from an Olympic demonstration sport to a full medal sport. I was so excited! But again, the inevitability of life challenges struck, and Taekwondo was completely pulled from the Olympics that year.
Was this a sign? I could have said, “It’s just not meant to be.” I could have given into defeatist thinking, packed my bags, and headed home. But no! That type of thinking definitely was not my type! I reminded myself that it’s not if, but when challenges come. Challenges are part of the game...part of life. I refused to give up. And the next 4 years of training for the 2000 Sydney Olympics took everything I had, but I cinched 1 of 4 spots for the 2000 US Taekwondo Olympic Team representing our country. It was an honor I received because I was able to draw from and further build on the grit and determination God had already been developing within me from previous setbacks. I’m so thankful I didn’t give up in 1996, as it was a grit and determination I would need many times in the coming years.
It Takes A Village
During this intense time of training for the Nationals Team and the Olympic Team, I was honored to have many coaches and mentors building into both my physical fitness as well my mental endurance. Athletics and life take both! And they take the guidance and leadership of others who have gone before us. I owe so much to Grandmaster Cha, 17-time Korean National Champion and US National Team Coach; Grandmaster Jay Warwick, 1988 Olympic Bronze medalist and US National Team Coach; and Grandmaster Han Lee, also a 1988 Olympic Bronze medalist, US Olympic Taekwondo Coach, and owner of Han Lee’s Taekwondo Academy in Castle Rock, CO. Even now I think about the many hours of training with coaches and fellow athletes during the day followed by driving to Castle Rock to assist Grandmaster Han Lee at his school; the place where I discovered my own passion for teaching, and the place where the seed of owning my own school was watered and growing.
After the Olympics, I made Colorado Springs (now known as Olympic City, USA) my home. I started coaching USA Taekwondo and AAU National Teams, and opened a Taekwondo school of my own. I wanted to share not only my love for Martial Arts, but also my story of persevering through life’s challenges with a positive mental attitude with as many people I could reach. God is so good, and it was happening!
Several years later, an opportunity of a lifetime knocked on my door, and I jumped at it. I was going to have the privilege and blessing of fostering 2 Korean children. For a time, I quit coaching competition teams to focus on those 2 amazing children. We became a family! Eventually, my competitive spirit led me to pioneer another Competition Team in Colorado... a home-grown team that rose to the top and became ranked #1 nationally and #2 worldwide. Pushing through all those previous challenges and setbacks with a positive attitude brought me to this point and it was all worth it. And it was all especially worth it the day I adopted my son and my daughter.
The Fight for Life
It wasn’t until one month after the adoption that I fully realized how God was going to use all that determination, all that positive perseverance He had been building into me...I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. This was the fight everything else prepared me for! I knew this cancer was not His plan! I knew that His plans for me are good, that His plans for my children are good! And He did have a plan to get my new family through this tough battle! He surrounded me with my family and many friends. He gave me the sacrificial love and support of dear friends who invited me and my children to live with them while I received treatment. They surrounded me, prayed and cared for me, and nurtured my children. My Taekwondo students and families supported and encouraged me as I endured those treatments and lost my hair. It was a painful battle! The doctors fought hard for me, my people fought hard for me, and my positive outlook fought hard for me! With all this, praise God, I had victory over this battle for my life.
Back in the Ring
Now I am back to the bigger plan of my life. I am back to teaching, coaching, and motivating people to also dream big and to handle life’s challenges with a positive mental attitude. Grandmaster Jay Warwick continues to mentor me as I run the school, because no one ever truly “arrives” along this path of life, and I’m so pleased he is continuing to pass on his legacy by training our black belts one night a week. Surviving cancer became another tool to plant encouragement and hope in others’ lives who are going through circumstances similar to the many different challenging circumstances I’ve had. I am blessed to be able to use my successful business skills, and my love of planting seeds in people, so they can reach their own powerful life goals. I have the privilege of running my school and speaking to the public to encourage and motivate people. I focus on the 4 D’s of a Champion - Desire, Discipline, Dedication, and Determination - to empower others to dream big and accomplish desired life goals. My motto is, “Discover the Champion in You!”
Photo Gallery
Our School's Village
Grandmaster Cha
Kukkiwon Board Member
Grandmaster Cha was Grandmaster Kunkel’s instructor, is a 17-time Korean National Champion, 1995 US National Team Coach, and founded many taekwondo schools across the US. He is currently a Board Member at the World Taekwondo headquarters, the Kukkiwon, in Seoul, South Korea.
Grandmaster Han Lee
Han Lee's Taekwondo Academy
Grandmaster Han Lee was Master Kunkel’s Coach, 1988 and 1992 Olympian and Olympic Bronze Medalist, Coach of Master Kunkel for 8 years, US Olympic Coach and Head Coach of the Olympic Training Center for 10 years, Owner of Han Lee’s Taekwondo Academy in Castle Rock at which Master Kunkel assisted for many years.
Grandmaster Jay Warwick
USA Taekwondo & Our Black Belt Advisor
Grandmaster Jay Warwick is Grandmaster Kunkel’s coach and mentor. He competed in the 1988 Seoul Olympics and won a Bronze Medal. He owned 4 US Taekwondo Centers in California and was a US National Team Coach. He moved to Colorado to become the Executive Director of Taekwondo in the US, has worked with the Olympic Committee where he led and guided 11 sports into the Olympic Games. Currently, he is an executive at USA Taekwondo and is the Black Belt Advisor for A.L.L. TKD.
