About Grandmaster Jang

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Grandmaster Jong C. Jang was born in Busan, Korea in 1952. Grandmaster Jang heard many stories from his father, Ok Kyun Jang, of his life growing up roughly 150 miles into the north of what is now the DMZ. Ok Kyun Jang prayed he could return to the now Democratic People's Republic of Korea but never realized his dreams. However, till this day Grandmaster Jang has been part of an underground network which helps refugees from North Korea, his father's home land.

In 1960, Grandmaster Jang started learning Taekwondo at the age of 9. He was taught under the philosophy of "Ji Do Kwan", which is the philosophy he runs his Do Jang under. He has been doing taekwondo for over 60 years, and is a 9th degree Black Belt. He has had a passion for teaching since a young age.

In 1974, he graduated from Kyung Hee university with a Bachelor of Arts in Education (B.A.). He went on to get his Master of Arts in the future (M.A.).  Then, In 1977, He became a second lieutenant, and also volunteered as a P.E. Instructor in Busan, Korea.

In 1980, when he was 29, Grandmaster Jang left Busan, for the United States. Like his parents, who became street peddlers after the war, he volunteered as a Taekwondo instructor at multiple recreational centers across Maryland. He spent significant time volunteering as a P.E. Teacher at Oakland Mills between 1981 and 1986. In 1986, with a goal in mind, he started his own Taekwondo which is still in business as of today.

In 1990, Grandmaster Jang helped a team of Korean-American athletes to the Asian Games in Beijing. There, he saw North Korean athletes face South Korean athletes, which was a first at the time. He cheered when either team won, and heard stories about the harsh conditions under the authority of Kim Il-Sung. As he learned more and more about the struggles of the North Korean people, one of his new friends asked him to do something for the people. 

Without waiting too long, he went to Yanji, where he saw missionaries set up a chain of underground churches along the Yalu and Tumen rivers aiding people. Every morning, between midnight and 2, refugees came in groups of 30 or more per hour. The people didn't come to flee, those who came were after the food, clothes, encouragement and some cash. By dawn, the bodies of those who didn't make it back would float on the rivers. These sights shocked him, and between 1990 and 2005, he visited Yanji at least once a year as a compassion from the heart to help. 

Every morning, Grandmaster Jang prays for the reunification of the two Koreas. In the mean time, he sits in his office in the Bethany 40 Center, eagerly waiting to teach the arts of Taekwondo to new and incoming students aspiring to do great things. He teaches everyone about the philosophy of Ji Do Kwan, and how you should stand up an eighth time after falling seven.

He visited the North as part of a humanitarian mission, from the Billy Graham Ministries, in 1997 where the main purpose was to offer treatment for tuberculosis patients. Grandmaster Jang's task was to make sure the medicine reached the place it was intended for. He travelled his fathers home province, Pyong-An Do, for 10 days and saw the places his father described as he went from clinic to clinic.