Before the age of 8, senior Amanda Puhse knew she was different. She was never really interested in many sports until she started watching martial art movies with her dad, Robert Puhse. Together, they both learned taekwondo and found their niche in the world and in each other’s lives.

“My dad and I knew that I wasn’t a girly-girl,” Amanda said. “When he realized I was into taekwondo, he wanted to do it again with his daughter.”

Robert was in taekwondo during his childhood, but he stopped for a while after high school. He decided to continue again when he realized Amanda was interested in it as well.

“I was very excited when Amanda wanted to join,” Robert said. “She wanted to find different sports she was interested in, but nothing really stuck, so when she mentioned she wanted to try it, I was so excited.”

Both Amanda and Robert received their black belts on the same day four years ago at the Lyndell Institute of Taekwondo, when she was only 14 and he was 48. It came after the challenges of writing a 20-page essay and breaking wooden boards efficiently in front of their teachers.

“I was super proud [when we passed] because we’ve been training for four years,” Robert said. “I was actually more excited for her getting her belt because she worked so hard.”     

Attending Lyndell has inspired both of them to eventually open their own martial arts studio. They want to achieve their dream of teaching children the ways of taekwondo, especially girls who are interested in the sport.

“If you have any interest in it at all, then do it,” Robert said. “The girls especially, they’re actually more focused than the boys usually.”

Being an influence for young girls in taekwondo is very important to Amanda. She wants young girls to know that they can be extraordinary and that they’re just as strong as anyone else.

“I want girls to realize that they can do it too,” Amanda said. “All of my teachers are women, and I look up to them so much because they really influenced me to keep going. I wanted to be just as tough as they are.”    

Taekwondo has taught Amanda self defense and self confidence, something she didn’t have very much of before. Now she’s become more comfortable with herself and who she is. It’s given her strength both physically and mentally. She learned how to push herself and work harder to achieve what she wants.

“I think [taekwondo] is a great learning experience,” Amanda’s sister Megan said. “It teaches her self discipline and self defense.”

  When it comes to taekwondo, Robert and Amanda agree that their favorite part of it all is getting to spend more time with each other and getting to know one another better.

  “My favorite part about doing [taekwondo] with him is that I am with him,” Amanda said. “Now that I’m older, I wouldn’t be in it if it didn’t mean that much to him.”