Name of School
Resurgence Martial Arts
Number of years in the World Tang Soo Do Association (WTSDA)
Almost 36 years (in June), first as Range Martial Arts, then adding Range East and now currently as Resurgence Martial Arts.
Name/rank of Chief Instructor
Justin Koivisto, Samdan (Mr. K)
Background/Previous Training
Mr. Koivisto began his training in 1985 at 8 years old under Mr. Steve Yukich in Buhl, MN. He earned his Cho Dan Bo rank in 1996. Between 1998 and 2001 Mr. K. trained informally with friends sporadically in Shotokan and Taekwondo when visiting their schools, but always kept in touch with his Tang Soo Do family at Range by stopping in to say hello and watch classes. In October 2007 Mr. K. returned to Range under Bryan Fagerstrom as both a student and an instructor. He tested to Cho Dan in September 2009 and became a certified instructor the next year. Around this time he also started doing Ki Gong with Mrs. Ramona Wickstrom.
In 2012, Mr. Koivisto was granted permission from GM Beaudoin to train and teach Haidong Gumdo around the time he tested for E Dan. In October of 2016, he tested for Sam Dan in both TSD and Haidong Gumdo. Mr. K. tested for 4th Dan in Haidong Gumdo in spring of 2019.
Origin/history
When Range in Chisholm closed in 2020 Mr. Koivisto took over the business from Mr. Fagerstrom and renamed the school in Virginia (RMA East) to Resurgence Martial Arts at the start of 2021. He currently teaches multiple Tang Soo Do and Haidong Gumdo classes weekly in Virginia as well as a Tang Soo Do Community Education program in Chisholm, MN for youth. Mr. Koivisto has only missed two WTSDA regional events since 2008, has attended three WTSDA world championships and one WTSDA US National championship.
Please check out a more detailed history of the school here: resurgencema.com/school-history
Current # of active students
• 43 active WTSDA rank-holding students
• 9 active Tiny Tiger students
• 12 active Haidong Gumdo students
• 64 total active students (Kigong is tracked with Ramona Wickstrom separate from the school records)
What is your specialty/favorite thing to teach?
My first thought was this was a trick question. I didn't have a favorite thing pop into my head, but since “everything” is really saying “nothing”, I will elaborate... My favorite moments in teaching are when students suddenly “gets it” - regardless of what we are doing at the time. It could be a simple principle in technique, learning how their body works for something, finding a reason (for themselves) why they are training or even doing a certain movement. I often am able to bring principles from Haidong Gumdo into Tang Soo Do class topics and vice versa. Using the different arts somehow to show that the goal is the same, but use different tools to get there – and see the students connect it – is what my favorite part is. The expected answer: swords is a specialty, partner drills are one of the things I like the most to teach.
What do you love most about your school?
We use Korean a lot – we do verbal or visual quizzing (sometimes with Hangul) including numbers, anatomy, techniques, and other terminology from our manuals. Sometimes we use Korean greetings or toss in some random words if they come up in discussion. It's always fun when I think I am catching someone off-guard only to find that they remember or know the term that was just used. When we have medical doctors in rank, we sometimes delve into body mechanics with particular muscles, joints, bones, etc. When we have a physics teacher in rank, the discussion sometimes gets involved with forces, vectors, or math. Sometimes common principles of music, or snowboarding are compared with what we are doing on the mat. The variety of personalities the students dictate how things go for each portion of each class, and that is really what I love – teaching the same curriculum for years when the discussion and delivery method are always changing depending on who is in attendance at that moment.
Are there any personal/martial arts goals you are working towards currently?
My biggest personal goal at the moment is getting to know my body better for greater efficiency and less pain as I get older – especially with no cartilage in my left knee. Reworking all my “young” movement habits has been a work in progress since my injury in 2019. In addition, proving to myself that I am capable of achieving Sah Dan/Master in Tang Soo Do has been on my list for a number of years. I've also been working on refining my Haidong Gumdo training to work toward 5th Dan promotion eventually as well.
Who has been the biggest influence on your martial arts journey?
This is a really tough question. I didn't start because of a martial arts movie or martial arts celebrity. My journey began because my father said, “I know a guy that teaches karate. Do you want to try it?” Yeah, not very spectacular – but that's kind of my personality.
Mr. Steve Yukich certainly got the fire started. He taught so many lessons through his classes that I would eventually recognize as being used in my everyday life. I found this happening so much that I had even written him a thank you letter in my adult years as I had come back to training for my 3rd time with my son. Tang Soo Do still remains my biggest passion with the added connections I have gotten from events as well as training other arts.
Master Robert Frankovich was from my hometown and had connected with me in 2012. He introduced me to Haidong Gumdo, which in turn opened up a new way to understand movement and technique. I was then introduced to Master Marshall Parnell who always knows how to bring out the best in me on the mat as well as great conversation afterward to remind me that I am right where I need to be.
There have been many other masters, instructors, and friends along the way since 1985. Most recently, it is Mr. Doug Lewis that has become my martial arts brother. We share much both on and off the mat, in business and in friendship. He's constantly giving me information that I store away and sometimes pull out to examine or use while trying to learn, tweak, or remember things in my training.
Notable achievement of a student or your school overall
In the 36 years of this school's history, there has only been one instructor that has made it to a Master rank in Tang Soo Do: Master Ian Larson. The first World Ki Gong female Master (Red shirt) also came from our school: Master Ramona Wickstrom. We've always been a small school from a small rural area in the backwoods of northern Minnesota. Staying in business consistently in an area that is mostly driven my the mining industry and the rough lifestyle many here enjoy is a feat itself. We work hard, have fun, and often stick to our own in the shire.
