Last year, we introduced you to Andi Johnson, owner and instructor at On Target Martial Arts in Statesboro.
In addition to martial arts, Johnson prioritizes teaching her students the importance of serving others. In fact, black belts are required to complete a community service project before being promoted. So, last year, to teach the value of service to her whole school, Johnson pitched an idea to all her students: to send care packages to an overseas military base.
She got the idea when she learned that an old martial arts friend of hers, Major Todd Besier, was going to be stationed overseas in Kuwait. Besier is part of the 648th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade of the Georgia Army National Guard. Johnson decided it would be nice if she and her school could do something for him and his fellow service members.
"I always have a lot of respect for what people go through when they have to leave home and when they have to leave their families, " Johnson told Grice Connect in September. "I wanted to let them know that we care about what they're doing."
The care packages included cereal, ramen, sunscreen, and beef jerky, as well as some drinks. The students also made handmade cards for the overseas service members.
Besier shared, "Receiving packages and letters from home and from people that you do not know means so much to the service men and women while they are deployed. These packages bring a taste and feeling of home while being so far away from family."
As a "thank you" to Johnson and her students for their thoughtful project, Major Besier recently presented a flag to the school. This American flag was flown over the base in Kuwait in the school's honor.
"I want to thank Mrs. Andi Johnson and her martial arts students for their kindness and generosity to me and the members of the 648th MEB while we were deployed," Besier said.
