I have been training with the Order of Isshin-ryu Martial Arts for over five decades. It is one of the oldest karate organizations in the area, teaching traditional Okinawan martial arts. The organization's founder, Grand Master Walter Cooling, trained with the founder of Isshin-ryu Karate, Tatsuo Shimabuku, in Okinawa, Japan, in the 1970s. GM Cooling was a native of Cecil County and operated several successful businesses in the area.
The Elkton Dojo under Master Ronnie Cimorosi, 9th dan, operates on a foundation of honor, respect, and discipline in all things inside and outside the dojo. In the case of younger students, Sensei Max Jones and other black belt instructors are as interested in the work in the dojo as they are in the grades of the students and the school activities they participate in. One of the most interesting phenomena of the Order of Isshin-ryu dojos is that many students train with other family members. Why come and watch your mother, father, son, or daughter take a class when you can enjoy a family activity together?
The COVID Pandemic has seen the Elkton Dojo develop robust ZOOM capabilities that have provided students from several states in the U.S. and Canada with traditional dojo training classes, special high-intensity workouts, and focused small group training sessions remotely, up to six days a week.
Finally, as a 501 (C) (3) Non-Profit organization, the Order of Isshin-ryu Martial Arts Dojos provides scholarship opportunities for deserving students and family members to cover training expenses or costs of higher education at accredited colleges and universities. read more