Emerald City Karate

I have trained in martial arts for many years but have never seen a Karate Sensei as good with young children as Sensei Tobey Stansbury. His Little Dragon classes are truly amazing. My niece and nephew both train with him and even in large classes with some fidgety little kids, he is able to hold their attention, keep them on point, teach them some martial arts basics, self defense and life skills all while having fun at the same time — which, as my husband put it, is nearly miraculous! The kids love and respect him. I have started training with him myself in the adult class and I love it and have learned a lot from Sensei Tobey. I plan to continue for a long time.

I have so many good things to say about Sensei Tobey! We came to Emerald City Karate after having a pretty awful experience at another dojo. The difference between that and our experience with Tobey has been like night and day. It’s obvious that he cares about his students and puts effort into varying his lesson plans to keep class interesting and fun. My son is 6yo and attends the Lil Dragons class 3x/​week. Before coming to our first class, I emailed Tobey regarding concerns I had about my son’s shyness and social anxiety. Tobey was so warm and responsive. He shared some of his own childhood insecurities and wrote about how karate helped build his confidence as a kid. He invited us to a one-​on-​one session so my son could familiarize himself with the environment and my son was instantly won over by Tobey’s sense of humor and attentive manner. Parents are allowed to join their children in the Lil Dragons class at no extra charge. This was a huge selling point for my nervous kid who was afraid to take the plunge alone. But after only a week, my son was ready to enter the mat with out me. My 6yo is not an athlete and finding once weekly extracurricular activities that we didn’t have to drag him out the door for had been a HUGE challenge. I never dreamed he’d be begging to attend a class 3x a week! I fully credit this to Tobey’s teaching style, which is imbued with silliness, caring, and just the right amount of discipline. Every two weeks, the class focuses on a specific topic (focus, fitness, strength, etc) allowing the students to gain a sense of mastery over the lessons being taught. But it never feels repetitive or boring because of the dynamic obstacle courses and engaging moves being taught. Tobey always explains, in a very non-​scary way, how each move can help the kids defend themselves in a sticky situation. He also incorporates time for silent meditation and a «Mat Chat» into each class. These Mat Chats usually begin with a proverb or bite of wisdom that corresponds to the skill the children are currently working on. He asks great questions that allow the kids to participate in the discussion and reflect on how their new skills apply to their own lives. With the amount of fun and wisdom in each session, Tobey’s classes are an incredible value. My son has gained a positive male role model, better self-​esteem, resilience, and the ability to laugh at himself. Honestly, I could go on and on about this place and still have more good things to say!

I started training in Karate at Emerald City Karate about a year and a half ago.
Even though I was born and raised in Japan, I had never done Karate in my life.
Karate has literally changed my way way of thinking.
I’ve become more patient, I have more focus, and every week I pick up a bit of new wisdom.
If I hadn’t met Tobey Stansbury Sensei, the head instructor, my life would have never changed like this.
Besides the physical techniques of Karate he also teaches Japanese Proverbs, and Japanese culture which is something that other Karate Schools do NOT offer in their daily discussions on the mat. Everyone from children to adults love to hear these «Mat Chats.»
I would strongly recommend Emerald City Karate to anyone who is interested in Karate and Japan.