New location, same discipline and respect, for Ryu's Martial Arts in Lynbrook

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Ryu’s Martial Arts has moved to a new location, with space for more students to learn and practice taekwondo. Now at 309 Sunrise Highway, the martial arts studio reopened during the first week of August, continuing its  21 years of operation in Lynbrook.

The studio is open from 2 to 9 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2 to 8:30 p.m. on Fridays and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. Classes are available for adults and children ages 4 and older.

No date was set for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at press time, but an open house to celebrate the reopening was held on Aug. 28. During the event, anyone was welcome to drop in to watch a class, participate in different activities and learn about taekwondo.

Kim Ryu, office manager at Ryu’s, spoke highly of the new location’s modern design and larger accommodations, which initially surprised many young students.

“This space is so much better, so much nicer, so much bigger,” he said. “There’s much more visibility, so I can see everybody coming through the door. Everything is just fantastic here.  The kids love it, too. It was great, when they first started coming in, to see what the look on their faces was — so shocked they didn’t even know what to do. They’re still getting used to it.”

While the Covid-19 pandemic slowed down the process of moving into the new building, it also made the more spacious location especially necessary, Ryu explained.

“With Covid, we were very limited in the class sizes before,” he said. “Now, because the space is so much bigger, we’re able to have more kids per class. People used to kind of get locked out of classes, and now they don’t. There’s plenty of room for everybody who wants to come.”

Head instructor Fernando Lopez Cruz said that the new location has been embraced as a fresh start by students who have been dealing with the effects of the pandemic in recent months.

“We do miss the other location, so it’s a little bit nostalgic, but so far this new location has been great,” he said. “I see that a lot of our students are liking it, especially with this past year and everyone being quarantined. Something new, I think, can definitely bring us that energy we need again.”

The martial arts studio will also host a back-to-school celebration this month. Lopez Cruz, who has worked at Ryu’s for over five years, will give an anti-bullying seminar at the end of the event. For the seminar and martial arts lessons alike, Lopez Cruz said that the principles of discipline and respect are crucial.

“I think that there’s a big misconception of martial arts,” he said. “Yes, the kicking and punching are a part of it, but the discipline and respect and all of those things? I think they’re a little more important.”

For more information on Ryu’s Martial Arts’ programs and upcoming events, visit ryusmartialarts.com, or call (516) 596-2444.