Taekwondo School Gets Kick Start from CDFI Loans
Client: Victory Taekwondo Center
Client Location: Parker, CO
CDFI: Accion
CDFI Service Area: AL, AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MD, MA, MI, MO, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI
Financing
Taekwondo has been the cornerstone of Ramil Abratique’s life since he was a boy in the Philippines. He started practicing at the age of 12 and rose quickly to the top, becoming a Philippine national athlete at 18. As a young man, he won seven international titles, including a silver medal at the Athens World Championship.
Passionate about teaching Taekwondo and yearning to be a business owner, Ramil and his wife Caryl immigrated to California where they saved and opened a Taekwondo school. But when the Great Recession hit, Ramil and Caryl found themselves starting over. They moved to Colorado in search of greater financial opportunity.
“I had a strong feeling in my heart that my purpose in life is to share and reinforce life skills and leadership to students through Taekwondo,” said Ramil.
Guided by his dream and with hard work and determination, Ramil and Caryl opened Victory Taekwondo Center in Parker, Colorado in 2010. Over the course of five years, and four loans from Accion — a CDFI serving Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas — the business has taken root and is thriving.
For Ramil, the most important part of teaching Taekwondo is instilling a sense of confidence and responsibility in his students. He looks forward to positively impacting the lives of even more students and to one day owning the business’ property. Ramil said, “Having Accion on our side, we are highly confident we will be successful in the future.”