Great Lakes Tang Soo Do

Great Lakes Tang Soo Do · Gaylord, Michigan

MasterMichaelBirch9th Dan · Training since 1973

He started training as a boy in Flint, opened his first school as a red belt, and never stopped. More than fifty years later he is still on the floor every week, teaching the art he has given his life to.

Train with Master Birch History & gallery
Year his training began
1973
Dan rank
9th
Schools developed, Michigan to San Diego
40+
Years teaching
50+

Figures come from Master Birch's own words. He began teaching in 1975, and the Great Lakes organization alone grew to 14 schools across Traverse City, Mid-Michigan and the Thumb.

“Started my journey 1973. Never stopped.” Master Michael Birch

His story

Michael Birch grew up in Flint, Michigan, and walked into his first Tang Soo Do class in 1973. Two years later he was already teaching out of his basement. By 1976, still a 1st Gup red belt, he opened his first real school in a roller rink in Argentine, Michigan.

He tested for his first Dan in 1979 and kept building. Great Lakes Tang Soo Do grew to 14 schools from Traverse City through Mid-Michigan and the Thumb. Its tournaments in Holly filled the high school gym to capacity, and every six months a carload of students drove to Detroit for seminars and Dan testing under Grandmaster Jae Joon Kim.

He later taught in San Diego for fifteen years and ran six schools there. In all, he has overseen the development of more than forty schools and trained alongside many of the art's most respected masters.

In 2021 he came home to Michigan and started again in Gaylord. That school has since promoted seven black belts.

Five decades, in order

The Timeline

  1. 1973

    First class

    Begins training in Tang Soo Do in his hometown of Flint, Michigan. S.B.N. Bennett is one of his instructors there.

  2. 1975

    Teaching starts

    Holds his first classes in his own basement.

  3. 1976

    First school

    Opens a school at a roller rink in Argentine, Michigan, while holding the rank of 1st Gup red belt.

  4. 1975–2006

    Testing with Grandmaster Kim

    For more than thirty years, he and Grandmaster Jae Joon Kim test black belts together.

  5. 1979

    1st Dan

    Earns his black belt and keeps training and promoting the art.

  6. 1980s

    Great Lakes grows

    Great Lakes Tang Soo Do reaches 14 schools from Traverse City through Mid-Michigan and the Thumb, including a school in Harrison. Every six months the group drives to Detroit for seminars and Dan testing with Grandmaster Jae Joon Kim and Grandmaster Saul Kim.

  7. 1988

    4th Dan

    Tests with the World Tang Soo Do Association at its championship. Dan number 20140.

  8. 1992

    Black belt camp

    Leads a speed-and-power break at black belt camp: four boards, set alight with gasoline.

  9. 2002

    A signed manual

    Receives one of the first signed copies of Grandmaster Jae Joon Kim's Tang Soo Do student manual.

  10. 2005–2006

    Leaving Great Lakes

    The last Great Lakes photos are taken before he moves to San Diego to care for his mother-in-law.

  11. 2006–2021

    Fifteen years west

    Teaches in San Diego for fifteen years and runs six schools.

  12. 2018

    Testing at the Rock

    Tests five new black belts, plus gup ranks, in one night at the Rock church in San Diego.

  13. 2021

    A new chapter

    Returns to Michigan and starts a new school in Gaylord at the Otsego County Sportsplex.

  14. Today

    9th Dan

    Still training and teaching. The Gaylord school has promoted seven black belts, including students who have gone on to earn 2nd and 3rd Dan.

From the archive

A young Michael Birch with long hair and a beard, in a white uniform and red belt, pointing toward the camera. "Black Belt Testing" is handwritten in the margin of the print.A grainy outdoor photo: Master Birch, mid-strike, breaks a stack of boards that bursts into flame while students in uniforms watch from the grass.Master Birch, in a black-trimmed uniform, hands a plaque to Grandmaster Jae Joon Kim in front of an American flag.Side by side: Master Birch in 2020 throwing a punch on a lawn by the woods, and today standing at attention in the Sportsplex in front of an American flag.

See the full history & gallery

Where the art comes from

The Lineage

Founder

Hwang Kee

Founder of the Moo Duk Kwan in Korea and of the Tang Soo Do tradition Master Birch has practiced his whole life.

Grandmaster · Dan #38

Jae Joon Kim

Master Birch's grandmaster and a pioneer of Tang Soo Do in the United States. The two spent many years promoting the art together, and Master Birch honored him with a Pioneer Award.

Master · 9th Dan

Michael Birch

Founder of Great Lakes Tang Soo Do. More than fifty years of training and teaching, and more than forty schools developed.

Also trained and tested with

  • S.B.N. Bennett, one of his instructors from his hometown of Flint, Michigan
  • Grandmaster Saul Kim, Traditional Tang Soo Do Federation
  • Grandmaster H. C. Hwang, son of the founder, whom Master Birch calls the best Tang Soo Do master in the world

Moo Do · the martial way

Five Stages of a Martial Artist

A teaching Master Birch has shared with his students. Each stage changes what training is for.

Cho Bo YaThe practitioner

Trains for the exercise and the basics.

Kwan WonThe student

Becomes a member of the school and studies with purpose.

Ja JehThe disciple

Builds study on discipline and devotion to a teacher.

Moo Do InThe martial artist

Lives the art as a way of life.

Moo SaThe warrior

Embodies Moo Do completely, in mind and body.

Adapted from the book Ki Sool, courtesy of Soo Bahk Do Spain.

From his students

On the Floor With Him

“After three more years of intense training under Grandmaster Michael Birch I was awarded the rank of 3rd Dan. That’s a day I won’t ever forget.”

Student · 3rd Dan

“After another two years of training I received my second Dan through Master Michael Birch of Great Lakes Tang Soo Do. Thanks for the training.”

Student · 2nd Dan

“Came to train with the best in the art. Glad to be back, and to have my daughter in it as well.”

Returning student and parent

Classes in Gaylord, Michigan

Train With Master Birch

Learn first-hand from a certified federation master instructor. Classes for kids and adults, ages 7 and up.

For kids

  • Better focus and concentration
  • Self-discipline and perseverance
  • Self-confidence and self-defense skills

For adults

  • Get in shape and improve flexibility
  • Relieve stress
  • Practical self-defense techniques

Class details

Where
Otsego County Sportsplex
1250 Gornick Ave, Gaylord, MI
When
Tuesdays and Thursdays
Ages
7 and up
Contact Master Birch
info@masterbirch.guru

Email for class times, fees and your first visit.