NOT 100% complete yet….more is coming!!!
An Open Letter to Mrs.Kathleen ‘Katie’ & Mr. Thomas ‘Tom’ Crecelius from the head instructor and members of Muhlenberg Taekwon-Do Martial Arts™, who is NOT affiliated with any of the listed schools or associations below except the Kido Kwan™.
To all members, former members, and prospects of the defunct Traditional Taekwondo Chung Do Kwan Association (TTCA) that was founded by Choi Young-sik, also known as the Traditional Taekwondo Chung Do Association for some time. Choi split from the World Taekwondo Association under Grandmaster Son, Duk-sung, as Choi, along with other Korean and American master level black belts, was not allowed to advance. At the very beginning, they had seven schools, about half were just private or part-time, so you only had two full-time schools as far back as August of 2000.
The most senior student under Choi, Yong-sik was and will always be John Charles LaVanchy having first received his 1st Degree prior from Kim, Dong-hoon who sponsored Choi and replacing him briefly in Evansville, IN 1975-1976 where Choi lived with and became lifelong friends with Lavanchy, before taking over the school in Louisville that he was gifted by Chung, Nak-young who was the first to bring Taekwondo ChungDoKwan to Evansville in 1967 first as DaeHan Karate Association then the World Taekwondo Association.
The TTCA hasn’t ever had more than 8 schools, and about half of those were also private or part-time schools. Over the years, and up to 2023 or so, several schools had a student population of around 30 or higher. By 2022, Muhlenberg County Taekwondo (MCTKD) became the second largest school within the TTCA with paying memberships. By early Spring of 2022, the schools started to leave the TTCA, and by July of 2022, the TTCA had dropped down to four, not counting the Ohio Valley school, which is the “HQ school,” and Muhlenberg County Tae Kwon Do was the largest under Mr. Johnson. By 2023, the TTCA had lost all its membership except their “HQ” school.
My first direct communication about MCTKD leaving TTCA with Mr. Johnson was in the Spring of 2022, where he asked “hypothetically” if any of his students would lose rank if they were to leave the TTCA and join the Kido Kwan™. TTCA instructors were disgruntled by the leadership and thus why schools started to shed, this isn’t a secret, and it’s well known, in March of 2022 these were the following schools. Ohio Valley Tae Kwon Do School, Muhlenberg County Tae Kwon Do, Edge Martial Arts, Traditional Ways Tae Kwon Do, Harrison County Tae Kwon Do School, Owensboro Traditional Tae Kwon Do School, Jasper School of Tae Kwon Do, Henderson YMCA Tae Kwon Do.
In May of 2022, two schools left, Edge Martial Arts and Jasper School of TKD, made the leap to leave the TTCA but remained loyal to Choi Yong-sik, as their dojang patch denotes. Owensboro was the next to leave by July, so the TTCA was down to five schools: Ohio Valley, Muhlenberg County Tae Kwon Do, Henderson YMCA Taekwondo, Traditional Ways Taekwondo, and Harrison County Tae Kwon Do. By the Fall of 2022 Traditional Ways, Harrison County, and Henderson also left the TTCA.
This left just two schools in the TTCA in the Fall of 2022! Ohio Valley and MCTKD. And we know for a fact, Mrs. & Mr. Crecelius knew Mr. Johnson was considering the same. of course, since the Crecelius’ had gained total control of the TTCA, this is a direct reflection on them, and NOT Choi, Yong-sik. At the time of his passing, Mr. Johnson had about 30 students, with about 50% regular participation.
HISTORY of MCTKD: Muhlenberg County Taekwondo was NOT a school of the TTCA until 2006, ten years after its formation! Muhlenberg County Taekwondo under Mr. Johnson as a 2nd Degree didn’t join the TTCA 2006! The MCTKD Webpage and Facebook denote MCTKD was ‘established in 1973.’ Now, while there was a high school club that started in 1973 that was taught by Mr. Odel Bingham, who started a Korean Karate club at Central City Highschool, MCTKD only has roots dating back to 1973; they were not established in 1973. MCTKD wasn’t founded until 2006. Some 33 years from the 1973 date listed, I started in 1977, so would it be prudent for me to list our founding as 1977 or 2024? Mr Bingham would later open up a school with one of his students, Mr. Brandon Baker and that school was called Central City Tae Kwon Do Studio.
Mr. Johnson did start his training back in 1973 but had long periods not involved and/or part time involvement in Taekwondo, in 1985 under the WTA he got his 1st Degree Black Belt and then got his 2nd Dan from the TTCA in 1996, 11 years again denotes part time involvement, he was teaching a semi private classes called “Webster County Tae Kwon Do Studio” inside Melissas School of Dance in Clay, KY. Webster County starting on April 1, 1989, and this was considered an affiliate school of “Central City Tae kwon do” under Mr. Brandon Baker, both with the WTA. In 2006, Mr. Johnson got his 3rd Degree Black Belt (another 10 years, again denoting part-time involvement). March 26, 2010, he received his 4th Degree Black Belt. I want to be clear that taking time away from teaching or training in anything doesn’t reflect negatively on Mr. Johnson’s part, he had a full-time job, a wife, and three small children in the 80s! His oldest daughter was born in 1979.
Sadly, in August of 2023, Mr. Johnson passed away. This left his school in question as he had yet to roll out his complete plan for his school, ‘Muhlenberg County Tae Kwon Do.’ A few individuals knew of his direct plan to leave the TTCA. Mr. Johnson had replaced his outside banner, which had the TTCA logo, with a logo of his own, and several TTCA items inside his school as well. He was in direct communication with at least three groups who left or were not part of the TTCA. When Mr. Johnson passed away, his school also passed away. All his former students are now the soul of his style of Taekwon-Do, and just a few decided to remain within the MCTKD building.
Even though there was a plan in place, and I had already bought land and was moving into the area. I resigned to not worrying about students who wouldn’t return, we know more than 90% would not return, that is common when a beloved instructor passes. The TTCA was in a panic, as they instantly lost income, and they knew I was moving there and would not be sending TTCA any funds, as we were never part of this small organization, as they were now down to one school, Ohio Valley. TTCA was so worried about loss of income, they got a former 3rd Degree who was last active in the school in December 2011, 12 years! We know Mr. Edwards had dropped out of Tae Kwon Do due to work and medical issues (as personal told by him), and there is nothing wrong with that, but to come back for a gentleman who hasn’t seen the inside of a dojang and and also promote him to 4th Dan with no testing, again, that reflects negatively on the leadership of the TTCA. Muhlenberg County Tae Kwon Do, sadly, has also seen zero growth when you factor in new students to older students leaving. What is the cause? Well, simply put, they are with a defunct association, with leadership that has lost ALL of the members that GM Choi, Yong-sik had built up over a 40 year period. All those that left, their new logos denote the support of him, but not that of Mr. and Mrs. Crecelius!
On November 25, 2024, I reached out to Mr. Edwards to have a sit-down and discuss some of the issues that were cropping up as many of their members or associates (Not Mr. Edwards) were publically making derogatory comments, while many were then spouting “honor – discipline – respect”. I saw many within Mr. Edwards‘ school or sphere start to make some public posts, that were not only derogatory towards myself but my school and students. And unlike several within the TTCA or MCTKD camp, I was not going to allow our members to post fake Google or Facebook reviews/posts as had happened from the MCTKD/TTCA side. Some from the MCTKD side even called the owner of the building we lease to ask them to kick us out because we were in direct competition with MCTKD!
After several delays from Mr. Edwards’s side and one ice storm, I met with Mr. M. Jason Spicer and Mr. Edwards at Coffee Central, a local coffee shop, to discuss some of these issues on Monday, 13 January 2025. Our conversations were cordial, and I let Mr. Spicer and Mr. Edwards state their issues, and they listened to ours. While we didn’t leave as bosom buddies, we didn’t leave as enemies, either. I told them I would make sure there would be better controls in place to keep feelings from being hurt etc. I made it clear that no one at MCTKD was our enemy or competition. My competition is things like “dance, archery, football, soccer, volleyball, and the like.” It’s never another martial arts school.
Our history denotes and supports that. There are DOZENS of other schools that I have helped, supported, and continue to do so, even though they were not part of our organizations or I theirs. I even took great care and effort to present the TTCA with a well-designed and more functional website the Christmas of 2021! It even came with unlimited emails that they could have given to every member to support the organization and give its members access to an interactive website. Grandmaster Lavanchy loved it, as I showed him while we had lunch at the VFW we are members of. I’ll keep what he said how Mrs. Crecelius would take it, but he was 100% spot on!
How did Mrs. Crecelius accept the gesture? Well, it wasn’t positive, I’ll be happy to share those text/emails/phone conversation, her main issue is she didn’t want someone who wasn’t a TTCA member control over their website, and while I understood that point, I told her it was a gift with no strings, that I did it to honor both Lavanchy and Choi, as I was assigning it over to her. She said No, thank you and asked that I delete it, and I did. Of course, after I made a copy, as Grandmaster Lavanchy said, “Make sure you CYA with her,” referring to Mrs. Crecelius.
Now, below is a screenshot of a text message from Mr. Tom Crecelius. This was on August 12, 2023. I was down in Muhlenberg County looking at property, visiting family homesteads, and meeting with Mr. Johnson. He had indicated that he had also had some communication with Mr. Nick Sauer, who was part of the group that left the TTCA the fall before. I didn’t ask for details, but Mr. Johnson said he felt if he picked sides with those that split, it would become a larger issue. I also took that to mean that he may have also had some discussions with the Jasper/Owensboro/Louisville group that left the spring before. Below is a copy of text from Mrs. Crecelius to Tooter Howton just days after the funeral, that conforms, they knew that Mr. Johnson was having some discussions with the group that left the previous fall, as she stated it, but it’s clear why I got this text out of the blue from Mr. Crecelius, as they felt either I was a middle person, or just the outsider. And that Mrs. Onalee Kidd was already reporting to the Crecelius camp, as Mr. Johnson already suspected.
SIDE NOTE on Mrs. Onalee Kidd: She is the Director of the Greenville Tourism Commission. We, as a school and local family, have supported much of what the Commission does. Rightly so, we are part of that community. However, since she runs their Facebook Page, she actively tries to silence our presence. When we have community events, we, of course, tag all our local pages, one of the many being the Greenville Tourism Commisson Facebook page. An example is in December of 2024 we had our students pull our local schools names out of a hat, to offer, the students, faculty, and families a month free of classes to honor their dedication and achievements at their school, we drew two schools a month until all the local schools got their turn. March 2025 was for the area Homeschool groups and Greenville Elementary School. Every time we posted on or tagged the Greenville Tourism page, Mrs. Onalee Kidd would untag our posts. Not because it violated the rules of their page, not because it wasn’t pertinent to our area, or Greenville in particular, but solely because she has a bias and a clear conflict of interest. We do dozens of free events for the public, such as free Women’s Self-Defense classes, the above-mentioned free month for local schools, CPR/AED training, and more. And she will untag or remove the post by 10 am every weekday! For a community page to promote the best of Greenville and Muhlenberg County, it is a poor way to handle a local business! So, if she is doing it to us, does that mean she does it to other local businesses she may not like?
PART TWO (2) CLICK HERE
