Name: Gerremy Ferguson
Age: 8
School: Crompond School
Accomplishment: The fourth grade student in the rank of karate blue belt with white stripe is the youngest helper of his karate master.
Key to Awesomeness:
Fourth grader Gerremy Ferguson is a karate kid who frequents his dojo (martial arts school) and consistently arrives early before his classes to help his sensei (teacher) teach karate drills to pre-school ninjas.
Gerremy, who holds a blue belt with white stripe, is commended by Shihan (master) Gary Gione for his dedication, discipline, and athleticism displayed at the dojo Elite Defensive Tactics.
“He is a model student, with great discipline, form, and passion,” said Gione, a sixth degree black belt in karate. “His focus is incredible, as is his willingness to go above and beyond to help out at the dojo.”
According to Elite’s program director Kristin Furman, it is very rare for an eight-year-old to be allowed to help teach at Elite, but Gerremy is "a great young leader and extremely responsible."
"Karate is my life," Gerremy said. "It's something that I know I'm good at, and I love it."
Gerremy started karate classes when he was 6 and quickly moved through yellow, orange, and purple belts. On Saturday, Sept. 17, he will be tested for his next rank of blue belt.
"When Gerremy entered first grade, he was shy and timid," Gerremy’s mother, Rebecca Ferguson, said. "We thought karate would be just the thing to promote his self-confidence and expose him to a sport that is more about focus and personal development than it is about winning or losing."
Once uninterested in sports, Gerremy is now described as “an outstanding basketball player” by Gione and attended the New York Knicks Summer Basketball Camp this year. Gerremy has also been in the gifted and talented program at since first grade.
As a member of Elite’s demo team, Gerremy will demonstrate karate kata (formal exercise with a series of movements), kicks, and moves at the Yorktown Festival and Street Fair on Oct. 9.
"My goal is to reach the highest rank belt that there is," Gerremy said. "When I grow up, I hope to one day be able to become a sensei myself."
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Nominations for Yorktown Patch’s Whiz Kids can be submitted to Plamena Pesheva plamena@patch.com and Christine An christinean.patch@gmail.com
