member spotlight
STAFF MEMBER
ASHLEY
CONNELL
by Rachel Mayan
Indomitable spirit is one of the
seven principles of HAC Martial
Arts – it means to have a resolve
that’s impossible to break; an
unconquerable energy. Before I
met HAC Martial Arts Instructor,
Ashley Connell, I couldn’t have
imagined what it was like to
have life interrupted by someone
else’s drunken decision; to have
your passion ripped from your
possibilities because you’d been
told you’d never again be able to
do what you love. Though her story
had been changed, and seemingly
rewritten, she didn’t live bound
to the new chapter. With a warm
smile and a cool determination,
Ashley Connell made sure she
had the last word.
KARATE CHANGED HER LIFE
Ashley’s mother enrolled her in Kenpo at
age 12 for her own protection. “She was
afraid I would be attacked,” Ashley recalls. “I
was one of those kids that was really big
but really shy.” Ashley resisted martial arts at
first, but eventually she made a friend and
began to look forward to classes.
Over time, her quiet shell started to break.
She gained confidence. Each board broken
and challenge overcome grew her passion
for the discipline and gave her a
road map for overcoming life’s
obstacles. It was the extra
boost she needed that
came with self-esteem
and a skill-set to be
able to rely on herself.
She joined demo
teams and competed
in tournaments; at 16,
she began teaching,
leading, and creating
teams of her own; she
trained and went to
workshops with some of the
best martial artists of the day.
Ashley built a career rich in Kenpo
success. She got her white belt on October
27, 1997 and r eceived her third-degree
black belt from HAC on June 30, 2017.
Ashley believes who she is today is a
result of those 20 years of martial arts. “It
changes the way you think, it changes the
way you move,” she says. “Honestly, I don’t
enhance magazine | JANUARY 2018
13