We are thrilled to announce that Hyun’s Hapkido & Taekwondo School (2743 N. Western Avenue) is one of 350 businesses across the country to receive a Backing Small Business grant.
Presented by Main Street America and American Express, the Backing Small Business grant program started in 2019 to help economically vulnerable small business owners recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now in its second year, the program recently awarded $1.65 million in grants to 350 business owners.
North Branch Works (NBW) staff identified the grant opportunity and helped the owner, Grandmaster Kwang Hyun, write and submit his application.
The grant will be used to add an air conditioner that will serve the school’s locker rooms and further strengthen the business.
Grandmaster Kwang Hyun
This successful grant application is a great example of how we can help the small business owners in our service area grow and expand. NBW regularly helps businesses write applications and obtain grants.
The school has been in business for fifty-two years. Grandmaster Hyun immigrated to the U.S. from South Korea and founded his school in Logan Square at the intersection of Diversey and Western Avenues in the 32nd Ward.
Over the years, the business has become an important neighborhood destination and a safe place where people come together and share cultural exchanges.
Indeed, 12,000 law enforcement officers from the Chicago Police Department and Cook County Sheriff's Office have trained at the school.
Grandmaster Hyun has done an incredible job sharing Korean culture and teaching his students discipline and important life skills.
The school offers classes in hapkido, a Korean martial art characterized by joint locks, throws, and dynamic kicking techniques, and taekwondo for people of all ages and abilities.
North Branch Works members and supporters can sign up for a free trial lesson by calling Grandmaster Hyun at 773-252-8300 or submitting a form here.
To see a full list of the Backing Small Business grantees, please go here.
We’d like to congratulate Grandmaster Hyun on receiving a Backing Small Business grant and thank him for being a strong supporter and partner of NBW.
Image credits: Hyun's Hapkido & Taekwondo School
