Destiny Lieder Wins Chris Canning Award of Excellence

Destiny Lieder of Tomball, Texas is the winner of the 2^nd Annual Chris Canning Award of Excellence which was presented at the 2003 Youth and Adult National Taekwondo Championships in Knoxville, Tennessee. The award was presented to Destiny during the opening ceremonies on July 3, by Rick Blair, Chief National Referee and Executive Board Member of the National AAU Taekwondo Program.

The award, established in July 2002, honors the memory of Chris Canning and his life’s accomplishments. The standards of the award require the winner to have demonstrated excellence in competitive martial arts, high scholastic achievement, and heavy involvement in their community helping others. These attributes, in conjunction with living the Tenets of Taekwondo, were the foundation of Christopher James Canning, for whom the award was named. By winning the award, Destiny received a beautiful trophy and a one thousand dollar scholarship to be used for further martial arts training or higher education.

Destiny not only met the standards for the award but exceeded them. She is a 17 year old 3^rd Dan, and has been training for approximately 5 years. Destiny has won gold medals at the State, Regional, National and Junior Olympic level competitions and was a member of the AAU National Team in 2002. As in martial arts, she has excelled in her academic career. As a member of the National Honor Society, she has maintained a straight “A” Average for the past three years while being involved in the school choir, a member of the school track team, and now a member of her school’s yearbook staff.

She has committed much of her time to her community helping with teaching Sunday school, participating in youth group activities helping the elderly, and supporting a child through Compassion International. In the last year she has done mission work in Northern Texas and in Mexico. In addition to her own demanding workout schedule, she finds time to teach at the family Taekwondo school on a regular basis.

Last year’s inaugural winner, Kirt Fuhrman, presented the trophy to Destiny following Rick Blair’s speech. In so doing, Destiny joins Kurt and Chris in maintaining the standards of the award, exemplifying the legacy and providing leadership to the youth of today. Others can emulate their example, within the  AAU Taekwondo program, as they choose to traverse the same path. As Rick Blair stated in his address, these young men and women are outstanding people who we are proud to call AAU Taekwondo athletes. Our most sincere congratulations go to Destiny for her outstanding achievement.

Update-

Destiny continues to excel in school maintaining a 4.0 GPA.  This school year she participated in the school choir in addition to the youth choir at church.  She also joined the track team at the urging of her personal TKD trainer for the endurance training.  She grew to like track and plans on participating next year as well.  She participated in the relay as well as the triple jump.  Destiny has received the honor of being selected to the yearbook team for next school year.  Destiny remains a member of the National Honor Society.  She also participated in Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

Destiny continues to sing in the church youth choir.  She helps with children's church and teaches a children's Sunday school class.  Destiny participates in youth group activities at church.  The youth, among other things, have cleaned and fixed up houses of the elderly in the area.  Destiny continues to support a child through Compassion International.  Last summer she helped teach Vacation Bible School at our Church and as a mission with the youth in northern Texas at a small church.  She will be helping with VBS again this summer.  Besides performing in a TKD demonstration as part of a chapel service at her high school, she designed it as well.

Martial Arts Experience

• 2002 AAU Nation Championship: Silver Medal-Olympic Sparring.
• 2002 AAU Team Trials: 2nd place.
• 2002 Unified Tae Kwon Do Texas Bluebonnet Invitational Championship: Gold medal-Point sparring.
• 2002 Elite TKD training camp.
• 2003 AAU Gulf State Championship: Gold Medal-Olympic sparring.
• 2003 AAU Region 9 Championship: Gold Medal-Olympic sparring
• 2003 USTU Texas State Championship: Silver medal-Olympic sparring
• Competing in New Orleans at the USTU Jr. Black Belt Festival later this moth, AAU Nationals as well as the AAU Jr. Olympics this summer.  Hopefully she will do well enough to qualify for the AAU team trials once again this year.
• Performs as part of the Demo team at our TKD studio.
• Continues to help teach TKD.  She teaches our Little Ninja class by herself, and loves it.
• Taking private lessons with an instructor to improve her Olympic sparring abilities as well to learn techniques and drills to be able to teach our fledging Olympic sparring team.

Destiny continues her TKD training on a daily basis.  Even with her busy schedule she still makes time to be with her family, Grandparents, and friends.  She reamins unwavering in her faith and beliefs and demonstrates these as well.