Sa Bom Nim Grogan was recently elected to sit on the Board of Directors for the United Stated Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan Federation. He will be the Director for Region 5, which includes Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Michigan.  The Federation's Board of Directors consists of 15 Directors in the United States (and it's 200,000 members).  Five are appointed by the Kwan Jang Nim and one is elected from each region by the voting Dan members in that region.  The Board's responsibility is to govern the overall business affairs of the Federation and ensure that the Technical Advisory Committee is supported in its work.  This is a great honor and privilege for Sa Bom Nim Grogan to be selected by the Dans and the Ko Dan Ja. (Ko Dan Ja is the title awarded to Dans with a 4th degree or higher)

Sa Bom Nim Grogan began training in Martial Arts in 1982, when he attended a karate summer camp at a local church. The Martial Art Sa Bom Nim Grogan studied was Tang Soo Do (Way of the Chinese Hand), he trained for several years with his first instructor, before moving on to his current instructor (Sa Bom Nim George Manns) in 1989. Sa Bom Nim Grogan and Sa Bom Nim Manns continued training in the art of Tang Soo Do, until 1994 when the U.S. Tang Soo Do Federation converted back to it's original name - (Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan), for historical & traditional reasons. Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan is the only Martial Arts system in the World to have a direct link with the Founding father - Kwan Jang Nim Hwang Kee. 

Soo Bahk Do (Way of the Hand Strike), and Moo Duk Kwan (School of Martial Virtue) is the oldest known Korean Martial Arts system, therefore it is often thought of as the grandfather to all Korean Martial Arts styles.

The Korean Ko Dan Ja Shim Sa is a testing process for Masters Rank (4th Degree Black-belt & Higher). This was only the 2nd Annual Korean Ko Dan Ja Shim Sa, meaning this was only the 2nd time in Korea's history to have this type of testing in Korea, and available to foreigners. The testing process consists of 8 consecutive days of training in the mountains of Korea. The training is meant to elevate a students discipline three areas, Mentally, Physically and Emotionally.  The average training day lasts between 18 - 20 hours, consisting of anything & everything you've ever learned in Martial Arts, and then demonstrated hundreds of times. To keep with Korean tradition the testing candidates sleep on a hard wood floor, take cold showers (because there wasn't any hot water) and eat traditional Korean food. This is just one example of what sets Sa Bom Nim Rich Grogan apart from most Martial Artists in the World, and what makes Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan the absolute pinnacle of Martial Arts systems anywhere in the World. NO OTHER Martial Arts systems in the World have such high demands & high guidelines for candidates testing for Masters Rank (4th Degree & higher).  To be selected  for Ko Dan Ja is an incredible honor, to experience it is extremely enlighten, and to finish the test is the most exhilarating experience any student will ever know.

Sa Bom Nim Grogan has visited Korea 3 times for extensive training with the best Martial Artists in the World. In 1995 for training, and the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Moo Duk Kwan. Then again in 2003 for the Korean Ko Dan Ja experience. And lastly in 2005 for advanced training, and the celebration of the 60th Anniversary of the Moo Duk Kwan. Each trip to Korea offered advanced training and provided knowledge in Korean tradition, culture and into the ancient Martial Arts techniques & training methods not often shared with Martial Artists in the U.S.