00:0017 News Farrier Files is brought to you by Kellum Stem Cell Institute.
00:07An internationally known mid-state martial artist made a big transition from training elite athletes to neurodivergent children.
00:16Fox 17 News Dennis Farrier shows us the impact that Chris Garland is making in tonight's Farrier Files.
00:23Executive Martial Arts in West Nashville, for many years an elite training school for law enforcement, military, and very advanced
00:31students.
00:31That school has gone under a complete transformation and it's nothing short of amazing.
00:41Chris Garland has so many titles and awards in Korean martial arts, the list would take up half the story.
00:47We bow, then he grabs my chest.
00:50We'll just say this, he is an 8th degree black belt in Hapkido, a master and an expert in swordsmanship.
00:58What is up?
00:59But Garland's career as an elite martial artist is taking a surprising turn.
01:03He's become even more of a specialist.
01:06Quick.
01:07And finish technique.
01:09A man who can teach people some would call unteachable, who would know better than the student's mom.
01:15Incredibly happy.
01:17There are milestones that we never thought we'd get to with him, that he has surpassed.
01:24We were told by doctors there were things he'd never be able to do, and he's absolutely blown them away.
01:31Yeah!
01:32Yeah!
01:32Good.
01:33We don't have before pictures, but visualize this.
01:35Sloan couldn't alternate his feet when walking.
01:38Look at him now.
01:40He knows it, and he loves it.
01:42And this gives me, like, a realistic reality on how my future will go, go down, and how it will
01:52end up in a pretty good spot.
01:54It's our salute.
01:56See?
01:57And then down.
01:59Garland, always known for his rigid demand for excellence, is now a kinder, gentler teacher.
02:05I'm gone.
02:05I'm gone.
02:06I'm back.
02:06So what do I do?
02:08I'll use the gifts that God gave me, I realize, and I made it not about me no more.
02:13I made it about them.
02:15And because of the change that I made, helps me see other people's pain and suffering.
02:19Ernest Chapman is a student, an assistant, and brings his kids to train here under Master Garland.
02:24He believes Garland forms a mental bond with his students like a Bluetooth connection.
02:29Let me do it first.
02:30I can tell you from my own personal experience and also with my children that this is activating something that
02:35people have inside of themselves,
02:37a potential for a kind of greatness that's happening through proof and through pressure.
02:43Kessa, good.
02:44What's going on here that's special is this is a place where you come to become a better version of
02:49yourself.
02:50And this can be so hard.
02:53Shhh.
02:53Number one.
02:54Show me number one.
02:55Yes, good.
02:56James is sick and not in a good mood.
02:59But he's here.
03:00Let it out.
03:01Scream, let it out.
03:02Let it out.
03:03Ah!
03:04And Master Garland gets things out of him no one else can.
03:08I trust you.
03:09Yes, jump in the rope.
03:10So before when we got here, James couldn't do any of the, any of this at all.
03:16So a lot of it becomes part of his confidence, part of his coordination, part of his personality.
03:21He's like really, how proud he is of himself when he does that.
03:26And I think that's so important for, you know, any parent to see that from their child.
03:32And especially as a single dad.
03:34Hold it.
03:35Now drop it.
03:36Yes.
03:37Now pick it up.
03:38It is a beautiful blend of demand and compassion.
03:41You see how he lined up?
03:43That's what he's used to.
03:44Like Chris Garland, still a work in progress.
03:48I seek mercy.
03:49You know, I seek mercy.
03:51And if you see there's a big change in me after all these years, of course, then I would
03:55say it's, it's not so much happy.
03:58I would say it's peace.
03:59Good.
04:00Well done.
04:00Good job.
04:04Executive Martial Arts would love donors to help create a school specialized for kids
04:09on the spectrum.
04:10Life changing for kids with autism and their families.
04:13I'm Dennis Farrier, Fox 17 News, your Code Red station.
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