Our story
It started in Mogadishu
Force of One has been taught by one family for 18 years, across two schools and two coasts. This is how it ended up three minutes from Hurlburt Field.
It was late 1993, and Staff Sergeant Brian Harrington of the US Army’s Special Forces ODA 555 — “Triple Nickle,” Company B, 2nd Battalion, 5th SF Group — found himself in Mogadishu, Somalia.
Attached to his A-Team were AFSOC special operators out of Hurlburt Field, Florida. Over the course of many months and many shared stories, his AFSOC brothers convinced him to come and check out the Fort Walton Beach area someday.
That day finally came twenty-two years later. After much thought and consideration, Major Brian Harrington retired from the Army, and he and his family built their forever home here.
The school opened in December 2015, about three minutes from the base those operators came from.
Two schools
Fort Walton Beach is the second one
- 2008
Force of One, Corvallis, Oregon
Founded in late 2008 while Master Brian was stationed at Oregon State University. Nearly 300 students came through the doors between 2008 and 2015, competing in fifty-six tournaments across the Pacific Northwest.
- 2015
Handed on, not closed
When Master Brian retired from the Army, the family’s senior student — Master Eric Erwin — and his daughter Alyssa stepped up. They still teach and coach in Corvallis and at Oregon State today.
- Dec 2015
Fort Walton Beach opens
Twenty-two years after Mogadishu, on Hurlburt Road. The same family, the same curriculum, the same Kukkiwon standard.
Lineage
Who taught us
Rank means little without knowing where it came from. Ours traces back twenty-five years.
Master Yeon Nam-Keung
Where the family began its black belt journey, while stationed at Fort Bragg, NC.
Master Eric Suan
President of Force of One, Clovis, New Mexico.
Coach Bob Maves
Former US National Team Poomsae Coach, during the Oregon years.
Masters in Korea, Thailand and the Philippines
Master Brian trained with masters overseas throughout his years of service.
The record
What the school has done
- Best School US Open Taekwondo Championship, Portland, Oregon 2013
- Top School Trophy Washington State Governors Cup 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
- Top School Florida Open International Taekwondo Tournament 2018
- 1st Runner Up Florida Open International Taekwondo Tournament 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
- 2nd Runner Up Florida Open International Taekwondo Tournament 2021, 2022, 2026
Who we’re for
Do you turn anyone away?
We’ll always work to help your student grow. We also strive to keep an environment free of distractions — so part of the trial week is working out whether this school is a good fit for you, and whether your student can thrive in our environment. We want their martial arts experience to be a positive one.
