Mel Thomas is a martial artist and domestic violence survivor on a mission to break the cycle of abuse. Photo: KYUP! Project.
A black belt champion born into family violence is on a mission to break the cycle using her decades of experience as a martial artist.
Mel Thomas founded KYUP! Project to tackle the big uncomfortable issues surrounding self-worth, self-defence, ethical by-standing, domestic and family violence, gender equality, bullying and consent.
She employs her knowledge of Hapkido – a hybrid Korean form of self-defence that incorporates a variety of techniques.
Named after the martial arts’ power shout “KYUP!”, pronounced KEY-UP, is Korean for the spirit of self-protection.
The Program offers free self-defence classes to young girls and women aged 12 to 22 years old during the July school holidays.
KYUP! Winter Holiday Workshops will run in July in Young, Cootamundra, Gundagai and Wagga.
Ms Thomas said the workshops are about self-defence, intuition, being prepared (not scared), knowing what to do when an unsafe person is nearby and knowing one’s worth.
Mel Thomas founder and CEO of KYUP! Project. Photo: KYUP! Project.
“We can help close the confidence gap by learning how to be calm, powerful, own the space and raise the voice,” she said.
“If you don’t know what makes you worth standing up for, you won’t fight for yourself.”
The mother of two said mothers predominantly book the workshops for their daughters.
“By the end of the session, the girls tell us they feel more empowered, confident and stronger,” Ms Thomas said.
“We want to get many girls in the regional areas to participate because they don’t get access to opportunities like this.”
The domestic violence survivor vehemently believes self defence is a crucial safety skill.
“When a young girl is walking home or on a bus or train and a man is in their personal space, it is not a mitigated risk,” she explained.
“They need to be able to do something to defend themselves because it feels disempowering when nothing can be done.
“As far as I am concerned, you don’t need to be a lifesaver to be safe on the beach and you don’t need to be a black belt to be safe on the street.”
Ms Thomas explained that very few young girls and women, particularly in low socio-economic areas, have access to any martial arts programs.
“We think we’ve got more support for girls than we do, and we’re letting them down,” she said.
“To condense the training into what the girls tell me is relevant to them and what they need to know to feel safe is important.”
The martial artist is on the precipice of greatness with her vision that has taken 13 years of blood, sweat and tears to bring to life.
The Australia Day Ambassador is partnering with SMAI (Australia’s largest provider of martial arts gear) to reach out to black belt martial artists all over the country.
“I’ll be training them and sending them back to their communities to work with PCYCs and with kids at risk,” she said.
“The girls will have real-life role models who eat, sleep and breathe their community and will be there for them as they grow and develop.
“They will have support as they become young women and raises their voices.”
Ms Thomas said martial arts could be picked up by anyone regardless of physical strength and flexibility.
“Just start because anyone can become a black belt,” she said.
“It is the long game, and I normally advise people to give three months.
“You’ll never regret starting martial arts.”
The workshops are funded by the NSW State Government and run through the Office for Regional Youth.
Sessions are as follows:
- Young – 11 July from 2 pm to 4:30 pm at Young PCYC
- Cootamundra – 12 July from 9 am to 11:30 am at Dickson Hall
- Gundagai – 12 July from 2 pm to 4:30 pm at Gundagai District Services Club
- Wagga – 13 July from 9 am to 11:30 am and 2 pm to 4:30 pm at PCYC Wagga
To register for the workshops, visit the KYUP! website.
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