There was a time when Billy Woodcock, 11, wasn’t so sure about tae kwon do.

His parents had enrolled him at Phillips Tae Kwon Do in January 2004 when he was 4 and after a year he wasn’t so sure he wanted to stick with it.

Then his parents Bill and Christine signed up along with his older sister Amanda, who is now a senior at Tahoma High.

In April the family tested for their black belts together and in August they received those hard earned belts.

Now Billy has decided he wants to focus on tae kwon do with high aspirations, his father explained.

After a four month probation period, the Woodcock family was promoted together, and young Billy was promoted first.

“(The ceremony) was awe inspiring. The whole studio was decked out with roses and the black belts were laid out,” Bill Woodcock said. “I remember all the flashbacks of (Billy) at four years old as a white belt and him not even being able to make it across the floor. He’s a totally different person now. He’s completely and utterly committed to tae kwon do. He has his eyes set on the national team.”

During the belt promotion ceremony, Bill Woodcock said, each of the four members of his family’s name was called. Each person then knelt before John Phillips, the senior instructor and owner, who talked about them and the meaning of the promotion.

“A lot of time was spent on the fact that black belt is just the beginning, you haven’t reached the end of your journey,” Bill Woodcock said. “Now it’s time to give back, to teach others and bring them up through the ranks.”

After his son received his belt, then it was his turn, followed by his daughter then his wife. The Woodcocks were part of a group of 17 students who received their black belts in August.

The elder Woodcock is now teaching youth and juniors on Monday nights as well as serves as an assistant coach for the sparring team.

Amanda is working tae kwon do into her busy schedule which includes four advanced placement classes, filling out college applications and figuring out how to accomplish her goal of curing cancer. She is trying to figure out which college will prepare her best to reach that.

Without tae kwon do, Bill Woodcock said, his daughter may not have found the inner strength to step out and be her own person.

Now, though, Amanda is confident, independent and ready to take on the world.

“Watching both of (his children), they’re on their own paths now,” Bill Woodcock said.

While his daughter is preparing to graduate from Tahoma High and move on to her college studies, his son has been making his mark in competition.

“Everything he’s touched has turned to gold n the past six months,” Bill Woodcock said. “His dream is the 2020 Olympics and we have the commitment to get him there. What he wants to start doing this January… he says he wants to spend an hour a day outside of class and sparring training on different skills.”

His wife is still involved, too, still sparring.

The experience at the ceremony reminded him how lucky he was to do this with Christine, Billy and Amanda.

“The ability to do that as a family, it was a first for Phillips Tae Kwon Do to get their black belts,” Bill Woodcock said. “The experience was just huge.”