Grandmaster Tae E. Lee was inducted into the Order of Ottawa for his work in the community. He has run his taekwondo school for almost 40 years and has taught nearly 20,000 students in his time. Kristine Lee, Centretown News Grandmaster Tae E. Lee has been inducted into the Order of Ottawa after nearly 40 years of teaching Taekwondo at sites across Ottawa, including a gym in Centretown.
The Order of Ottawa is a civic award to honour outstanding residents of the city for their service in both professional and community endeavours.
In a statement announcing this year’s recipients, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said: “It is a privilege to recognize the accomplishments and contributions of these influential people who enrich our city and have made a difference in the lives of others in our community.”
With a ninth-degree black belt, Lee is a certified Grandmaster of the Korean martial art through the World Taekwondo Federation. He is the only person living in Ottawa to have attained this rank.
He is also credited with founding Canada’s national organization for the sport, Taekwondo Canada.
Lee said he is, “very surprised and very honoured to be inducted.”
He was nominated to the Order of Ottawa by David Silverman, a partner of Lee’s who oversees the Tae E. Lee Taekwondo’s branch schools across the city.
This is not the first time Lee has been honoured by the city.
May 31, 2016, was officially named Tae E. Lee Day in Ottawa to commemorate the 39th anniversary of the opening his first taekwondo school.
An annual Taekwondo Cup is also held every May 31 in his honour.
“He has a very strong connection to the city since he came here in 1977,” said Silverman.
“And the whole time he’s always been involved in some type of community programming.”
Silverman said he calculates that more than 20,000 students have been taught taekwondo in Ottawa since the opening of Lee’s main school on Carling Avenue.
There are currently branches of the school in Centretown, Kanata and Orleans, with affiliate programs at the University of Ottawa.
Silverman said the most impressive aspect of Lee’s teaching legacy is how long his students choose to study with him.
Silverman himself has been learning the martial art under Lee for more than 30 years, and is now ranked as a Master and a fifth-degree blackbelt.
Rosa Di Felice, 86, has been learning taekwondo from Lee for 20 years, “if not more,” she said, adding that she still enjoys the challenge.
Lee said he isn’t surprised that people continue to train with him.
Lee said he is still very passionate about what he does, and believes in the benefits learned through studying taekwondo.
He noted that, “If you learn taekwondo, you will learn good focus, and good concentration.”
That, he said, will in turn have a positive impact on many other areas of your life.
“I’m happy for everyone who grows through learning taekwondo,” he said.
Lee was unable to attend this year’s induction ceremony on Nov. 17, and will be formally presented with his award at the 2017 ceremony.
Among the other 14 city residents inducted this year into the Order of Ottawa were Harley Finkelstein, the chief operating officer of Centretown-based e-commerce giant Shopify, and Adrian Burns, chair of the board of the National Arts Centre.
Finkelstein is honoured as a notable Canadian entrepreneur and also for his work on the board of C100, an organization supporting the Canadian technology community.
Burns is recognized for her dedication to Canadian broadcasting and the arts, education and community development, as well as for her work on numerous foundation boards in Ottawa.