When Sarah Gould first stepped into a karate studio nearly two decades ago, she wasn’t planning to build a ministry. She was simply watching her children practice from the sidelines.

“I watched from the window for about a year, wishing I could do it and wanting to be involved,” Sarah said.

Finally, a friend got her in the door, and she fell in love with the way she felt empowered through self-defense. She also loved having something in common with her kids.

Years later, after earning her black belt and moving with her family to Vermont, Sarah found herself doing the unexpected. She opened her own karate and judo school, R Family Dojo, with a vision to create a close-knit community.

A dojo is commonly referred to as a formal school or dedicated space for practicing Japanese martial arts like judo and karate. Sarah wanted to get the name and culture right, to reflect that vision of familiarity and connection.

“I prayed a lot about what this school should be,” Sarah said. “I had a big family, and I knew how important that sense of extended family was through church and life. I wanted that to be evident. I wanted people to feel like they belonged.”

That sense of belonging followed her to church one unexpected Sunday morning. A last-minute change of plans and a missed highway exit put her in the sanctuary just in time to hear a visiting FCA staff member speak about the ministry.

“I kept feeling this pull the whole drive, like I needed to go,” said Sarah. “I even ended up on the wrong road and almost didn’t make it, but I kept hearing, ‘You’ll be just in time.’ And I was! I was exactly where I was supposed to be.”

Within weeks, Gould felt a clear call to step into ministry, leaving behind her role in education and stepping into the uncertainty of support-raising to be an FCA staff member. Looking back, she sees God’s hand in every detail.

“It was such a leap of faith, but everything lined up in ways I couldn’t have planned,” Sarah said. “It was like God had already gone before me and made a way.” Her role allowed flexibility to care for her mom and family life as well as finding a place in the karate community.

Today, Sarah serves as an FCA Representative and Sports League Director in Northwest Vermont. Through her ministry, she began to see her dojo not just as a place for training, but as a mission field.

Her shift in mindset led to the creation of FCA Karate, serving Huddles, camps and outreach events that invite both students and parents into deeper conversations about faith. Students like Courtney, who was already in the karate world but wanted to connect with God more.

“My karate sensei told me about FCA, and it changed my world forever,” Courtney, now an FCA Huddle Leader and student-athlete, said. “At one point in my life, I was struggling, and then I started thinking about God and that He would always love me. I thank FCA for that.”

Monthly Family Huddles at the dojo now draw dozens of participants and create space for connection and spiritual growth. Parents and community leaders are taking notice of that impact as well. One FCA Karate parent named Jessica is seeing the intersection of holistic training and faith.

“The integration of rigorous karate training with profound spiritual teaching, particularly the emphasis on learning the Word of God to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is truly transformative,” Jessica said.

“Sarah is amazing. I've known her for about three years,” said Bill Simmons, who serves on Sarah’s board. “[Her] work as an FCA Rep is having an impact on the spiritual starvation that has existed in Vermont. We are seeing God move.”

As FCA Karate continues to grow, Sarah sees these stories as evidence of something greater at work. What began as a family activity has become a ministry reaching athletes and families across the region.

“I started to realize that I had been deeply invested in these families for years,” Sarah Said. “Those relationships were already there. God had built them long before I understood why. FCA simply allowed me to invite people into what He was already doing.”

Please pray for Sarah Gould’s continued ministry at R Family Dojo in Vermont.

To get involved in a Huddle near you, visit here!

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