Students become owners of karate school

After years of studying under Sensei Scott Klinger at East West Karate and Fitness in Sparta, Joe and Jim Malaro bought the business and became the head instructors.

“I’ve trained in Isshinryu karate for 20-plus years. I’ve also cross-trained in judo and jiu-jitsu,” said Jim.

Joe said, “I also started doing martial arts when I was 6 years old. I’ve been training for over 30 years with Sensei Scott Klinger.”

The school, 564 Lafayette Road, was founded in 1989 by Klinger.

The Malaros grew up in Sparta and became students there in 1993. They took over as owners about a year ago.

“He (Klinger) had one of the highest standards of martial arts, performance and teaching in New Jersey. It was a blessing to start under him and train over the years,” said Joe.

The school offers classes for a variety of students.

“We have a Tiny Tigers (ages 4-5) program. We have a (Little) Dragons (ages 6-7) program, a children’s program, and a teen and adult program. All varying ages, so we keep the ages a little bit separate,” said Jim.

The school has had students “as old as 63 and young as 4,” Jim said.

It also offers classes in women’s self-defense, gun safety and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Joe recommends that families learn karate. “Over the years, we had many families come through the dojo. Many families become black belts together.

“And that training together and having something shared really gives you a good bond in your family. You’re all buying into the same values,” he said.

The school combines karate with other martial arts, such as judo and jiu-jitsu.

“Judo is an Olympic sport. It’s a standing grappling sport, which involves throws, takedowns and point scoring,” said Jim. “Jiu-jitsu is what everybody’s heard, which is more of the ground fighting and grappling,”

He believes that diversity in self-defense tactics is important.

Joe said, “We have a traditional approach, but we take a lot of modern innovations to make our karate the best that it can be.”

Jim hopes that the school will continue to be excellent.

“We want to continue our traditions of greatness which we’ve had since 1989. (We’ve) had success nationally in competition but more so in the community.

“Our community and our young children are starving for leadership and confidence nowadays, and we hope to provide that for the local community and really build from within,” he said.

Learning martial arts can affect many aspects of life, he noted.

“A national championship credential on a college application looks phenomenal. It really brings a lot of benefits that you might not think about and once you get in the door and you start to see all these little things over the years, you’ll see the real benefit overall.”