Rick Nielsen, a St. Croix-born businessman and president/CEO of Lifeline Pharmaceuticals located in Miami, Florida, has fulfilled a dream for the youth of the St. Croix Boys and Girls Club branch of the Korean Martial Arts Academy. The club and the academy have been busy attempting to raise funds to send their athletes to Puerto Rico to compete in the Puerto Rico International Taekwondo Championships but have made little progress in getting donations, and fundraiser participation has been poor.
On a recent trip to Miami, Florida, Nielsen was approached by Grandmaster Mitchell and was told about the academy’s plight in getting its young athletes to Puerto Rico to compete in one of the largest tournaments in the Caribbean . Nielsen expressed his concern for good structured and disciplined programs for the youth of St. Croix and the Virgin Islands as a whole. He said that St. Croix is his home, and although he is abroad, he has always supported youth programs and more so the youth of St. Croix. At that point, he immediately came to the young athletes rescue by making a very generous donation of $5000 towards the groups’ travel and participation in the upcoming championships.
Nielsen has shown where his heart is. He has invested in the youth of St. Croix, and for this the club and the academy are truly appreciative. Through his generous donation, the Boys and Girls Club branch of the Korean Martial Arts Academy will send 15 athletes to the Puerto Rico International Taekwondo Championships to represent the Virgin Islands.
Nielsen will be at the Boys and Girls Club in Christiansted to present the Korean Martial Arts Academy with his donation at 10 a.m. on Feb. 16.
The Korean Martial Arts Academy is a member of the Virgin Islands Taekwondo Federation and is a registered member of the Kukkiwon Member System, Korea, and is accredited by Kukkiwon World Headquarters, Korea.