Schmit enjoys sharing his passion

Justin Seward
Times Reporter

 

When Eric Schmit died, Strathmore MMA fighter Justin Schmit fulfilled his brother’s dream of opening an MMA gym and continued his passion for the sport by training local kids and adults; a story he recently shared with Telus Optik’s People We Love documentary.
On Sept. 23, Schmit was followed around the Optik’s crew informing them on what it means to train kids, while performing regular training regimes that make him an effective fighter.
“This was kind of Eric’s vision,” said Schmit.
“After he passed away, I took a chance, and opened this place and just seeing all the kids. This place is like where they come hang-out, spend time and it’s a safe environment for them and they have so much fun here, it’s awesome for me.”
Growing up, Schmit and his brother could often be found at a hockey rink. With his gym he hopes to provide an equally safe environment for Strathmore and area kids.
“Teaching these kids is awesome,” he said.
“To not only teach them self defense but to be able to pass on a passion for martial arts and you see the excitement in here training and how much fun they have. It’s indescribable.”
Schmit, a former hockey player, including stints in the professional ranks, knows what it takes to be a successful athlete from a training standpoint.
“It’s huge to help people,” said Schmit.
“And not only kids but teenagers. I worked with a lot of hockey players and it’s no secret that I played hockey for a long time and I trained all these up and coming hockey players last summer. It was so awesome for me because the game of hockey gave me so much and able to pass on the knowledge on how to train and how to get ready for a hockey season.”
Laura O’Grady, who works for Spotlight Productions that produces films for Telus Optik, found Schmit through a roundabout way, after Schmit’s mother contacted the People We Love crew when she viewed a film on another a family in Strathmore.
“We were connected that way because we had people stories in common,” said O’Grady.
“It seems like Strathmore has lots of amazing stories, which is fantastic and amazing people out here that are really committed to building a community and supporting each other. Those are the stories we want to tell.”
What she did not know about Schmit until the filming, was the amount of dedication he commits to the sport and his connections within the community; showing her another side to MMA.