Hi everyone! My name is Cory Butterfield. I started training in August 2022 at Rising Tide Academy in Columbia, Maryland and I have been training consistently ever since. In addition to training I am also one of our kids’ instructors and the most junior adult instructor at the academy.

Teaching has been a big part of my life for over 20 years. I have worked as a professional instructor in everything from firearms in the Marine Corps to rock climbing for a major climbing company. That said stepping into a jiu jitsu instructor role right after earning my blue belt was both intimidating and humbling. I attend a large academy where evening classes taught by Black Belts are packed. My 6 AM gi class twice a week is the opposite and started out as the least popular time slot. When I first started I was lucky if two students showed up.

Over time our community has grown. Now a year and a half later I regularly have 12 to 20 students every morning. My goal has always been to create a welcoming and relaxed environment where we can treat class as a laboratory for exploring techniques together and it’s not unusual for me to have more purple belts than white belts these days. Teaching has taught me more about jiu jitsu than almost anything else and it has been one of the most rewarding parts of my journey.

I really love the idea of a community-driven belt verification process and I am grateful for the chance to be part of it. Thank you for taking the time to read my story and please consider voting to verify me as a blue belt.