Our Story · Est. 1999
Started Here.
Runs It Now.
A Newtonville dojo that a 22-year-old opened with no money in 1999, run today by a student who walked through the door in 2002.
Owner & Head Instructor, Newtonville
Master Danny Sohmer
Danny started karate at four because he wanted to be a Ninja Turtle. He walked onto the Giroux Bros mat as a student in 2002, has competed at the UFAF World Championships since 2008, brought home two Norris Cups (forms and weapons) at the 2024 UFAF World Championships, and has taught here since 2012. Today he runs the Newtonville dojo he grew up in, and the kids in his classes are the reason it still feels like a second home.
Founder, Giroux Bros Martial Arts
Master Steve Giroux
Steve and his brother Jeff Giroux have trained and taught since 1984 — the "Bros" in Giroux Bros. Steve, now an 8th Degree Black Belt who has promoted more than 100 students to black belt, opened Giroux Bros in 1999 at 22, while finishing his last semester at Bentley College, with no money and a photo of a Las Vegas tournament win to convince the landlord. He earned his black belt at 11, competed in point sparring for 24 years, is a three-time Grand Champion and Norris Cup recipient at the UFAF World Championships, won the 2012 Wieland Norris Award, and sits on the UFAF Board of Directors.
27 years on the mat
The Timeline.
1999
A 22-year-old opens a dojo
Steve Giroux opens Giroux Bros in Newtonville during his last semester at Bentley College, with no money, no business plan, and a Black Belt magazine write-up of a Las Vegas win to convince the landlord.
2002
Danny walks in
A kid who started karate at four because he wanted to be a Ninja Turtle joins the school. He never leaves.
2008
The Las Vegas years begin
Giroux Bros students start competing at the UFAF World Championships. The team has gone back every summer since.
2012
Student becomes teacher
Danny Sohmer starts instructing on the mat he grew up on. Steve receives the Wieland Norris Award the same year.
2018
A seat at the table
Steve Giroux joins the UFAF Board of Directors, the governing body of the Chuck Norris System.
2019
Giroux Bros Wilbraham
A second school opens in western Massachusetts.
2023
Norris Cup
Danny wins the Norris Cup at the UFAF World Championships.
Today
35 Austin Street
Master Danny Sohmer runs the Newtonville dojo. Kids who started here in kindergarten are the black belts teaching the next group.
The culture
Come As You Are.
"It's very come-as-you-are, train hard, work hard, but also have a good time." That's how one parent described us to the local paper, and we haven't found a better way to say it.
The dojo is where students hang out after class. There are card games and Magic: The Gathering nights, and every summer a group of us travels to Las Vegas to compete, take seminars and see friends from Chuck Norris System schools across the country. Kids who start here at eight become the thirteen-year-old black belts helping teach the five-year-olds.
Come See The Mat.
35 Austin Street, Newtonville, MA 02460