Not Your Average Martial Arts School

There is a place on Lang Boulevard on Grand Island where a grandmother, a teenager, and a stressed-out parent might all be training in the same building, on the same night, for completely different reasons. Some are there to learn self-defense. Some are there for the workout. Some are there because Derek Staubitz built something Grand Island didn't know it needed: a place to belong.

That place is Hybrid Defense, and Derek's title is Sensei. His philosophy is simple. Everyone has the right to protect themselves from violence, and everyone can learn how. But spend enough time looking at what he's actually built, and it becomes clear that self-defense is only half the story.

What Derek Brings to the Mat

Derek Staubitz trained at The Training Edge before he ever opened his own doors. That path, student first and instructor second, shows in how he built Hybrid Defense. He is a 4th Degree Black Belt with credentials that span multiple disciplines: 14 years of Karate training, 10 years of Krav Maga, 10 years of Muay Thai, 4 years of Kali, and 9 years of teaching experience. He is a certified instructor through The Training Edge and through America's Best Defense.

Hybrid Defense earns its name honestly. Karate provides the foundation and the character development. Krav Maga, the self-defense system developed for the Israeli Defense Forces, gives students practical real-world skills built for situations where rules don't apply. Muay Thai adds striking technique. Kali, the Filipino martial art, covers weapons defense. Iaido, the Japanese sword art, is taught as a moving meditation, with dedicated kids and adult classes every Monday night. A Cardio Fit class rounds out the schedule for people who want a high-energy workout alongside practical skills.

The kids program specifically teaches both striking and grappling together. The reasoning is straightforward: if a real situation goes to the ground, a child who only knows how to strike is only half prepared. Derek calls it a complete toolbox, built for confidence in any scenario, not just the ones that look like a tournament.

The Third Space Philosophy

Derek has a name for what he built, and it explains everything else about Hybrid Defense. "Between the demands of work and the responsibilities of home, everyone needs a Third Space," he wrote to his community, "a place to decompress, refocus, and grow stronger." He built that space for Grand Island.

That idea shows up in how he talks about training generally, not just self-defense. "The strongest muscle you can train is your mind," he has said, describing martial arts as a sanctuary for a child learning focus, a teen building confidence, or an adult venting the stress of a long workday. The physical techniques are real. So is the mental clarity that comes with an hour where the outside world fades and nothing exists except the mat in front of you.

Themed Weeks Keep the Training Fresh

Hybrid Defense doesn't run the same class on repeat. Derek structures his curriculum around rotating themed weeks that give the whole community something to train toward together. Striking Week. Grappling Week. Gun Defense Week, with free classes for teens and adults built around simple, effective techniques. Belt Testing Week, where the studio celebrates the growth its students have put in over months of work. Free Training Weeks that open the doors to anyone curious about Kids Karate, Adult Self Defense, or Japanese Sword with no commitment required.

He even ran a Karate character curriculum built around five values, Modesty, Courtesy, Integrity, Self-Control, and Perseverance, spending three full months on it with his kids classes. "True strength is knowing when and why to use your skills," he told parents. That is not a marketing line. That is a curriculum decision.

Real Incidents, Real Response

Derek doesn't wait for a news cycle to talk about safety in the abstract. When a road rage incident involving a gun threat happened on Grand Island, he addressed it directly with his community the same week, framing situational awareness as something neighbors owe each other. "We're in this together, Grand Island," he wrote.

He did it again in July, referencing a specific incident on Beaver Island as the reason his classes were shifting focus toward takedowns and gun defenses. The pattern is consistent: Derek pays attention to what is actually happening around his students, and he adjusts his curriculum to meet the moment rather than teaching in a vacuum.

His stance on active shooter response follows the same logic. Back in 2023 he offered free active shooter training to the community, built around a simple three-word framework: run, hide, fight. "Run, hide, fight is my recommendation, and I think it should be as commonly known as stop, drop and roll," he said. "If I feel it would be dangerous to try to run or to escape, then hiding is the next most important thing that I can do." And if it comes to a fight, his approach doesn't depend on being the biggest person in the room. It depends on technique that works regardless of size, age, or strength.

Moms Train Free — For a Whole Month

In May, Derek ran a Moms Train Free promotion. It started as a single free week tied to Mother's Day, then he extended it to the entire month in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month. Every mom on Grand Island was welcome to train free for 30 days, no strings attached.

The framing wasn't about self-defense technique. It was about what moms carry every single day. "Being a mom means you're often the anchor for everyone else," his post read, "but taking care of your own mental and physical well-being is just as vital." He invited them to take one hour for themselves on the mat, and a lot of them did.

A Community Hub That Happens to Teach Self-Defense

Once you start tracking what actually happens at Hybrid Defense over the course of a year, the self-defense classes start to look less like the whole business and more like the foundation for something bigger.

In June, Derek hosted a Father's Day event called Dads as Coaches, where kids ages 5 to 12 learned to box while their dads learned to hold pads, capped off with a pizza party for $30 a family. In July, he hosted Game Night, opening the dojo for board games and pizza with no training agenda at all, just community. He ran it again after a strong turnout. Kids from Hybrid Defense marched in Grand Island's Independence Day parade that same month, representing the dojo in the town's biggest community celebration.

Nerf Night has become one of his signature events, run separately for kids and for adults, pairing genuine gun safety and weapon retention training with an all-out Nerf blaster battle. Families sign up not because they're worried about safety, but because it sounds like a great Friday night, and the safety training comes along for the ride.

Summer brought a full Karate Camp, running two separate weeks in July and August, each with karate lessons, team building, and crafts for kids for $150 a week. Even Star Wars made an appearance earlier this year, with separate kids and adult Star Wars Nights complete with lightsabers and Nerf blasters for $30 a family.

You Might Have Seen Him at Tops

This past Saturday, Derek set up a table outside the Tops on Grand Island. A Hybrid Defense banner, a stack of boards ready to break, and an open invitation for anyone walking in for groceries to stop and ask questions. No hard sell. Just a guy who wanted his neighbors to know what he does and why he does it. "Come by, grab your groceries and break a board," the post read. That is Hybrid Defense in one sentence.

Where to Find Hybrid Defense

Hybrid Defense is at 359 Lang Boulevard, Grand Island, open Monday through Saturday. General hours run 3 to 8 PM Monday through Thursday, with morning sessions at 9 to 11 AM on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday, though the full class schedule includes Krav Maga, Kids Karate at multiple skill levels, Leadership, Iaido, Black Belt Bootcamps, and Cardio Fit across the week. The most current schedule is always posted at hybriddefensegi.com.

If you have been thinking about getting yourself or your kids into self-defense training, or you just want a place where your family can spend a Friday night that doesn't involve a screen, Lang Boulevard is worth a visit. Derek has been building this one themed week and one community night at a time, and Grand Island is starting to notice.