About Us
About Us
Our Philosophy
Grassroots Gymnastics opened in December 2017 and has since become known as a place of FUN for kids of all ages! We feel that sports offer so much more to youth than the physical benefits of exercise and being a part of a team. These kids also have the opportunity to learn amazing life lessons along the way that will help them to grow into happy, healthy young people. We feel privileged to be able to do what we love to do every day!
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A few things we want you to know about us – we believe in having fun, working hard, are true to our word, and believe in the power of positivity!
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We chose the name grassroots because of what it embodies…Community. Building from the ground up. Wholistic. Healthy. We see ourselves as an extension of your family and a part of the community. Our main goal is to provide a safe and healthy environment for children to grow in.
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We can’t wait to see you in the gym!
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Katie Cramer
Owner
Competitive Team Director
Growing up most of my memories involve gymnastics in some way. I was a competitive gymnast for 10 years at Hill’s Gymnastics, then joined my college club team at UNC Wilmington. Gymnastics gave me purpose and taught me many important lessons about life.
I started coaching in 2003 while in college and I quickly realized how much I loved it! I always knew my calling was to be a teacher, but after a few years of coaching it was undeniable, this is what I’m supposed to do! I spent the next 10 years coaching full-time in North Carolina and California, learning things from each gym along the way.
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I moved to Charleston in 2009 after spending the previous 3 years coaching in Los Angeles. A few years later I met Olin (after hitting on him at his bar), and told him I had this crazy dream of opening a gym. That started the long process that eventually led us to open Grassroots! I couldn’t have done it without him helping me each step of the way.
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My promise is that at Grassroots will always strive to improve. As coaches, we are students of the sport, so my staff and I will never stop learning and getting better. I want every child who walks through the door to feel like they have a safe place to learn and grow. Gymnastics is challenging, but with hard work and dedication, anything is possible!
Olin Cramer
Owner
Recreational Director
I grew up in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, a small borough about an hour north of Philadelphia. The oldest of three kids, I was always on the move and my parents were tireless in getting all of us to our various team events and school functions. I was involved in baseball, basketball, ski/snowboard clubs, golf, committees for my high school and soccer. Soccer was finally what became my calling and was consumed by the sport. After excelling at the club level and being named to the Emmaus High School Varsity squad, I began to realize the positive impact not only my parents had on me but also the coaches I was surrounded by day to day.
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More than just soccer coaches they all laid life lessons out there for us to take. They are more like life coaches than just the leader of a sports team. Many of the lessons I live by today are directly from my soccer coach Rene Rawhouser. The obvious lessons were for sportsmanship, work ethic, and perseverance but I also found humility and kindness and nutrition.
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I have always had an aptitude for leading. Not always from the leader’s position but from anywhere in the group. With simple words of encouragement or by being an example, I love the opportunity to help another grow as an athlete, tackle their fears, or just become a better human. This is coaching to me. To be a good leader you have to be a good learner, and coaching teaches me every day. I never want to stop coaching. Grassroots Gymnastics is my platform for my coaching career and I couldn’t be happier to have the opportunity to shape young lives and give little tidbits of life lessons to the athletes who come through our program. Maybe a few remember me and a life lesson or two 20 years down the road.
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