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Kenpo
Instructor: Shows students the way to balance,
strength
By Sean Pearson
Homer Tribune
Instructor Jesse Smith may
have first entered into the ancient fighting
concepts of Kenpo Karate out of necessity, but it
is the balance and concordance with the environment
that Kenpo offers that keeps him involved in the
martial arts and motivates him to pass his
knowledge and skill on to others.
"My parents first
introduced me to Kenpo when I was in the seventh
grade," Smith said. "We were living in Hawaii, and
that's a pretty tough place to grow up. My parents
basically said, 'You really need some help,' so
they signed me up for Kenpo."
Smith began taking Kung Fu
when he was 4, so the moves and concepts of karate
were not new to him. And the fact that Kenpo
originated in Hawaii was enough of a connection for
Smith to keep him interested in it for the next 15
years.
According to Smith, Kenpo
karate bridges ancient fighting concepts with
modern scientific principles to create a powerful
form of self-defense. However, Smith said he sees
it as more of an overall improvement in life than a
course in self-defense.
"It's a way of fine-tuning
your way of living and striving for your own
potential," he said. "There are a certain set of
basic moves, but once those are mastered, the focus
really then shifts to individual strengths. It is a
very fluid and ever-changing form of karate that is
unique to each individual's strengths and
abilities."
Kenpo was brought to
America by martial arts expert Ed Parker in the
1960s, where he taught it to four students. Parker
introduced newcomer Bruce Lee to America. Lee,
known for his martial arts work in several films,
followed many of the Kenpo philosophies of karate.
After Parker passed away, only one of his students,
Chuck Sullivan, continued to teach Kenpo. It is
under Sullivan, a 10th-degree black belt, that
Smith has received most of his training.
"I feel very honored to
have studied directly under Chuck Sullivan," Smith
said. "He has been an incredible teacher."
Smith is currently
offering Kenpo karate classes of his own through
Homer Community School. Classes started this week,
but Smith said it is not too late to sign up, and
no martial arts background is required. In fact,
Smith said that it often helps when the person has
not already had training in any form of martial
arts.
"Sometimes people who have
already trained in a different form of martial arts
come in with some preconceived ideas about how they
should stand or move," he said. "It almost seems to
set people back." Students will start at a basic
level with stances, maneuvers, blocks, kicks and
punches, and then move on to more advanced levels.
The advanced levels include 55 self-defense
techniques. Through the program, students will have
the opportunity and ability to earn belt rank,
eventually moving to black belt status. Smith is
currently training and teaching at the black belt
level.
Smith said that students
should be at least 5 years old, but most of the
restrictions end there.
"You don't need to be in
great shape," Smith said. "The idea is to be ready
with whatever you have. The main purpose behind
Kenpo is to be prepared to defend yourself no
matter the circumstance."
In other words, don't
expect to be doing any fancy "Karate Kid" moves on
day one.
"We don't spend a whole
lot of time having people stretch out in the
class," Smith said. "If you are walking down the
street and find yourself in a situation where you
need to defend yourself, you can't exactly ask the
person to wait until you've stretched out."
For more information about
the class, or to register, contact Jesse Smith at
235-8978.
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