Big doing in CT in September

This was sent by Frank Shekosky in Middletown, CT. Benefit for kids, so I wanted to post it.

Hello all,
Please mark your calendars for Sunday September 12, 2010!
My wife Debbie and I are coordinating a martial arts tournament and seminars to benefit the Channel 3 kids camp. The channel 3 kids camp allows all kids regardless of financial status to participate.

The event will take place at Kaiser hall at Central CT State University in New Britain, CT.

The event will include competition for kids up to age 17 in sparring and forms. There will be several demo teams performing and I will be teaching a seminar along with several other Master level instructors including Dominick Violante, Chris Lacava, LT. Russ Taylor, and Hien Nguyen, who has done stunt work in films such as lethal weapon 4 and Power Rangers.

How you can participate
Along with competitors, we need: black belt judges, time keepers, and score keepers as well as several others to help with the event. Please contact us if you would like to participate! This is going to be a big event with lots of coverage since it is sponsored by channel 3, The Hartford Courant, and WTIC FM radio. It is also the camps 100th year!
About the kids camp
Each year more than 4,000 children from Connecticut and New England attend the Channel 3 Kids Camp, nestled on 350 acres in the historic communities of Andover and Coventry. While at camp, children ages 6 - 16 are able to escape the hustle and bustle of the 'real world’ with time spent in the country. Campers experience a care-free refuge for a healthy summer of play, the outdoors and making new friends with programs that promote confidence and independence.

We hope to hear from you or see you there!
Regards,
Sensei Frank Shekosky, Master Instructor
http://www.cromwellmartialarts.com/

CT seminar

The seminars at Cromwell Martial Arts in Middletown were a success. Participants came from Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut. At least three lineages were represented and everyone was welcomed. Feedback I got was that they enjoyed the seminars and were "treated well".
   This was the first time I formally presented my Body Mechanics seminar. I did 1:45 on how the joints work in their respective alignments and various ways to achieve stance and rotation. Risks of misalignments were shown and ways to avoid presented. I was glad Frank Shekosky, my host, asked me to do the presentation. The feedback I got on this on was that it filled in some gaps and was what they needed to know.
  The second class was on the standard Parker freestyle techniques. They are simple and effective but many schools don't teach them.
  It was a good weekend, one of those that went way too fast. Look for another event there in the fall.

Connecticut this weekend

Saturday I'll be teaching three seminars at Cromwell Martial Arts in Middletown, near Hartford. Frank Shekosky is the host. I've taught at his studio several times and have always been well-received. Frank's wife, Deb and both his daughters train, too. They're a nice family.
   Frank has an unusual and interesting picture in his lobby. It's him with Wally Jay, Remy Presas and George Dillman. What's rare about Frank is that he has a black in Parker kenpo and was also promoted to black in the Presas system of Arnis by Professor Presas.
   I had met Remy Presas in Boston with Ed Parker and we all went to lunch. When Professor would visit Florida, he'd call me. The first time I had no idea who it was on the phone and he was laughing. My turn was next when I surprised him at a seminar. I was just hanging out and he did a double take, then came over a hugged me. Great guy.  
   Anyway, Saturday I'll do a  kid's seminar and two for adults. Details are on his site at http://www.cromwellmartialarts.com/.
   Pray for Frank - he's picking me up at Bradley International at 5:30 on Friday.

Seminars in CT

Frank Shekosky is hosting a seminar with me in March. His studio is in Middletown, near Hartford. Here's the link. http://www.cromwellmartialarts.com/seminar.html


He also does Modern Arnis and taught recently at one of their events. Here's a link for that, too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRRyMLX8O7s  He sells instructional videos on Arnis and you can reach him through his website to get them.

Scholarships

I got this notice from Frank Shekosky at Cromwell Martial Arts, outside Hartford, CT. He's offering a scholarship and the local paper gave him some free PR.
http://martialarts.about.com/b/2009/04/17/cromwell-martial-arts-in-ct-offering-one-year-tuition-free-scholarship.htm
I've had scholarship programs and they're good. I've got one going now with a joint effort between myself and a local business called JetScape. It's owned by the parents of a student here. Here's how it works.
People bring empty ink and toner cartridges in to me. JetScape buys the usable ones from us and we put the money in a scholarship fund. I guess many people throw them away or bring them back to Office Depot or some place similar for a credit. Bringing them to us directly benefits local students. It's just getting off the ground, so we'll have to see how it works.

CT seminar

I taught three seminars at Frank Shekosky's Cromwell Martial Arts this past weekend. Frank flies me in twice a year to work with his group. This time we had attendees from five states. The subjects were knife defense and two man techniques, as well as a kids seminar in which we worked on defending while on the ground.

Over a dozen of us went out for Japanese food and the chef put on quite a show. I met some new people and saw some old faces. It was an enjoyable weekend. We are discussing another visit for the fall. Watch the website for dates.

Connecticut Kenpo

Frank and Deb Shekosky own and operate Cromwell Martial Arts in Middletown, CT. I have been going up there to teach at their invitation and it's always a pleasure to be at at their school. Frank sent this link showing off some of their kids at a demo recently, which was covered by a local news channel that reaches about a million viewers. Take a look.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgTxIsPj7DY

Hartford, Connecticut seminar

I taught three classes at Frank Shekosky's studio in Middletown, CT, near Hartford, over the weekend. This photo is from a short seminar I did on foot maneuvers. Note the triplets in front.

Frank and his wife Debbie run a nice studio up there and teach both Parker Kenpo and Arnis. They have two children, Kimberly and Kelly, who keep me entertained during my visits.

The group up there at Cromwell Martial Arts is really good to work with - attentive, ask good questions, and work hard. Lance Soares out of MA and Troy Bohlander from NY were there, too. Lance is getting close to his promotion to third black and Troy gets better every time I see him. Frank himself takes a private lesson every time I go up and he's getting more and more insights into the Parker system, too.

All in all, it's a pleasure to work with the group. Now the flying up and back part is a different story. I might start walking.

Cromwell Martial Arts

I taught a seminar in Middletown, CT, just SE of Hartford, this weekend. Frank and Debbie Shekosky own a nice studio there. This was my second visit and they and their students always make me feel welcome.
Frank actually comes to us downline of Steve White. Steve taught Paul Zaniewski and Paul taught Frank. So Frank is doing the system very close to the way we do it. Frank is also certified in Modern Arnis through Prof. Remy Presas and Arnis is always a nice complement to kenpo.
The Shekoskys have two beautiful daughters, Kimberly and Kelly. Kimberly is a purple belt. Kelly is three years old but she does a sinawalli combination that ends in a wrist lock, can do Delayed Sword (on a person) and can demonstrate choke and wrist grab defenses. She loves chocolate milk, too.
I'll be back up that way in the spring, with a date remaining to be set. If you're in their area, stop in and say hello.