“To enlighten and evolve through the art of Kenpo” 

Previous Issues

UKS Home

Hello, Goodbye: Training Camp 2000

By William Pemberton  

It is a time of growth and advancement and sharing and pain and, this year, it was a bittersweet time of renewal and goodbye. Those of us who have been with United Kenpo Systems can scarcely forget the first camp at the "old" Dojo with its large main room and smaller second mat and huge parking lot or the patio where we could adjourn between sessions for a soft drink and a snack and the occasional anecdote by one of our seniors. It had become home and we had built it ourselves. It is only fitting that the first camp of the new millennium (or last camp of the old, if one is of a mind) was our last camp at the “old” Dojo as it is already being called.

Kenpo is about nothing if it is not about movement and growth, motion and advancement. It is with this in mind that we meet once a year to share our knowledge and our lives, to catch up with old friends and make new ones. It is the time when we can share with one another all that we are, all that we have become, as martial artists and people. It is a time of “family” and friends in which we become reconnected with our lineage through our connection with one another.

Many organizations, faiths and cultures have periodic renewals in which one renews one's dedication to one's path. This is our time to look to the past to see where we have been, to analyze our course, before planning for, and dedicating ourselves to, the future. It is a time of training, yes, and of sharing, certainly, but it is also a time to remember from where we come and to where we are going. As we advance within the ranks we begin to look to those just beginning to remind ourselves of who we were as we look to our seniors to see what we may become. This is our time of renewal.

This is, quite simply, our time. We come together as family and it is only fitting that it comes just before the beginning of the holiday season. Our own Wes Idol has referred to these get-togethers as family gatherings akin to Thanksgiving and so it seems fitting that we preface the holiday season with a coming together of our Kenpo family to honor and celebrate one another and the system that we share. Much as we honor our founding fathers and those who came here to make a new life for themselves through the observation of Thanksgiving, and other holidays, we, through keeping his art alive, honor our American Kenpo founding father - Edmund K. Parker.

As should be the case with all traditions each year's camp builds, and improves, upon the one before it. This year's was no exception. We should leave these events with a feeling of invigoration and challenge and, from those to whom I have spoken, this was most assuredly the case this year. We got the chance to see Mr. Bob Liles dance, a treat at any time, and to see Mr. Mark Ainsley kick and to see Mr. Frank Trejo, well, move. We learned from the best we have through both instruction and observation. To just see these men practice their art would be worth the whole weekend but to actually receive instruction from them is a gift of priceless value.

As always, let us take this time to thank these, our seniors, for sharing their time and insights and skill with us. They are: Ms. Dian Tanaka, Mr. Mark Ainsley, Mr. Michael Billings, Mr. Tommy Burks, Mr. Gurujodha Singh Khalsa, Mr. Robert Liles, Mr. Patrick Pace, Jr., Mr. Howard Silva, Mr. Andre Sims and Mr. Frank Trejo. To list all of their accomplishments and gifts would take more time than here allowed so, if you missed the camp this year, you will just have to come next year to experience it for yourself.

As always, the United Kenpo Systems social event of the year was the Saturday night dinner at the Pacific Dining Car, hosted by Wesley Idol III, for the second year in a row. It is a time for us to get out together and let our hair down a little. It is a time when we get to meet as brothers and sisters and simply enjoy one another as people with some good food and pleasant conversation. It is the time when we get to know one another as friends.

It is also at this time we stop and honor one of our own for their gifts to United Kenpo Systems and this year is no different. For me, personally, it is a joy and honor to present this year's recipient, Ms. Kathy Brown, whose devotion to the art of Kenpo and whose excellence as a practitioner are beyond dispute. What many don't see are her tireless hours behind the scenes helping Mr. and Mrs. Hawkins run administration of the Dojo so that Mr. Hawkins can devote more of his own time to sharing this art with us. She does this with no thought of personal gain. Ms. Brown is an inspiration to us all. Next time you see her take a moment to thank her for all of her hard work.

Of course, no camp would be successful without the students for it is they who will take us into the future becoming the seniors of tomorrow. It is their hard work that future Kenpoists will be lauding in generations to come.

And finally, thank you to Mr. Hawkins for his unswerving dedication to the cause of keeping Kenpo alive so that we may come together to share the art of motion, and thank you to Mrs. Hawkins for her support and hard work in helping make these events a reality.

It is the coming together of all of these elements that makes this even more successful every year for one, without the other, would lose value. We must always be grateful that we have been given this gift and never lose sight of its value lest we become jaded and take it for granted.

It is with this in mind that we bid a fond farewell to our old home and we move into a new home in a new millennium and looking toward the future we see . . . Ourselves.

Thank you all.

Have a happy holiday and, as always, see you all next year.

Back to top of page