Left to right - Sifu Lee, myself, Ronald, Gregory (in the background) and Si-hing Edward Bundy leaning on the Mok Jong (Wooden Dummy).

Wing Chun Clan Visiting from Hong Kong

Visiting from the same Wing Chun School in Hong Kong that Bruce Lee attended is one of Sifu's close friends, Denny, who is standing talking with Si-hing Al Miller.

This was an Open House for the Springfield Studio, as seen in the back is a photo display from Chinese New Year Celebration at the Great Wall Restaurant.

 

 

 

The Official Canton Wing Chun School Sign

Sifu Chun M. Lee asked me to make the Official School Sign to hang in the window of the Canton Wing Chun Kung Fu Studio in Falls Church, Virginia. I could not have felt more honored by my Sifu's request.

Here I'm holding the sign in my Basement on Sherman Avenue. In back of me is the Wooden Dummy that I constructed from a telephone pole, and the Yin/Yang symbol that I painted on the wall. To the left hangs a Crossbow from my Archery Club.

 

 

The Offices at USNews & World Report

Here I'm having two of my coworkers pose with me to demonstrate Wing Chun's defense for multiple attackers - An Elbow Strike to the rear attacker and a Block to the front attacker. Left to Right are Mel, myself and Eric. Linda is taking the photo.

Never guessing how difficult it is to coordinate a group while having the photographer snap the photo at just the right instant (smile) as Eric chooses the moment while I'm telling Linda to take the photo, to try slipping thru my initial block of his punch. "Hey, what are Friends for, anyway?"

In the new Building on Concourse Level

Offices of Applied Graphics Technologies, Inc. at USNews & World Report Magazine ~ never wanting to miss the opportunity to practice my Wing Chun Techniques ~ here I am practicing in the corridor by the Elevator. I was given permission to teach interested Students in the Basics, and so many times throughout the day and evening, One might find me Instructing in the Stairwells and little used corridors.

With the Senior Instructors from Our School, I helped to organized Wing Chun Classes on Sunday Mornings and Monday Evenings where we were able to practice in the Training Room here at USN&WR. The full floor to ceiling Mirrors made it an ideal location. This is also where I first introduced Videotaping our Wing Chun Classes.

Here in my Basement on South Dakota, I'm looking at the photo of Sifu Chun M. Lee and Senior Instructor Rick Smith. As this wall held all of my Instructor's Certificates for Marksmanship Training, as my pursuit of Martial Arts continued, I would add my Wing Chun items.

Under the photo are Wing Chun Training Knives (Bart Jarm Dao) and a Six and One Half Point Wing Chun Dragon Pole at the very bottom.

Also proudly displayed under the Knives, is a personal Letter I received from Grandmaster William Cheung of the WWWCKF Association. I had written to him in Martial Greetings and to express my ideas about Sharing and Unity for the Wing Chun Clan World Family. I was beyond words to receive a Reply from him!
William Cheung was Bruce Lee's adopted Older Brother and the one responsible for Introducing Bruce to the Yip Man Wing Chun School in Hong Kong. He now resides in Australia and continues to teach worldwide.

 

Always thinking of new ways to bring excitement and fun to training classes, I shared my idea of Videotaping our Wing Chun classes and Forms. I felt that this would allow us all to critique our techniques and target areas of needed improvement, as well as giving us a documentary Library that we could look back on over the years of personal progress and proficiency. I was also hoping to generate excitement for my idea of Our School Members making a Home Martial Arts Movie.

I volunteered my Home Basement for the initial videotaping sessions. My Kung Fu Brothers rallied to the occasion, and in no time at all we were setting up the Wooden Dummy, adjusting the Mirrors and Video Camera angles, and moving basement furniture out of the screen shots. I had moved my Dragon Fountain in from the backyard, and it gave the melodic sound of trickling water to the background sound effects. After the videotaping, I electronically edited all of the footage, and produced color Title and Credit Shots on an Apple Macintosh II Computer using DeskTop Publishing software. This was ahead of it's time for combining affordable Computer generated graphics with Video.

I dubbed in a Golden Harvest opening Soundtrack from their hit Wing Chun Film "Warriors Two", and entitled our video production "Warriors Few". I was also in the process of writing a rough draft of a Script that I hoped we would make into a Movie that would allow us to showcase our Wing Chun Techniques. In the mean time I often worked out with Wing Chun Training equipment and Weapons to get an idea of just what we might be able to shoot with camera angles.

108 Techniques
of The Wooden Dummy

The Wooden Dummy or Mok Jong of Wing Chun is a Training device used to allow a practitioner to practice Techniques and develop coordination, body positioning, timing and application. There are 108 moves to the Wooden Dummy Form. There is also an Air Dummy Form that is practiced without a device.

Simultaneous Attack and Defense are a trademark of Wing Chun Kung Fu. Here using a Punch and simultaneous Block while Body Shifting. A sign of a proficient practitioner is a developed Rhythm and audible sharp crack of the Wooden Dummy being hit during the practice of the Form's Techniques.

 

 

Bart Jarm Dao or Wing Chun Knives

The Six and 1/2 Point Pole of Wing Chun

Our CWC School Celebration
From the Great Wall

Here in a snapshot from our Chinese New Year's School Celebration and Awards Dinner, Sifu Chun M. Lee (center) presents Kung Fu Jackets to Disciples Edward (left) and Tom (right)

Carrying On the Martial Tradition

Embracing the Spirit of Our Canton Wing Chun School and following the examples of Mistress Ng Mui and Yim Wing Chun, Jessica joined the Wing Chun Family Circle. Guided in the basics of Wing Chun by myself, and later under the tutledge of Instructors Rick Smith and Edward Bundy, this new addition to the Circle would more the uphold the Banner of Wing Chun.

Defeating a Bully and Gang of Three

While I was overseas traveling in Hong Kong, Jessica who remained here in Washington, DC, returned home one day unexpectedly to find a stranger standing inside the gate to our house. As she reached to open the gate and enter the backyard, the stranger demanded to know just who she was. Somewhat surprised and at the same time outraged to find some unknown person lurking on our private property, she informed him that she lived here. At hearing that, the stranger began to attack her. He punched and grabbed at her, throughly expecting that his 6 foot and 250 pound size would dominate and intimidate this lady of small stature.

To his astonishment and surprise, Jessica did not cower or retreat. Instead her training in Wing Chun Techniques immediately kicked in and she traded blows with the stranger "tit for tat". As if in shock to find such a ferocious reply to his attack, and seemingly unable to dominate the fight, the Stranger, grabbed Jessica and lifted her into the air. She at this point had a locked grip on his throat (Lap Sao) that he couldn't break free of. His only solution was to psychically lift her in the air off of her feet, and drop her so that her back hit the metal fence pole!

By this time, many of the retired neighbors in the surrounding houses had come outside and stood by in their yards, in shock as they watched Jessica fighting off the attacker. Although they didn't come forward to help her, one did rush to telephone the Police who were soon on the way. Evidently the stranger's two accomplices who had been hiding inside my house, heard the commotion of the fight as well, and came running out of my house and heading for their getaway car which was parked nearby. They too must have been amazed and in a panic by seeing their 6 foot and 250 pound lookout, caught in the strangle hold of Jessica, because as they ran for their car, they ran right past him without so much as stopping to help.
In his desperate efforts to free himself of Jessica's Lap Sao strangle hold grip on his throat, he was finally able to break free. The three were last seen fleeing the scene in their getaway car, with some difficulty, as they had a time getting it started.

My neighbors finally came to Jessica's side to see if she was injured, and to help her into the house. When the Police arrived the found items that the housebreakers had left behind - beer cans, a ladies purse with driver's license inside. Evidently the gang had broken into my house, and was so confident that nobody would be returning home anytime soon, that they sat up and drank the beer that they brought with them, and were comfortably waiting for their truck to arrive so that they could clean out our house. As a tribute to their inefficiency the Police did not take fingerprints at the scene or follow up on the purse and photo I.D. that the female of the gang left while fleeing. In an attempt to find out where the investigation was going, our several telephone calls of inquiry into the case, were met with "No addtional Information available".
On the bright side, Jessica was not seriously injured, and my Neighbors did look out for her in the following days, until my return from Hong Kong. AS I was 18 hours away by plane, it was all but impossible for me to arrange an immediate flight back, and Jessica insisted that she was alright, and that I should finish my sceduled travel plans. I am also greatful to one of the Instructors from our Shooting Club, Harry Wilbone, who came over to my house and helped replace the window glass that was broken by the housebreakers.
Although this story has been told and circulated among our Neighborhood, and our Canton Wing Chun School Cirlce of Practitioners, I think that it should be told in a broader audience, to Inspire as well as Educate and serve as an Example of Women in this day and time, who are able to Defend themselves and their Homes.

Much as the History of our art tells, that the Creator of Wing Chun, Nun Ng Mui, instructed her Student Yim Wing Chun, in the art of self-defense so that she could defeat the Bully of her Village ~ and much as the retelling of this story has inspired all of the generations to come in the 300 years since ~ the Story of Jessica's defeat of the Bully and Gang of Three can serve to add to the Legacy of Wing Chun in these modern times and carry on the Martial Tradition of Wing Chun!

Again I would like to express my sincere Appreciation to all of my Canton Wing Chun Family, My Sifu, and the Lineage of All of Our Wing Chun Ancestors going back to Yim Wing Chun and Ng Mui of the Shaolin Temple, for without them passing the Traditions and Teachings of this Art down to me, I would not have been able to pass it on to Jessica, and the story might have had a different ending. Somwhere I feel that Our Wing Chun Ancestors are looking down with a Smile of Approval to this Junior Student of Canton Wing Chun Kung Fu, who had only learned the First Form of Wing Chun (Sui Num Tao), at the time.

Future additions will include more photographs and digitized video clips.

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