HAWAII

This description of our style is actually only a portion of a much larger file covering the history of Kempo (the way of the fist) located at http://members.aol.com/kenpojoe/history.html which is associated with REBELO'S KENPO KARATE

The art of Kenpo/Kempo was brought to the Hawaiian islands by Choki Motobu in and the art of "Kosho Ryu Kempo" was brought by James Mitose in 19?? He taught at the Nuanu YMCA and He instructed the various aspects to several students in the Kosho Ryu Kempo. there were several students of note that trained with Mitose, namely Thomas Young [who was senior student],William Kwai Sun Chow, as well as others. James Mitose wrote two books on the subject of Kosho Ryu Kempo. William Kwai Sun Chow was Chinese by birth and one of 16 children. He allegedly learned Shaolin Hung Gar from his father and was later introduced to the Kosho Ryu Kempo system and studied with James Mitose. Eventually, He achieved the rank of Godan [Fifth Degree black Belt] under Mitose. Although many times throughout his life he claimed that Mitose was his only "Teacher", William Chow observed and exchanged information with several different instructors. In the art of Danzan Ryu jujutsu, taught at the Kodenkan by Professor Okazaki [NOTE: the title of "Professor", used by Okazaki, was probably the impetus for many of the Hawaiian Instructors using the term when achieving Fifth Degree Black Belt in Various Kenpo styles] as well as several Kung Fu instructors on the islands. Chow was nicknamed "The Thunderbolt" for his ability to close the gap like a mongoose and to hit you so hard you felt like you got hit by lightning!