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History of Grand Master O. E. Simon |
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2000’s
A new series of exercises designed by Grand Master Simon called "Kungrobics" are introduced into the Temple Kung Fu system in 2000. They are non-combative training exercises focusing on breathing and movements similar to Chinese Yoga. In the spring of 2001 Master D. Piercey leaves "Temple Kung-Fu Studios" under a dark cloud. At the same time as this "Temple Kung Fu" went through a major restructuring of it's business and teaching structure. Master D. Piercey later founded his own "Kung Fu For Life" studios Shortly before Master Piercey left TKF, Mr. Jones and Mr. Weber and later Mr. Sparrow are promoted to the rank of Masters (5th degree Black Belts). With D. Piercey's departure, T. Weber & T. Sparrow take over as owners of the Western and Eastern Canadian Studios. It should be noted that it was also around this time that the original "Temple Fraud" forums appeared. With the explosion of the internet, anti-TKF threads had started to appear on many different websites. Olaf Simon & Temple Kung Fu had managed to anger a lot of people over the years for a variety or reasons and with the negative talk coming from Grand Master Simon about Master Piercey a lot of Temple Kung Fu students used these forums to search for the real truth. From this the "Temple Fraud" forums were born. A place for disgruntled former TKF students and Simon detractors to voice their discontent. Unfortunately it was also a place for people to lie, slander, taunt and intimidate each other until ultimately the forum became a parody of itself. It didn't matter though as the damage had been done. The original "Temple Fraud" forum disappeared shortly after the closing of the BC & Alberta Temple Kung Fu Schools several years later. In 2004 several Temple Kung Fu students are accorded the rank of Master and apprentice Master. In the time since Master Piercey's departure, animosity grew between the Owners & Masters of Temple Kung Fu, culminating in the failed takeover of Master Weber's Alberta Studios. It had become apparent that the owners of Temple Kung Fu Studios and Temple Arts obviously wanted Tim out of the system. Weeks later Master Weber broke away from Grand Master Simon’s Temple Kung Fu Studios, taking his six Western Canadian studios and one U.S. studio with him. He forms an association with Master Dereck Piercey and “Kung Fu For Life”, however most of these new KFFL studios closed shortly after. Master D. Piercey can still be found teaching from his original "Kung Fu For Life" studio in Calgary, Alberta. After the split of Master Weber and Grand Master Simon in 2005, Temple Kung Fu Studios opened two new schools, one in Edmonton and one in Calgary, Alberta under the ownership of several high ranking members of GM Simon's Pai Hu Shih class. Here is a link to the City TV fundraiser "Fame For Food" in 2005 that the "New" Temple Kung Fu Studio in Calgary was a part of. Unfortunately these new schools themselves are now closed. In early 2006 Master T. Sparrow leaves Olaf Simon & Temple Kung Fu, closing the remaining Ontario & Winnipeg studios. Master Jones himself also decides to break away from Olaf Simon's Temple Kung Fu Studios. His three Seattle schools now operate under the name “Academy of Kempo Martial Arts”. Sometime later in 2006/ 2007, two x-teachers of TKF, previously under Master Sparrow open a new branch of "Academy of Kempo Martial Arts" in Oakville, Ontario. There is also a "Temple Arts" school in Honolulu, Hawaii which is affiliated to Master R. Jones's schools in Washington. This school was also originally part of the Temple Kung Fu family. Various factions of Pai Hu Shih students in Ontario, Vancouver & Winnipeg re-open studios and training groups in their respective areas. Some are still affiliated Grand Master Simon, others are not. Grand Master Simons "Temple Kung Fu Studios" may have come to an end in January 2007, when the two remaining TKF studios closed their doors permanently, forty-six years after the first "Simons Karate" studio was opened in 1961. Even after significant changes & improvements to the business model and training system, the new owners were unable to separate themselves from the negative "press" surrounding TKF & O. E. Simon. It is simply unfortunate that over the decades it seems that anyone associated with Grand Master O. E. Simon could not avoid the constant scrutiny & contradictions that seemed to follow him wherever he went. Many of these problems can possibly be traced back to his relationship with Grand Master E. Parker. What truly happened between these two men we may never fully know. Like many previous owners, teachers & students of "Simons Karate/ Temple Kung Fu Studios", these latest students of Grand Master Olaf Simon plan to continue promoting, training and teaching the styles of Moh Kempo & Pai Hu Shih on their own, for despite what people may feel about his character, there is no denying the merit of these styles nor the martial arts prowess of their founder. Evidence of the positive effects this man and his style has had on countless people can also be found within the many groups that have sprung up on social networking websites such as Facebook & MySpace. These individuals from across North America and Internationally are still coming together to share positive feelings and experiences from their time spent training Martial Arts at Temple Kung Fu and the styles of Moh Kempo & Pai Hu Shih. The legacy of Grand Master Olaf Simon lives on...
(without prejudice) |
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