Martial Arts Professional Magazine

ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI—Ken Sills and Charlie Walton, St. Louis area martial arts instructors and Black Belts, have put their shared vision to bring the benefits of martial arts to the disabled into action, with “Fighters With Courage and Power,” the only known martial arts program specifically adapted for children with cerebral palsy.

Sills and Walton combined techniques from several traditional martial arts (Karate, Judo, Jujitsu, Kenpo and Kung fu) to create Kajukenbo, which improves the kids’ balance, stamina, mental clarity, focus, independence and self-esteem. Martial arts training specifically benefits cerebral palsy patients, since it often reduces or eliminates the need for physical therapy.

Since most disabled children sit for long periods of time, Kajukenbo was developed to be a full-body workout that requires students to stand. Each technique has been customized to match students’ abilities, so, for example, children with restricted hand movements can strike with a forearm, instead of a hand.

“The ability to defend yourself has a profound effect on confidence,” Walton said. “Children with disabilities rely on others for many things, but martial arts allows them to take control over that part of their lives. While they are in class, we treat them like any other students, but they feel like superheroes. We want them to know that they can do the same things as anyone else. They just have to find other ways to do it.”Dr. Jan Brunstrom, director of the Cerebral Palsy Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, is the source of Sills and Walton’s students, since his patients, seven years of age and older, can choose to participate in this