Supporting new blue belts, Tristan “Raptor” Ligtvoet (left) and Josh “Viper” Shamassian (right), are Mr. and Mrs. Ligtvoet with their son, Tristan, Grandpa Shamassian with Mr. and Mrs. Shamassian with their son, Josh. Hannah, Josh’s sister, is in the front row along with Raptor’s little brother, Aidan. Aidan looks like he’s ready to follow in his brother’s footsteps.

Clark “Flash” Hyman, the 16th Black Belt of the Kiado-Ryu, who received his 1st Dan in August of 1991, is pictured behind his lovely and ageless wife, Gwen, and their two sons, Sheldon and Brandon. Flash has been a wonderful friend to and stalwart component of the legacy of the Karate Institute of America since he began his martial arts studies in the mid-1980s. Some people just never get old!

Congratulations new blue belts, Tristan “Raptor” Ligtvoet (left) and Josh “Viper” Shamassian (right)! These two young men are rising stars in the Kiado-Ryu, ascending studs to be sure. This last test was excellent, both boys exhibiting vast improvement in their abilities. Pictured with Raptor and Viper are (from left-to-right), Black Belts Kim “Cultivator” Thomas, Chris “Growler” Grau, Mr. King, and Mike “Shooter” Benedict.

The date: October 13, 2009. The event: Tristan Ligtvoet and Josh Shamassian’s Blue Belt test. From left-to-right are, Kim “Cultivator” Thomas, Tristan, Chris “Growler” Grau, Josh, Mike “Shooter” Benedict, and Mr. King (kneeling in front). The boys did an excellent job during their testing, as confirmed by the Black Belt panel. More to come, stay tuned.

Pictured left-to-right are Chris, Christa, and Kaylee Grau. Chris “Growler” Grau is the 36th Black Belt of the Karate Institute of America, the webmaster of Kiado-Ryu.com, and will soon be testing for his 3rd Dan, a prestigious rank of considerable achievement, which will make him the highest ranking active Black Belt at the KIA. Christa, his lovely wife, heralds from Arizona. Kaylee was soon to be a year old when this photo was taken.

Lou and Linda Gacs have been devoted and long-time friends of Mr. King and the Karate Institute of America. Each is an accomplished Black Belt, Lou holding multiple black belts in different styles. Mr. King first met Mr. Gacs, a now-retired United States Marine, when he was hosting martial arts tournaments at Marine Corps Air Station El Toro in the mid-1980s. Although not an official Kiado-Ryu Black Belt, Mr. Gacs is one of our own, a true friend, an unrelenting KIA supporter, and a black belt of uncompromising character.