Senpai Frank was born and raised in New York City, and began his martial arts training at age 5 after he begged his mother to take him to see Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon. Frank wanted to be like Bruce Lee but his mother had difficulty locating a school that would take such a young child. Fortunately they found Uruba Karate (adapted from Tae Kwon Do) under Sensei Richard Brown. At age 8 he switched to Shotokan under the tutelage of Master Frederick J. Hamilton. There he earned the nickname “Crusher” due to his fierce competitive tenacity and focus. At age 10, he earned his brown belt; won dozens of trophies; had articles written about him in Black Belt Magazine; and was consistently ranked #1 by Black Belt Magazine on the East Coast in his age division where he remained until 14. Frank never got to meet Bruce Lee, but he was able to train under one of Lee’s instructors, Master Henry Fung for a short while which he says was “priceless”.
Frank took a hiatus with karate when he went to live with his grandparents in Texas during his high school years. Upon graduation, Frank joined the US Air Force, and after serving four years moved to Houston, Texas with his new wife where he worked in investment banking, earned his Bachelor’s degree, as well as a MBA in finance. Currently Frank is Director of Finance with an aerospace engineering and manufacturing company.
Frank and his wife moved to California in 2001, and after getting acclimated into his new home and job, decided it was time to get back into karate training. He found Camarillo Shotokan in the yellow pages in 2004 and the rest is history. After a 24 year hiatus from karate, he started all over again as a white belt. Since his comeback at Camarillo Shotokan, Frank has been honored with winning the prestigious “Most Inspirational Adult Beginner” and the “Most Improved Adult” awards as well as numerous trophies and medals from tournament competitions.
Frank credits karate as providing a foundation for the person he has become. He believes that karate training should be mandatory for all, as it is more than a martial art; it is a way of life.
Confucius says: “If you shoot for the stars and hit the moon, it’s okay. But you’ve got to shoot for something. A lot of people don’t even shoot.”
