SGM George Pesare

 (from USAdojo.com)

Senior Grandmaster George Pesare was a 10th degree Black Belt and was the undisputed founder of Kempo Karate in New England. The 10th degree Black Belt level is one of the highest achievements in the martial arts community and is at the Professorship level. SG Pesare began his martial arts career with Karazenpo-Go-Shinjutsu in 1958 with his instructor, Grandmaster Victor (Sonny) Gascon, one of the Kempo founders in America. When Grandmaster Gascon  retired, he gave over the responsibility of teaching the true Karazenpo-Go-Shinjutsu to SG George Pesare. Mr. Pesare continued his training in the following martial art disciplines:

5th degree Black Belt in Judo

4th degree Black Belt in Taekwondo

4th degree Black Belt in Eskrima

2nd degree Black Belt in Aikido

These martial arts ratings were accompanied with college degrees in advertising and science.

George Pesare had successfully fought in karate and judo competitions, and besides being active in competition himself, Mr. Pesare had also trained 2 World kickboxing Champions.

1958 Ryusaki Judo Championships

1959 Intramural Aloha Kempo Championships

1960 New England Team Champion

1968 Connecticut Team Champion

George Pesare was featured in numerous martial arts journals including:

The first Who’s Who in the Martial Arts

The Encyclopedia of the Martial Arts

Karate Illustrated

Professional Karate

Official Karate

Black Belt Magazine

Numerous articles in the Providence Journal, Providence, RI.

Mr. George Pesare was voted into the New England Black Belt Hall of Fame. “A student who has trained in Kenpo Karate in New England was either taught by Mr. Pesare or one of his pupils, or one of his pupils’ pupils…”

In the world of realistic self-defense, George Pesare was a law enforcement officer for over 20 years. During his tenure with the Providence Sheriff’s Department, he served as Training Officer and Range Master. During his tenure with the Kent County Sheriffs department, he also served as Training Officer and Range Master, teaching all aspects of firearms to Federal, State, and municipal agencies. Mr. Pesare was the coordinator of the National Rifle Associations’ Annual Police Pistol Regional Championships. He was also a member of the coveted ‘1490’ club. He was the 1994 Rhode Island State Police Pistol Champion, and was the Police Pistol Champion of the Prestigious Police Pistol Governors Twenty. Mr. Pesare was also the President and Rhode Island Match Director of the Rhode Island Police Pistol Combat League.

Pesare was also the founder and long-time head of the International Kenpo Council of Grandmasters, which has the goal of preserving traditional Kenpo training and documenting its lineage.

Senior Grand Master S. George Pesare died on October 14, 2012. His school, George Pesare’s Kaito Gakko (School of Schools) in Providence, Rhode Island, continues to operate as the “Kenpo Karate Institute” a namesake for the original school and operated by senior Black Belts Dolores Bastone, Hubert Paquette, Marc Ayotte, and Michael Mullens.

https://www.usadojo.com/george-pesare/

The origins of kenpo on the East coast

(from a Facebook conversation on the origins of kenpo on the East Coast)

To elaborate on Kenpo on the east coast, specifically New England: George Pesare studied Karazenpo Go Shinjutsu with Victor "Sonny" Gascon while Pesare was in the military in California. He brought it back to Rhode Island and stated teaching in Providence. One of his students was Nick Cerio, a auto mechanic in Boston, who would later teach in Rhode Island and create Nick Cerio's Kenpo. He would teach Fred Villari who would later create Shaolin Kempo and was founder of the original United Studios of Self Defense in the 1970s. The art and its lineage is distinctly different from Mr. Parker's system. - Joe Rebelo

In my view, the key person who is most responsible for the spread of American Kenpo along the east coast is Joe Palanzo, who trained directly under Ed Parker from 1966-1969 and was the only person to purchase an IKKA franchise in the early 1970s. - Tom Bleecker

A central figure was Victor “Sonny” Gascon, who was trained in Kajukenbo by Sijo Adriano Emperado and John Leoning (Leoning was Gascon’s and my first teacher), in Hawaii. Then after branching out on his own, from Gascon it went to George Pesare, then to Nick Cerio, who taught Fred Villari, who taught Charles Mattera who then taught Steve Demasco. - Dr Carl Totton

Harry Krebs was the person who helped put the 'Budwieser Team' together where the demo team and fighters were seen in a recent post. He was a Judo guy more than a Kenpo practioner... Joe Polanzo was the most dedicated & the guy we all went to when Ed Parker came for the IKKA instructor seminars. Another thing is Joe was a hell of a scrapper back in the day as he competed quite frequently at Master Conde's tournaments as I recall seeing him. He will always be someone I have great respect for as he loved and took real good care of Mr. Parker on all his visits as well as being the only East Coast IKKA franchised school. - Sean Kelley

(For further information on the origins of Kenpo along the East Coast see these books available for purchase on Amazon)

Kenpo Continuum Volume 2 by Dr. Carl Totton and Amy Long
https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AAmy+E+Long+and+Carl+Totton&s=relevancerank&text=Amy+E+Long+and+Carl+Totton&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_2

The International Journey by Mr. Tom Bleecker
https://www.amazon.com/International-Journey-Tom-Bleecker/dp/0965313298/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=kenpo+international+journey&qid=1585976864&s=books&sr=1-3