New Page 1

I don't blame you. You're thinking, "Come on . . . how can karate and martial arts increase my kid's self confidence?" Well, I'm here to tell you, in more ways than you can even begin to imagine.

My name is Tom Burt, father of a wonderful 3 year old son. I'm also the owner (or so I'm told) of the most successful martial arts school in Kansas City-,
"AKKA Karate USA" -- right here in Independence.

For over 20 years, AKKA has been nurturing children like yours with character building tools found only in karate. No other sport can match them. In the next few pages, I'm going to tell you how you and your child can sample all of this, and more. All at no charge.

And all of it comes from learning how to "kick, block and punch." Still, you're wondering if this will work for your child. I understand. So let me tell you a story. It's about a young man, and old man, and a drunk:

"A turning point in my life came one day on a train in the suburbs of Tokyo, in the middle of a drowsy spring afternoon.

"At one station the doors opened, and suddenly the quiet afternoon was shattered. There stood a man at the doorway, bellowing at the top of his lungs. He yelled violent, obscene, incomprehensible curses. Just as the doors closed, the man staggered into the car. He was big, drunk, and dirty. He wore laborer's clothing. His front was stiff with dried vomit. His eyes bugged out a demonic, neon red. His hair was crusted with filth. Screaming, he swung at the first person he saw, a woman with a baby. The blow glanced off her shoulder, sending her spinning into the laps of an elderly couple. It was a miracle that the baby was unharmed.

"The couple jumped up and scrambled toward the other end of the car. They were terrified. The laborer aimed a kick at the retreating back of the old lady. `I'll kill you, old woman!' he bellowed. He missed, and the old woman scuttled to safety. This so enraged the drunk, he grabbed the metal pole in the center of the car and tried to wrench it out of its stanchion. I could see that one of his hands was cut and bleeding. The train lurched ahead, the passengers frozen with fear. I stood up.

"I was young and in pretty good shape. I stood six feet, weighed 225. I'd been putting in a solid eight hours of Aikido training every day for the past three years. I liked to throw and grapple. I thought I was tough. Trouble was, my martial skill was untested in actual combat. As students of Aikido, we were not allowed to fight.

"My teacher, the founder of Aikido, taught us each morning that martial arts were devoted to peace. `Aikido,' he said again and again, `is the art of reconciliation. Whoever has the mind to fight has broken his connection with the universe. If you try to dominate other people, you are already defeated. We study how to resolve conflict, not how to start it.'

"I listened to his words. I tried hard. I wanted to quit fighting. I could feel my forbearance exalting me. I felt both tough and holy. In my heart of hearts, however, I was dying to be a hero. I wanted a chance, an absolutely legitimate opportunity whereby I might save the innocent by destroying the guilty.

"`This is it!' I said to myself as I got to my feet. `This slob, this animal, is drunk and mean and violent. People are in danger. If I don't do something fast, somebody will probably get hurt. I'm gonna take him to the cleaners.'

"Seeing me stand up, the drunk saw a chance to focus his rage. `Aha!' he roared. `A foreigner! You need a lesson in Japanese manners!'

"I held on lightly to the commuter strap overhead. I gave him a slow look of disgust and dismissal. I gave him every bit of nastiness I could summon up. I planned to take this turkey apart, but he had to be the one to move first. And I wanted him mad, because the madder he got, the more certain the victory. I pursed my lips and blew him a sneering, insolent kiss. It hit him like a slap in the face. `All right!' he hollered. `You're gonna get a lesson.' He gathered himself for a rush at me. He'd never know what hit him.

"A split-second before he moved, someone shouted `HEY!' It was so earsplitting. I wheeled to my left, the drunk spun to his right. We both stared down at a little old Japanese man. He must have been well into his seventies. He sat there immaculate in his kimono an hakama. He took no notice of me, but beamed delightedly at the laborer, as though he had a most important secret to share.

"`C'mere,' the old man said in an easy tone of voice. `C'mere and talk with me.' He waved his old hand lightly. The big man followed. He planted his feet in front of the old man and towered over him. `Talk to you,' he roared above the clacking wheels. `Why should I talk to you?' The drunk now had his back to me. If his elbow moved so much as a millimeter, I'd drop him in his socks.

"The old man continued to beam at the laborer. There was not a trace of fear or resentment about him. `What'cha been drinkin'?" he asked lightly, his eyes sparkling with interest. `I been drinkin sake,' the laborer bellowed back. `And it's none of your business!' Flecks of spittle spattered the old man.

"'Oh, that's wonderful,' the old man said with delight . . . `absolutely wonderful! You see, I love sake, too. Every night, my wife and I (she's 76, you know), warm up a little bottle of sake. We take it out into the garden, and we sit on the old wooden bench that my grandfather's first student made for him. We watch the sun go down behind the persimmon tree. It is most gratifying, even when it rains!' He looked up at the laborer, eyes twinkling, happy to share the delightful details about his personal life.

"As he struggled to figure where the old man's conversation was taking him, the drunk's face began to soften. His fists slowly unclenched. `Yeah,' he said slowly. `I love persimmons, too . . . .' His voice trailed off.

"`Yes,' said the old man, smiling, `and I'm sure you have a wonderful wife.'

"`No,' replied the laborer. `My wife died.' He hung his head. Very gently, swaying with the motion of the train, the big man began to sob. `I don't got no wife. I don't got no home. I don't got no job. I don't got no money. I don't got nowhere to go. I'm so ashamed.' Tears rolled down his cheeks. A spasm of pure despair rippled through his body. Above the luggage rack, a four-color ad trumpeted the virtues of suburban luxury living.

"Now it was my turn. Standing there in my well-scrubbed youthful innocence, my `make this world safe for democracy' self-righteousness, I suddenly felt dirtier than he was.

"Just then, the train arrived at my stop. The platform was packed. The crowd surged into the car as soon as the doors opened. As I struggled to get out, I heard the old man cluck sympathetically. `My, my,' he said. `That is a very difficult position to be in. Tell me about it.'

"I turned my head for one last look. The laborer was sprawled like a sack on the seat, his head in the old man's lap. The old man looked down at him, all compassion and delight. One hand softly stroked filthy, matted hair.

"As the train pulled away, I sat down on a bench. What I had wanted to do with muscle and meanness had been done with a few kind words. Now I had seen Aikido in combat, and the essence of it was love, as the founder had said. I would have to practice the art with an entirely different spirit. It would be a long time before I could speak about the settling of conflict."

Look at it this way. Your child's first and biggest challenge comes not from "fighting for his rights on the street," or "beating up the neighborhood bully." It comes, instead, from battling more sinister forces. Your child's own fears and self doubts:

Question is, how do you get your child to fight these demons? You know the problem. Your child has a tough time even telling you she's haunted by them. Never mind how she might conquer them.

To repeat, martial arts are less about your child learning to fight others, and more about fighting. . . himself. His innermost fears. Conquer them, and your child unleashes within himself a powerful, unstoppable force.

A force that gives him the strength to kick down the doors of his own self doubts. A force that opens your child to the exalting power of values.

In other words, when your child uses the discipline of karate to conquer his fears, he has the power to transfer that discipline to all other areas of his life. I know of no other sport that does this better than karate. (I should know. Remember, AKKA has been teaching it for over 20 years.)

“Karate has done so much for my son, Michael, he has grown so much in the year he has been in karate. Before he was just a 9 year old, didn’t like school, only wanted to play and argue. Now he is going for his blue belt and he works harder and does better in school. I watched for a year and became interested in joining myself. I joined 4 months ago and have earned my gold belt and am working for my orange belt. I look forward to my 2 classes a week. I am 46 years old, I have lost 35 pounds and am loosing more every week. I feel great. Thanks Mr. Burt and AKKA.”--David McDonald - Independence, MO

My daughter, age 9, has been in Karate for 3 years. I highly recommend karate for any child with ADHD. It helps build focus, concentration & builds self esteem. The child is "competing" against himself, unlike so many sports where the child can get lost in a team. It builds character & encourages the child to think first & then act. It builds confidence and self esteem.
--Pam Saylor – Independence, MO

My 12 year old son was recently entrusted with the rank of 1^st Degree Junior Black Belt resulting from 5 years of “his” dedicated effort to accomplish this esteemed honor. Something motivated him to take on this challenging journey and not due to my expectations or goals I have set for him as his father. I believe that the key ingredient to his success was and continues to be the fine organization of talented instructors of the Independence School of AKKA under the leadership of Mr. Tom Burt. I truly believe that my son’s positive experience in AKKA has changed him forever. The value systems taught and the supporting encouragement have helped to produce a strong foundation for my son to build from. Not only does the Independence AKKA School help individuals but they also reach out by sponsoring charity and community events. Mr. Burt and his team are truly great role models and good citizens. If you ever want to consider a positive life altering experience, I would strongly recommend that you seek out Mr. Burt and talk to him about Kenpo Karate. You will not be disappointed.
--Mark Whiteaker – Independence, MO

Now, you may be asking, how does all this "values" stuff work? And why does karate manage to do a better job teaching it?

In fact, her physical skills act as a foundation for something much more important: the development of her value skills, mental and spiritual. And not cut off from her physical skills, but intimately connected -- even bonded -- to them.

COURAGE. Your child finds the courage to move outside of his comfort zone. He wills himself to take on more difficult karate moves and skills. He becomes no longer afraid of being afraid. As he does so, he learns that whatever he sows, so he reaps. He learns to blame no one but himself. He suddenly sees his life as a constant, never-ending journey of life-giving improvement.

In short, with a deep breath, he refuses to become a victim of fate. He puts an arm lock on his own destiny.

STAYING POWER. Your child finds joy in improving her physical stamina. She can walk farther, run longer, and practice skills until she gets them right.

In turn, she learns not to give up. She sticks things out. With the help of her teachers, she strives harder, longer to reach her goals. Even if she fails, she
preserves her self-respect. She won't let her self doubts get in the way of finding ultimate solutions.

HONESTY. As the man said, "Where performance is measured, performance improves." Yet, your child has to first accept where he stands now. That means measuring current strengths. Above all, he learns that to succeed, he can't fool anyone, especially himself.

· Powerful self control. She'll refuse to give in to negative peer pressure. She'll have a deeper respect for rules.

· Improved focus. She'll learn what's needed, along with the skill to "zero in" on critical tasks at hand. Normal, yet time-wasting, childhood distractions won't get in her way.

· Fearless self confidence. Watch as your child finds the courage to openany door life has to offer.

Now, I still know what you're thinking: "How can I know for sure the `Kids With Kick' program will work for my child? Will learning to `kick, block, and punch' really work for her?" I've made it very easy for you to find out. . .

FREE LESSONS. (A $29.00 value.) I'm offering you two 20-minute lessons -- for FREE. (With no strings attached.) See for yourself if, in fact, I can give your child the powerful benefits promised in this letter.

Here's how it works: Watch with your own eyes as your child gets coached by a top karate teacher . . .

Class One. Your child begins by learning the profound influence of the martial arts "bow." Then watch him as he:

YOUR CHILD – AT EASE AND CONFIDENT. MAKING NEW FRIENDS AND TACKLING NEW CHALLENGES WITH ASSURANCE AND EXCITEMENT. ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT EXPERIENCING ALL THAT LIFE HAS TO OFFER.

Believe me. Just with these two short lessons, your child will come away with her self confidence greatly improved. Not just in how she feels. She'll actually end up with real "life skills." Skills that she can put to powerful use right now, today.

All while enjoying the fun and excitement of an upbeat martial arts program. And it's all FREE! You have absolutely no risk.

To schedule the first of your child's two free classes, simply call
(816) 373-1255, (10 a.m. to 9 p.m.)

FREE KARATE UNIFORM. (A $30.00 value.) If you're among the first 25 to call, I'll even give your child a genuine karate uniform, for FREE. He can keep it, even if I never see him again.

FREE REPORT. To make it even easier on you, let me give you a real taste of what I've been talking about -- before you come. Call and ask for a FREE copy of my report, "10 Ways to Raise a Drug Free and 10 Ways to Raise
a Street Smart Child". I'll mail it to you. Or you can come in and pick one up.

FREE LESSONS. I will make the offer even better. Not only will I give you the first two lessons at no charge...I will throw in your first month...absolutely FREE

Whatever you do, I urge you to call today and schedule your FREE class. Believe me, it could be the most important thing you could do.

BUT BE WARNED. Remember, I'm inviting you to check out the most successful martial arts school in the city! Due to increasing class demand, we have limited time slots. Avoid delays. Call today. 816-373-1255

P.S. All this talk of values may have mislead you. Be assured, I do teach karate as everyone likes to think of it. Your child will end up knowing how to protect herself. She'll know how to avoid danger, how to use conflict resolution techniques -- but without once throwing a kick, block, or punch.

P.S.S. Remember your FREEBIES. The10 Ways to Raise a Street Smart and 10 Ways to Raise a Drug Free Child. This plus the Uniform the two lesson Intro Program and One Month of regular lessons, a value of over $200.00 ALL FREE!!! Why wait…call today. 816-373-1255