Great Grandmaster Charles H. Gaylord Day, Annual Tournament Saturday
By RAUL GARCIA JR
The Texas Kajukenbo: The Gaylord Method School of Karate celebrated a special occasion this week by honoring the legacy of Great Grandmaster Charles H. Gaylord, marking the 15th anniversary of “Great Grandmaster Charles H. Gaylord Day,” a citywide proclamation made in 2007 by former Mercedes Mayor Joel Quintanilla.
To commemorate the day, Grandmaster Armando Saldana and his students took to the mat to practice the distinctive fighting techniques and forms passed down from Gaylord, who is credited with bringing the martial art to the USA mainland and began teaching the earliest forms of Kajukenbo, what is now recognized as mixed martial arts. Gaylord, who began his training in Hawaii during the 1950s, learned the multiple fighting styles comprised of Karate, Jujit-su, kung fu and Boxing to create Kajukenbo—later known as “the perfected art of street fighting.”
The Mercedes school, a longtime pillar of self-defense and discipline in the community for over four decades, continues to uphold the traditions of the Gaylord Method. Originally founded in the 1970s by Juan “Johnny” Valdivia, a Grandmaster in Kajukenbo, the school has produced countless black belts and community leaders.
Grandmaster Saldana, who became Valdivia’s student in the early 1980s and earned his black belt under him, was promoted in 2007 alongside Valdivia by Great Grandmaster Gaylord himself.
Valdivia, who passed away in 2008 after a battle with kidney cancer, left Saldana with a promise—to continue the school and help families battling cancer. That promise has lived on through the Light of Hope Foundation, which the school actively supports.
This Saturday, Saldana and his students will host the 12th Annual Texas Kajukenbo Memorial Tournament at Chacon Middle School. Part of the Texas Karate League circuit—which includes ten tournaments held across the state—the event will welcome hundreds of competitors from various dojos. Participants will showcase their skills in point fighting, weapon demonstrations, and traditional karate forms.
