BIG BENDELL KARATE NEWS!!!!!!!!!
HUSBAND-WIFE FIRST COUPLE EVER IN HALL OF FAME!
5thdegree black belt Master Shirley Bendell of Florence, Colorado, was shocked and
surprised at a banquet at the Pueblo Shrine Club Hall at Pueblo West, Colorado,
when she was inducted into the International Karate and Kickboxing Hall of
Fame, joining her husband Grandmaster Don Bendell, a 1995 inductee, to become
the first husband and wife ever to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Former
World Champion and 1988 inductee Grandmaster Bob
Chaney flew in from Temecula ,
California, to make the surprise
induction. Public about being a former victim of gang and acquaintance rape,
Master Bendell was cited for her renowned Sexual Assault Prevention clinics for
women and girls which have saved many females from rape and domestic assault;
her innovative Mini-Ninja program for 3, 4, and 5 year olds which was the first
of its kind in southern Colorado and is now copied by every major school in the
state; and it was brought out that Master Shirley Bendell when competing in
tournament competition not only won first place every time she fought, she has
never had one single point scored against her by another woman in sparring
competition.
With
tears flowing before the audience of several hundred, Master Bendell was first
surprised with a “This is Your Life- Shirley Bendell” ceremony with
one of her 2 Green Beret sons on his way to Afghanistan walking out in his
dress greens, as well as her oldest son and his family, her 2 best friends from
high school in Youngstown, Ohio, in the late sixties, and other family members
and friends who flew in from all over the country. Messages of congratulations
were read from friends Bo Derek , H.
Ross Perot, and other celebrities.
A
grandmother of 7, mother of 3, and step-mother of 3; Master Bendell owns and
operates Bendell Karate in Pueblo West and Canon City with her husband and is a
5th degree black belt master instructor in Song Moo Kwan Tae Kwon
Do, Freestyle Karate, Shita Jujitsu, and Judo.
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Husband Don applauds
while sons Don Bendell, Jr. and Josh bring in her Hall of Fame plaque and
Shirley Bendell cries while being inducted by Grandmaster
Bob Chaney. |
Don and Shirley Bendell
goof around while posing for pictures in front of their twin Hall of Fame
plaques.
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When taught and studied correctly, the martial arts are a multi-dimensional,
multi-faceted path toward positive development of character.