Dianne Reeve

Building Positive Life Skills Through Martial Arts

I was just thinking about the next post here at TheMartialArtsReporter.com when I came across a newspaper article that involved an abused teenager, who in many ways reminded me of myself many years ago.

Growing up in a divorced family and difficult home life, a teenager can feel mighty lonely at times. Especially when you have to hold in all your frustration, disappointment and anger.

Mental and physical abuse at home certainly do/did not make things easier. The sense of helplessness can become overwhelming.

More often than not, teenagers in these situations and surroundings will resort to actions that are counter-productive and that can affect them for the rest of their lives.

In countless cases martial arts have proven to be an constructive outlet for troubled teens. It certainly was one in my own personal experience.

Bruce Lee was my long-distance mentor through his movies and books which got me started in Shotokan karate (yes, I know that Bruce Lee wasn’t a karateka, but a Chinese boxer/kung fu expert. At the time, it sure didn’t matter to me!).

Martial arts training was a great way to escape from a home that really sucked (sorry!). My training helped me learn how to focus, acquire self-defense skills, express myself , build my self-esteem, become really passionate about something, make new friends and so much more.

But enough about me.

Let’s get back to the other teenager this post started about, shall we?!

Money became an issue and attending martial arts classes was in question.

Along came a martial arts instructor and mentor who had the brilliant idea of developing a scholarship program for students with monetary challenges.

I am talking about Sensei Dianne Reeves, founder of Vision Martial Arts Center in Plano, Texas.

Diane Reeve is a 6th-Degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do, and holds Black Belts in three other styles: Kenpo, Jujutsu and Kobudo (weapons).

She has been the sole owner of VMAC since its inception in 1995 and has over 2 decades of martial arts experience.

Ms. Reeve is a Registered Nurse and also holds a Master’s Degree in Education. She has two children of her own, but counts each of her students as her children.

Ms. Reeve is a member of the Southwest Kenpo Karate Association and J. Pat Burleson’s World Martial Arts Ranking Association. She was inducted into the World Karate Hall of Fame in 1999 and was World BlackBelt.com instructor of the month October 2002.

She was featured in the March 2003 issue of Plano Profile. In 2004, she was nominated for Children’s Advocacy Center Volunteer of the Year.

She has promoted over 120 people to Black Belt, and higher and has taught martial arts to literally thousands of people, ages 3 and up, from all walks of life.

To learn more about their great program and sponsors, simply visit vmacplano.com

This is an inspirational story and program that is making a real difference in so many lives.

Let me know what you think and if you know about similar stories and programs.

In the meantime I hope you enjoy this video clip of a teenage extreme martial artist: