History > Who's Who in Kajukenbo

Grandmaster Alan Carter

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John Bishop:


Grandmaster Alan L. Carter, 9th degree Red Belt/Silver Border
Grandmaster Alan Carter first encountered Asian culture during his childhood in Okinawa. "I've been interested in martial arts from the age of 13 years old, recalls Carter." Carter's family then moved to Hawaii where he graduated from Pacific Preparatory Academy, Honolulu.
In 1967, Carter enlisted in the Army in Hawaii, went to basic training in California, and spent almost a year in Massachusetts. He served the remaining portion of his four year Army tour in Hawaii. During this time he became acquainted with Chief Instructor (now Grandmaster) Sid Asuncion.
Carter began training seriously with Asuncion in 1968, practicing at least two hours a day for eighteen months. He received his Black Belt in 1969 from Asuncion while living in Ewa Beach, Oahu, Hawaii. Carter studied under Asuncion with another Kajukenbo legend: (now Grandmaster) George Iversen. Iversen was Asuncion's Assistant Instructor at that time. "After I was promoted to Black Belt, I opened my first class at Halemano Military Reservation to teach Army personnel,", Carter reminisced. Carter and Iversen developed a close personal friendship lasting until Iversen's death in 2005.
After completing his military service in 1971, Carter returned to the St. Louis area and introduced Kajukenbo to the Midwest. He became a police officer in 1973 and has continued to serve in that capacity for over thirty years. After years of law enforcement service, Carter specializes in the self-defense aspects of Kajukenbo.   He has cross-trained in Wing Chun, Kali, Jeet Kune Do, Defendo, Kettlebells, and various police defensive tactics systems, incorporating much of this further knowledge into his personal expression of Kajukenbo Self-Defense.
Carter was introduced to herbal medicine in Chinatown, Hawaii. Believing that Kajukenbo is holistic in nature, including healing of mind, body, and soul, he later became an herbal practitioner. Carter makes his own dit da jow for iron hand and wooden dummy training, as well as herbal tonics for improving overall health.
In 1996, Carter volunteered for duty with the United Nations Peacekeepers to work in Bosnia and Yugoslavia. U.N. Peacekeepers are required to serve unarmed, even in hostile circumstances. Along with 200 other officers, his assignment was to train and monitor local law enforcement in prevention of further incidents immediately after a peak time of ethnic tension.
During the 2005 Hawaiian Kajukenbo Midwest Family Reunion, Carter, his senior students, and Iversen's senior students recognized George Iversen as 10th degree (Red Belt/Gold Border) and Senior Grandmaster of the Hawaiian Kajukenbo Association. Iversen then promoted Carter to 9th degree (Red Belt/Silver Border) and Grandmaster, recognizing  his many years of study and further development of the Kajukenbo Self-Defense system. After Iversen's death, Carter was encouraged by some of Asuncion's senior Black Belts to attend and be installed into the Kajukenbo Ohana Association Advisory Council of Grandmasters at their Inaugural Gathering in 2008.
When asked how to begin training in Kajukenbo, Carter encouraged, "Have a lot of perseverance. Don't be in any hurry, just continue to train hard. If you find yourself backsliding, try to slip back into it, which you can always do and no one will fault you for. Continue on, because you would be amazed as the years go by at the things that will transform you. Training definitely gives you something in return for all the hard effort that you put in."
Concerning the future of Kajukenbo and specifically the Midwest area, he speculated, "I think it"s going to get bigger and better. I think it's going to bring a lot of people together, create lines of communication with old practitioners and develop new friendships. And here in the Midwest, I would like to see people not only promoting it, but keeping in touch with each other so that we can be a little bit more organized. Then we can be more proactive in helping each other out and get together more often so we can spread Kajukenbo."

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