Sifu Gee - Additional Information

Grandmaster Garrett Gee

Grandmaster Garrett Gee

Amazon. COM: Books: Mastering Kung Fu: Featuring Shoalin Wing Chun

Timeline…..

- William Elliopoulos 9th Generation HFY Disciple (San Francisco)

Garrett Gee, a young Chinese martial artist, arrived in San Francisco the first week of January of 1975 at the age of 18. During his first month he experienced his first public challenge when 3 street gangsters confronted and attacked him on Union Street in front of the Metro Theater in the early morning hours. The fight didn’t last more than a couple of minutes with all combatants on the ground. The news of this fight spread through Chinatown and it was less than three months later when Garrett Gee was challenged to a friendly sparring match with one of the southern praying mantis style fighter, Wilson Lee, who was trained in Hong Kong. It was evident that Garrett Gee’s skills far surpassed those of Wilson’s. Wilson recognized that the Wing Chun that Sifu Gee used against him was very different from what he had seen in Hong Kong and asked Garrett Gee to teach him Hung Suen Wing Chun. It was at this early age of 19 that Sifu Gee began teaching in San Francisco.

Garrett Gee performing a public demonstration at an event hosted by candidate for San Francisco City Council Mark Lam (1993)

Hung Far Yi workshop at the Ving Tsun Museum in OH (1998)

Hung Fa Yi organization meeting in OH with John Murphy making an opening speech.

Sifu Garrett Gee with Sifu John Cressona at the first friendship gathering at the Ving Tsun Museum in OH.

Sifu Garrett Gee at a kung fu tournament with Sifu Patrick Au (left 2) and Sifu Edmond Leung (late 1980's)

Wing Chun party with Chug Shaun Tin and Wong Shun Leung (early 1990's).

On another occasion in the late 1980’s, an experienced martial artist (Mike Gonzales.) who completed the wing chun system after 6 years of Wing Chun from another school asked if he could touch hands with Sifu Gee. This encounter opened up the eyes of Mike and over the next four and one half months he spent every Saturday driving more than two hundred miles to the location where Sifu Gee was teaching to ask Sifu Gee to give him private lessons. During this period of 1975 - 1995, Sifu Gee did not teach Wing Chun openly to the public which is why Mike had to convince sifu Gee to teach him in private. Mike persisted for so long that Sifu Gee eventually agreed to teach Mike 20 hours of private lessons. The first lesson was to take place the following Saturday and Mike was to meet Sifu Gee at a specific park at 3 o’clock in the morning and was used as method of testing the dedication and loyalty of the student.. At the time of the first lesson Sifu Gee was not sure if Mike would show up because it was raining very hard. Mike was persistent and did show up that lesson as well as the others.

Hung Far Yi Group Private Lessons (1975 - 1985)

Lessons were not available to the public at this time. Students were hand picked.

Sifu Gee has been very active in the martial arts community in San Francisco. During the 1980’s he was invited to write a kung fu column for two local newspapers: The Chinese Times, Jing Boa Newspaper. Sifu Gee was also invited to teach Wing Chun at the Golden Gate University in San Francisco where he taught many of the professors and students. He was also actively participating in public demonstrations in San Francisco along with tournaments around the country. Sifu Gee has had the pleasure of teaching more than 500 students Wading and Shaolin kung fu along with several styles of Tai Chi. Over the course of many years he has had schools in Nob Hill, Mission Street, Market Street, South San Francisco, Daly City as well as the Hung Fa Kwoon headquarters currently on Monterey St. in San Francisco.

Class photos from Shaolin kung fu (1980 - 1990).

Class photos from Wing Chun kung fu (1980 - 1990).

Bruce Lee's sister Phoebe Lee and her husband Ng Kong Woo came to visit Sifu Garrett Gee's Public Kung Fu demonstration - 1995.

Grandmasters Demonstration in San Francicso - 1995.

During the late 1990’s Sifu Gee contributed the chapter on Red Boat Wing Chun to the book written by Robert Chu , Y. Wu and Rene Ritchie called “Complete Wing Chun”. It was from this experience that Master Benny Meng, curator of the Ving Tsun Museum, first heard of Sifu Gee and Hung Fa Yi wing chun. Master Meng made several trips to San Francisco to communicate with Sifu Gee and to find out more information about his style of wing chun. After only his second trip to meet with Sifu Gee in person Benny Meng experienced something that had not experienced before in all of his trips around the world and because of this asked Sifu Gee if he could become his personal disciple. Sifu Gee was also very impressed with the selfless dedication that Benny Meng and the members of the Ving Tsun Museum research team have shown towards the art of wing chun. Sifu Gee decided to share his art with Benny Meng which proved to be one of the turning points in Hung Fa Yi history as it was shortly after this that Sifu Gee decided to share his art with the world as teach publicly.

Private Wing Chun classes at the South San Francisco location (1985 - 1990).

Sifu Gee along with Master Meng and Sifu Richard Loewenhagen contributed to the successful publication of the martial art book “Mastering Kung Fu”. We anticipate that this will be the first of a series of publications on this fighting system. A respected military tactician, leader, and teacher, retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Richard Loewenhagen has dedicated more than 30 years to the study and practice of martial arts. Sifu Loewenhagen is a 10th generation Hung Fa Yi disciple who is considered by many a modern day warrior who's perspective comes from the battlefield.

We are happy to announce that Grandmaster Garrett Gee was nominated into the 2004 United States Martial Arts Hall of Fame by Grandmaster Edward Badiang. The United States Martial Arts Hall of Fame Director, Selection Committee and the Grandmasters Council has personally approved Grandmaster Gee's nomination as "Grandmaster of the Year". The martial arts community continues to recognize the contributions that he has made.

Sifu Garrett Gee (left) having Dim Sum at the Golden Dragon (1987) with his father Grandmaster Peter Kim Ho Chu (center) at the invitation of the chief editor of the Chinese Times Mr. Yip (second to right). Sifu Garrett Gee was invited to be one of the first martial artists asked to be a contributing editor in one of the major Chinese newspapers.

Sifu Garrett Gee being introduced by the Chinese Times as the first martial artists responsible for contributing his wealth of knowledge to the general public (1987).