Learning more than simply self-defense

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Peter Philbin, 9, left, and his brother, Timothy, 12, show some fancy footwork during a karate demonstration at the Merrimack winter carnival on Saturday, Feb. 20. Photo by Loretta Jackson.

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MERRIMACK – Peter and Tim Philbin bowed, and then sprang into a flurry of kicks, demonstrating an array of fluid motions.

These “karate kids” and Bedford brothers – who regularly show off their skills in exhibitions for schools and civic groups throughout the year – most recently demonstrated at the 18th annual Merrimack Winter Carnival at Wasserman Park on Feb. 20.

Hundreds of families from Merrimack, Amherst, Bedford, Milford and elsewhere shared the day, highlighted by a magic show, face painting, ice fishing, food, snowmobile rides and, of course, the karate demonstration.

The boys capped a team of more than a dozen karate students who train at the Independent Karate School, which was founded in 1979 on the premise that martial arts are for everybody.

Katherine Philbin, the boys’ mom, watched from the sidelines as Peter abandoned the kicking and went on to deliver a karate chop to a board straddling sturdy supports.

She said karate’s combination of physicality and restraint makes it an ideal activity for her sons and lots of other youngsters.

“The sport of karate has been a very positive and powerful force for the boys,” she said. “And they love sharing what they know with others.”

Philbin said she and her husband, Daniel Philbin, a cardiologist at Catholic Medical Center, recognized early on the positive influence of karate, an ancient blend of mental, physical and spiritual components that tend to produce healthy people that care about each other and their community.

Tim, 12, a seventh-grader at The Derryfield School in Manchester, and Peter, 9, a fourth-grader at Riddle Brook School in Bedford, now visit the instructors at IKS several times a week in Merrimack and Nashua.

“Karate is about more than just kicking and punching,” said first-degree brown belt Tim, adding that IKS teaches values that include courtesy and humility.

Headmaster Peter “Sensei Pete” Desmarais focuses on a style of karate called kenpo, an art of restraint and respect.

Desmarais entrusted the demonstration in Merrimack to Chris Marsh, a sixth-degree black belt and senior instructor who shares teaching duties at the school with several other experts and a helpful group of younger black-belt assistants. Most of the helpers are high school and college students.

Peter, who has attained the rank of blue belt, summed up in few words the day’s activities.

“I felt really proud about breaking my board,” he said. “Karate is fun.”