Instructor Mario Schapp works with Patricia Shevlin, who is blind, during a martial arts class at the Blind Community Center of San Diego in Balboa Park.
An unruly bus passenger learned a valuable lesson last year: Don’t mess with Mario Schapp’s blind martial arts students.
Kathy Hennan, 67, was riding into downtown San Diego from her home in Chula Vista when a mentally disturbed man followed her to the sidewalk and grabbed her wrist and backpack. Hennan, who is legally blind, hearing-impaired and walks with a cane, quickly and fiercely snatched the man’s wrist and — executing a move she learned from Schapp — threw the man to the ground.
As bystanders rushed toward the pair to assist her, Hennan confidently stood over the man to the amazement of everyone. “I took him down,” Hennan said. “They were going to help me, but I already did it. I don’t have too much fear.”
What nobody knew was Hennan is a red belt in Korean martial arts, having started training with Schapp almost six years ago. She walks a lot of places by herself, using just her cane and very limited vision to get around. She’s not afraid of anyone.
“Master Mario believes we have a sixth sense,” she said.
Schapp, 40, is a native of Grossraechen, Germany, and has been teaching martial arts at the Blind Community Center of San Diego in Hillcrest since the fall of 2005. Twice a week he takes 90 minutes to instruct the visually impaired for free.
Starting the class was Schapp’s idea. “The truth is no one wants to teach these people, because it’s too complicated,” Schapp said. “One day, I just realized I have this gift. I looked for the opportunity, and I found it.” Schapp started practicing martial arts at age 23, and he immigrated to San Diego in 1996. The Pacific Beach resident has been competing internationally since 2007, he said.
In order to teach the visually impaired, Schapp has created a modified curriculum that is more choreographed because two visually impaired students can’t spar. They train by frequently touching wrists, and Schapp repeatedly snaps his fingers so his students can get their bearings straight.
If Hennan’s experience with the bus passenger is any indication, it is clear that Schapp’s teaching methods have been a huge success. But even though Schapp said he was proud of Hennan, called what she did, “pretty stunning,” and admitted there were a few high-fives in class that day, he still would prefer his students use violence as a last resort.
“I was happy that she didn’t get harmed, and I was happy that she was able to use the techniques,” Schapp said. “We discussed the whole incident and talked about the ways she could have handled it better without any real physical conflict.”
2019 – martial arts class with Mario is still going strong. Two mornings every week.
Here are a few statements from students over the years:
“It’s increased my self-confidence and just awareness of what’s going on around me,” “Being a single woman running around alone with just a guide dog, there’s always a chance something could happen.”
“My confidence was rattled to the core, Mario and the other instructors have transformed me and given me the ability to reclaim my life.”