Master Dave Jones

     Dave Jones was born in East St. Louis, Illinois which is just across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri and the Gateway Arch. His neighborhood was rough and violent, much like Palama where Kajukenbo was created decades before. Weak and constantly ill as a child he was not able to play sports. After high school, Dave began studying martial arts in an attempt to toughen his body and beat his asthma and a shorter left leg that caused him to limp.
     After years of constant -some said obsessive-practice, Dave Jones had earned black belts in Kajukenbo, Tae Kwon Do, Kempo, and Jujutsu while his health improved dramatically. He even earned a blue belt from the legendary Royce Gracie who referred to him as "deceptive" because of his small size (5'8", 130 lbs.) and considerable technique which allowed him to defeat opponents who weighed in at over 200 pounds.
     Later, in an attempt to bring the core "Ju" arts back into Kajukenbo, Dave began blending his considerable knowledge of Kajukenbo, pressure points, police tactics, classical Jujutsu, Brazilian Jujutsu and other arts into a new style called "Lepo Koa" -Hawaiian words for "Ground Fighter"- out of respect and reverence to his beloved Hawaiian Kajukenbo which was the core art this new style was built on. Dave still teaches Kajukenbo, Lepo Koa and Jujutsu actively in several schools around the St. Louis metro area. He is highly involved with "Fighters with Courage and Power", a nationally renowned program designed to teach Kajukenbo to children with cerebral palsy. Dave is also a staff certified instructor for Gateway Defensive Systems where he is a Police Tactics Trainer for Missouri and Illinois as well as a member of ASLET - the American Society for Law Enforcement Trainers.