Isshinryu Karate: Donald Bohan's Memorial Website: William Hayes

Marine Major (Ret.), Shorin-ryu Practitioner, Sensei, Author, Nutritionist, Friend, Bill Hayes is a leader, a man's man, a respected martial artist, and a true friend to many. Bill Hayes would make a great role model for every Marine, karate-ka, man, woman, or child, and that is why he is our first “Warrior of the Month”. Master Bohan said it all “Bill Hayes is with out a doubt the best all around martial artist I’ve ever had the pleasure to be around and train with.”

Two weeks before Sensei passed we made time for a long visit, where I asked and he answered every possible question that popped into my head. I’ll be using my notes and the things that I recall from that visit in this and the upcoming “Warrior of the Month” articles. The following list reflects some of Sensei Bohan’s thoughts about Shorin-ryu Master William R. Hayes:

When I asked him to name his top 5 Weapons Karate-Ka – Bill Hayes was one of the five.

When I asked him to name his top 5 Karate-Ka that understood Bunkai and its principles- Bill Hayes was one of the five.

When I asked him to name his top 5 Sai Karate-Ka - He said, "Well there's Bill Hayes and then everyone else. They called him The Electric Sai you know."

When I asked him to name his top 5 Isshin-Ryu historians – Bill Hayes was one of the five. He said, “Bill makes it his business to know.”

When I asked him to name the five most honorable men he had ever meet – Bill Hayes was one of the five.

When I asked him to name the 5 best teachers he had seen or been around - Bill Hayes was one of the five. He said, "You can be around Bill for a few minutes and you'll come away learning something. The man has a knack for teaching. You know some have it and some just think they have it."

When I asked him to name the best all-round Karate-Ka he had seen – Without any hesitation he said two words, “Bill Hayes.”

"I know some who read this article will ask about Mr. Hayes' rank, so I posed that very question to him and got the following response:"

On the rank thing - let's just say that I first received my red and white belt as a 6th Dan directly from the hands of Grandmaster Shimabukuro as witnessed by his oldest son, Shimabukuro, Eiko, 8th Dan. Rumor has it that I've been promoted a couple of times since then but I wouldn't know anything about any of that.

As you know, I've always made it a point to note that rank itself is absolutely meaningless since it is often not indicative of ones skill level. I wear the funny colored obi because my teacher very openly ordered me to do so a good while back. Others have made far too much of rank and belt colors.

It is an honor to pay tribute to such a deserving Martial Artist. This Warrior’s article is broken down into three parts:

2. A copy of the newsletter Sensei Hayes produces “Okinawan Shorin-Ryu Karate-Do Kenkyu-Kai Shimbun”

3. Information on Sensei Hayes’s book – “My Journey With The Grandmaster”

To contact Bill Hayes feel free to e-mail him at oldstudent1@cox.net. If you also have a serious interest in Life Protection-related wellness products be sure to visit www.pharmanexusa.com and then contact "Old Student".

Major Hayes was born on May 15^th, 1945, in New York City and enlisted in the Marine Corps in August of 1964. While on active duty he served at a number of major posts including two tours in Iwakuni, Japan, and three tours on Okinawa, where he capitalized on the availability of martial arts instruction in an effort to continue his karate training, which began in 1960. He also served two voluntary tours of duty in Vietnam (66-67 & 69-70). During his second tour as a Staff Sergeant he was part of a martial arts demonstration team and helped teach over 450 Vietnamese Nationals. His efforts resulted in a number of awards and commendations.

In 1973, after only nine years of service, Hayes was selected for both the ranks of Gunnery Sergeant and Warrant Officer. He chose to become a Marine Officer and graduated as his platoon's honor man from the Warrant Officer Candidate Course in February of ’74 and thereafter served in a number of key billets as a Warrant Officer, Chief Warrant Officer, Company Grade Officer, and Field Grade Officer. He retired in the grade of Major in October of 1990, the highest grade attainable in his military occupational specialty at the time.

The Major is the Past President of the U. S. branches of the Okinawan Shorin-ryu Karate-do International Association and is also the past Historian of that Okinawa-based organization. He publishes a quarterly international martial arts newsletter and is the author of an award-winning book, My Journey With The Grandmaster.

Major Hayes' teaching credentials as well as his red and white obi were personally awarded to him by his instructor, Grandmaster Eizo Shimabukuro of Okinawa. Bill Hayes is one of the most senior and well-known of the Grandmaster’s students and has dedicated much of his life to the study, preservation, and development of Okinawan martial arts. Major Hayes has appeared on the cover of OFFICIAL KARATE magazine and is listed in the Encyclopedia of Martial Arts (Martial Arts: Traditions, History, People). He has also appeared in England’s FIGHTING ARTS INTERNATIONAL and Norway’s SVARTE BELTE (BLACK BELT). He has demonstrated Okinawan Karate and weaponry on several television programs and is featured in the 1994 video GREAT KARATE INSPIRATIONS.

Bill Hayes has been inducted into both the Karate Masters' Hall of Fame and the American-Okinawan Karate Association Hall of Fame. He is a charter member of the Marine Martial Arts Federation and is the recipient of both the NAACP’s Roy Wilkins’ Meritorious Service Award and the Marine Corps League’s Distinguished Service Award, which were bestowed upon him as a result of his martial arts expertise.

Major Hayes is currently the Director of the Okinawan Shorin-ryu Karate-do Research Society and is one of the United States Marine Corps’ three Subject Matter Experts on Close Combat, having been instrumental in the development of the Corps' new and highly touted Marine Corps Martial Arts Program. He is an International Executive Distributor with the Pharmanex nutrition product company and strives to improve the connection between good health and good martial skills. He lives, trains, and teaches in Stafford County, Virginia.

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Your friend Wayne Wayland