FROM THE DIRECTOR’S DESK

BY FRANK SILVERMAN

MAIA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

“When I was tasked with helping launch the Martial Arts Industry Association, one of the first people I asked to come on board — in this case, as a legal consultant — was Phil Goss.”

In Honor of a Fallen Friend

The martial arts industry has lost a dedicated servant, and I have lost a dear friend. After a 19-year courageous battle against cancer, longtime MASuccess columnist Phil Goss passed away.

Phil was so much to so many: father, husband, lawyer and son. To me and the community of martial arts professionals that he served, he stood out as a great friend and a talented educator.

I first met Phil, along with his wife Mary and their children, on the KICK USA tournament circuit more than 25 years ago. I was serving as a judge, and Phil had children who were competing. In addition, he was volunteering as a score keeper and a runner — basically, doing anything he could to help. Eventually, the Goss family and mine became friends and had a monthly tradition of dining together after the tournaments.

Fast-forward five years. When I was tasked with helping launch the Martial Arts Industry Association, one of the first people I asked to come on board — in this case, as a legal consultant — was Phil Goss. He went on to become our legal eagle in the magazine, as well as a frequent speaker and roundtable guest at the Martial Arts SuperShow. He served in that role from MAIA’s inception until the end of his life.

Phil reached countless martial arts professionals through his columns in MASuccess. His essays helped school owners and instructors better understand parts of the business that normally we wouldn’t pay attention to. He explained everything in a manner that enabled us all to comprehend the details. Much more than an attorney, he was a true educator.

Through the years, Phil spoke at many MAIA Elite and MAIA Wealth seminars, and never once did he asked to be paid. He would say, “Just let me know if the participants get anything from my presentation.”

Yes, Phil, they got a lot. They — and I — learned more from you than you could ever imagine, and we will be eternally grateful for this.

Most of us have noticed that as the years pass, we don’t find as much time to talk with our friends as we would like, but that is not an indication of a waning friendship. It’s a reminder to make an extra effort to stay in touch and speak every few months, which I did with Phil. Of course, I enjoyed spending face time with him at the annual SuperShow.

When we learned that Phil had a relapse of his cancer, David Wahl, Century Martial Arts’ Senior Vice President, and I began biweekly calls with him in an effort to keep up to date. The three of us would chat for 20 or 30 minutes, not about the martial arts per se but about life. Phil made sure we knew how well his wife Mary was taking care of him and how he planned to be at the “next” SuperShow.

On one of our calls, we asked him if he was afraid of dying. Without hesitation, he said, “Not at all. I’ve lived a wonderful life surrounded by people I love and who love me. I’m a blessed man!”

Every call ended the exact same way. David and I would say, “Talk to you in a couple of weeks, Phil.” And Phil would reply, “I love you both.” We would say the same to him.

I’ll close with a final message to Phil: You bravely fought the good fight and were a role model for all of us because of your grace, strength, humility and courage. On behalf of the martial arts industry, I would like to say that we love you and will miss you. Peace be with you, my friend.

To contact Frank Silverman, MAIA’s executive director, send an email to teamcfck@aol.com. Find him on Twitter and Facebook at @franksilverman.

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MAIA ELITE LIVE!

ORLANDO, FLORIDA, FEBRUARY 25-26, 2022

Open to all MAIA Elite members plus limited seating for non-members. Event is 2 days with multiple seminars and workshops for school owners, program directors, and instructors.

MAIA WEALTH LIVE!

ASHVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA, MAY 12-13, 2022

Open to MAIA Wealth members with a few seats open to nonmembers for the first time. Event is 2 days and covers multiple wealthbuilding strategies that go beyond your school and help you plan for your future.

MAIA’S SUPERSHOW!

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA, JULY 18-20, 2022

The industry’s largest event featuring 4 different speaking or training tracks, 80+ exhibitors, Opening Night industry party, networking opportunities, martial arts celebrities, actionable knowledge, and so much more. Open to school owners, program directors, instructors and staff.

FROM THE DIRECTOR’S DESK

FRANK SILVERMAN IS THE Executive Director of the Martial Arts Industry Association, and the owner and operator of 11 martial arts schools in Orlando, FL. He’s also the author of Business Is Business: Passion and Profit in the Martial Arts Industry. Follow Frank on Twitter and Facebook @franksilverman. Contact him at teamcfck@aol.com.

THE MAIA REPORT

MELISSA TORRES IS THE DIVISION Manager of the Martial Arts Industry Association. She is a practitioner of kung fu san soo, Cage Fitness and yoga. She is passionate about helping school owners succeed and achieve their goals. She can be reached at mtorres@masuccess.com.

BLACK BELT LEADERSHIP

NGUYEN “TOM” GRIGGS, ED.D., is a sensei in Japanese jujitsu at TNT Jujitsu under Hanshi Torey Overstreet in Houston, TX. He’s the owner of Lead Connect Grow, LLC. Organizations hire him to develop black belt-level professionals in the areas of Teams, Leadership and Conflict Management. Feel free to email him at tom@ntgriggs.com.

SHANE TASSOUL IS A MARTIAL Arts Industry Association consultant and the owner of Championship Martial Arts in Appleton, WI. He is dedicated to helping school owners achieve their goals and dreams and can be reached at (920) 450-5425 or shanetassoul@gmail.com.

IN THE CLASSROOM

DAVE KOVAR OWNS AND OPERATES a chain of successful martial art schools. Additionally, he operates Pro-Mac (Professional Martial Arts College), dedicated to helping martial artists become professionals in Business Management, Mat Mastery, Sales Mastery, Wealth Management and CuttingEdge Classroom Concepts. In 2010, he was the recipient of the Martial Arts Industry Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Contact him at dave.kovar@kovars.com or check out his blog at kovarsblog.kovarsystems.com.

TURNING POINT

HERB BORKLAND WAS ONE OF Jhoon Rhee’s original white belts at America’s first taekwondo school and, later, a closeddoor student of Chinese “soft” styles pioneer Robert W. Smith. For three years, starting on ESPN, he hosted the weekly Black Belts TV show. He did the screenplay for Cynthia Rothrock’s HBO-featured Honor and Glory and is an Inside Kung-Fu Hall of Fame martial arts writer. He can be reached at herbork@comcast.net.

CONSULTANT’S CORNER MASTERFUL RETENTION

CHRISTOPHER RAPPOLD IS THE founder of a successful martial arts organization, Personal Best Karate, headquartered in Norton, MA. He’s a five-time world karate champion and is currently the executive director of the world-renowned Team Paul Mitchell, a championship team supported by sport-karate’s longest-running sponsorship. Rappold is the author of the landmark MAIA program Retention Based Sparring. He can be reached at founder@personalbestkarate.com.

THE KICK YOU NEVER SAW COMING!

BETH BLOCK, A 4TH-DEGREE BLACK belt in karate, is the president of Block Insurance in Orlando, FL. Block has protected businesses that serve children for the past 24 years. She is the writer of Martial Arts Minute, a weekly riskmanagement newsletter. You can reach her at (800) 225-0863 or beth@blockins.net.

IN THE KNOW

SARAH LOBBAN IS THE ASSOCIATE Publications Editor for the Martial Arts Industry Association. She has trained and fought in MMA and muay Thai, and currently trains in jeet kune do. She can be reached at slobban@centurymartialarts.com.

YOU MESSED UP! NOW WHAT?

KATHY OLEVSKY IS THE CEO of Karate International in Raleigh, North Carolina. She and her husband Rob operate three schools together. Kathy is an eighth-degree black belt with 41 years of experience teaching martial arts and operating martial arts schools. She can be reached for questions or comments at kathy.olevsky@raleighkarate.com.

HEALTH KICK

THE LEGAL LANDSCAPE

ERIC THE TRAINER (ERIC P. Fleishman) is a Hollywood-based celebrity personal trainer with over 28 years’ experience. He has worked with top actors and musicians, MMA fighters, and the military. He hosts the popular TV show “Celebrity Sweat,” which you can watch on Amazon Prime. His enthusiastic message of living a healthy life has been adopted by many groups, most recently the American Culinary Federation. For questions or comments, contact Eric the Trainer at Mainemonster@gmail.com.

PHILIP E. GOSS JR., ESQ., WAS a member of the Florida and several other Federal Bar Associations.

INSPIRATION OVATION

KAREN EDEN IS A 7TH-DEGREE master of tang soo do. She’s a broadcast journalist who has appeared nationally on CNN, FOX and Animal Planet as well as on local affiliates for NBC and PBS. Karen is also a published book author and magazine columnist who has written for or been featured in every major martial arts magazine globally. Contact her at renedenherdman@gmail.com. MASUCCESS IS PUBLISHED BY

VOL. 23, NO. 1 // WINTER 2022

EDITOR EMERITUS John Corcoran

EDITOR Robert W. Young

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MARTIAL ARTS INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION Frank Silverman

MAIA DIVISION MANAGER Melissa Torres

ASSOCIATE EDITOR Sarah Lobban

MAIA INTERNATIONAL CONSULTANTS Kurt Klingenmeyer Mike Metzger Adam Parman Cris Rodriguez Shane Tassoul

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Donna Diamond

ART DIRECTORS Paul Duarte Stacy Robertson

DIRECTOR OF MEDIA AND PUBLISHING DEVELOPMENT Patrick Sternkopf

COLUMNISTS & CONTRIBUTORS David Barnett Beth A. Block Herb Borkland Karen Eden Eric P. Fleishman Philip E. Goss Jr., Esq. Nguyen “Tom” Griggs IBISWorld.com Perry William Kelly Kurt Klingenmeyer Dave Kovar Sarah Lobban Mike Metzger Kristin Miller Kathy Olevsky Adam Parman Suzanne Pisano Christopher Rappold Cris Rodriguez Frank Silverman Shane Tassoul Melissa Torres Dwight Trower

CORRESPONDENTS Herb Borkland (VA) Karen Eden (CO) Andrea F. Harkins (AZ) Andre Lima (CA)

PUBLISHER David Wahl Perry William Kelly (CANADA) Terry L. Wilson (CA) Keith D. Yates (TX)

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