Regina sensei and founder of Shaw Martial Arts dies, aged 94

Martial arts community mourns for Roy Shaw WATCH: The founder of Shaw Martial Arts passed away last week. He was 94.

The Regina martial arts community lost one of its core members last week. Roy Shaw, founder of Shaw Martial Arts passed away at the age of 94.

Dennis Matheson was a long-time friend of Shaw and fellow sensei at Shaw Martial Arts.

“He did all kinds of things creatively other than martial arts,” he told CTV News.

“His legacy in the martial arts, through me into the students that go all the way back to the 70s whether they made it to black belt, opened the school or just got influenced by Roy and his philosophy of what martial arts should be.”

Sensei Roy focused on what he called “blended martial arts” which combined various methods of different martial arts.

Shaw Martial Arts was developed in the 1970s and eventually expanded into Fort Qu’Appelle as well as Virden and Brandon, Man.

“His legacy is that he was not afraid to take the base and build on it so that he could build an individual style for everyone who came in,” Matheson said.

One of Matheson’s favourite projects with his late sensei was creating a teaching book of defenses for those learning martial arts – in addition to a book full of his favourite jokes.

“There’s always learning to do,” he said.

“Even when he was not doing as well and was pretty much stuck in bed he would talk to me about trying to redo something with the school.”

Shaw Martial Arts is not done – just dormant according to Matheson – as he and others plan the next steps for the organization.