I've been having a hard time dealing with the tragedy of Mr. Panasiuk's death. Although I can't say I had the priviledge of being a good friend of his, I had the pleasure of instructing him during the lion dance classes.
I have to say, he was the ideal student in every way. I always looked forward to teaching him. He was like a sponge, always eager to soak up whatever knowledge was offered and he always did it with a grin.

One of my requirements for second degree black belt was to write an assignment on the five people who had most influenced my training.

He was one of my five.

To me he represented the irrepressible spirit of Kung-Fu. He never complained, never backed down; he gave his all in everything that he did. His enthusiasm and joy when it came to Kung-Fu awed me. I wanted to be like him and I aspire to be as driven as he was.

So I plan to work harder in the hopes that I can do his memory proud.

We'll miss you Travis.