Much of the Jiu-Jitsu community came together in support of the Philippines after typhoon Haiyan ripped through the country. From seminar to open mats, merchandise and pure donations, efforts to rebuild were fueled. One academy in Canada took a step further and not only raised money to help rebuild but also took a trip to the Philippines to make sure the money was well spent.

Marcy Hilario and her husband Milo, owners of Apex Martial Arts in British Columbia, Canada detoured their vacation to put their time to use where it was needed. They even taught some Jiu-Jitsu while they were there.

Read Marcy’s story and check out the photos and video below:

“Milo, my husband, and I were set to take a long awaited vacation to Indonesia, with our plane tickets in hand.  After seeing the news and events that were happening in the Philippines, we were compelled to cancel our trip to Indonesia and go to the Philippines to help in any way possible.

With the help of our caring and generous friends, family and the BC Jiu Jitsu Community we came together and raised money for the victims of the Haiyan Typhoon.  Money was raised through sales and profits from our Academy, Apex Martial Arts and through our martial arts gear company, Katana Fight Gear.  We also hosted a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Seminar, where some of the local instructors from different Academies came and shared their knowledge to all who attended.

On December 3rd, Milo and I travelled to the Philippines. We journeyed from Manila to Bantayan Island, which is a small island off the coast of Cebu.

When we first arrived on the island you can see the effects of Haiyan; power lines still down, trees uprooted, tops of coconut chopped off, twisted metal and steel, and house missing parts of their roof and walls collapsed.

Not knowing what to do with the money we raised and where to start, we made our way to the Municipality office of Bantayan Island. In the first 1 ½ to 2 weeks on the island we helped the Bantayan community by setting up tents, distributing food and water.  We became translators for other worldwide charities, speaking to the locals in the villages.

Here, in the villages we saw how bad the typhoon was.  Majority of the homes were flattened, people living under whatever materials they can find to take shelter.  Many people lost everything.  Even in these sad and poor times, the people of Bantayan Island stay positive, smiles on their faces and the children still happily play. They are really wonderful and lovely people.  We easily made friends with everyone in this warm community.

From speaking to many locals and making friends within the local municipality we decided that the best way to spend the money we raised was to adopt a few families to rebuild their homes.

And so that is what we did.  We chose several different families in need and bought building materials to help them to rebuild.  The appreciation, joy and happiness we see from these beautiful people is very moving and heartwarming.

My husband also decided that he wanted to share his knowledge of Jiu Jitsu to the local volunteers and workers.  Almost every night for 3 weeks, we would layout tarps teaching the local kids and young adults Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.  It was wonderful to teach the locals, always ready for class, wide eyed and so eager to learn.

This whole experience was life changing.  It has moved us to share as much as we can to those in need.  We have started a charity called Solid Ground Foundation, where 100% of the money we raise goes directly to the families, communities and people in need.

Through local Brazilian Jiu Jitsu tournaments and seminars, through profits from Katana Fight Gear (25% of all sales at www.katnafightgear) and through the generosity of private individual donations we will raise money to continue to help the victims of the Haiyan Typhoon.

Donations can be made through www.facebook.com/solidgroundfoundation.  We will have our website www.solidground.org up and running in the next few months.

Last week the Jiu-Jitsu community in Philadelphia attended a seminar for a student of Jared Weiner at BJJ United who is currently undergoing treatment for leukemia. They raised over $10,000.

Because of the disastrous Supertyphoon Haiyan in the Philippines that hit last week, many are in need and  we can help to fund relief efforts. According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, there are currently 3,621 deaths, 12,165 injured, 1,140 missing and many homeless.

Check out these events coming up that will give you the opportunity to donate to various outlets. If you are not local or cannot make the events, there are other opportunities to support:

Rolling for Philippines – Sunday, Nov. 17 San Jose, CA

At Heroes Martial Arts is holding an open mat on Sunday, Nov. 17 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 460 S Market St. San Jose, CA. They are asking for a minimum $20 donation and black belts like Samir Chantre, Osvaldo Queixinho, Bryant Pangelinan, Alan “Gumby” Marques, Matt Darcy, Jeremy Adkins, Sergio Silva, Julio Echeverria to name a few will be present also. Instead of conducting a massive seminar however, they will be available for “privates” at the rate of $2 per minute. Call 408-288-8857 for more information. If you can’t make it you can donate online at: http://www.crowdrise.com/rollforthephilippines/ which goes to the American Red Cross.

Roll for the Philippines – Saturday, Nov. 23 Peoria, AZ

There will be an open mat at Siege MMA on Saturday, Nov. 23 with all proceeds donated to the relief. It will run from 1 – 3 p.m. at 14131 W. Rio Vista Blvd. #9 Peoria, AZ. They are asking for $20 or more if possible. Call 602-680-3467 for more information.

Seattle Martial Arts Typhoon Haiyan Relief Fundraiser and Auction  – Sunday, Nov. 24 Seattle, WA

Seattle martial arts and crossfit schools will come together on Sunday, Nov. 24 for a fundraising event with lunch and a silent auction. It will run from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at MKG Seattle: 10714 5th Ave NE, Seattle, WA. Workshops will run from 10 a.m. on with a Filipino lunch available for $10 donation per plate from 2 – 3:30 p.m. For more information visit http://www.mkgseattle.com/fundraiser/

Roll4Relief – Sunday, Dec. 1 San Diego, CA

Michael Liera Jr. and his family have set up open mat fundraiser for the BJJ community in San Diego, CA. The event will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Arena MMA: 3350 Sports Arena Blvd. San Diego, CA. It will be a day of music, Jiu-Jitsu, food, prizes for family and friends. They are asking for a $25 mat fee for donation. More information can be found at their facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Roll4reliefhaiyan

Northwest GrappleThon for Philippine Disaster Aid – Friday, Dec. 6 to Saturday, Dec. 7 Edmonds, WA

There will be a 24-hour grapplethon to raise money at Gracie Barra Edmonds which is twenty minutes south of downtown Seattle. It will run from 6 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 6 to 6 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7 at 9681 Firdale Ave, Edmonds, Washington 98020.

“We wIll charge a fixed amount to participate, in this case, $30, and then people are welcome to solicit pledges from co-workers, family, and friends based on how many rolls you get, or how long you can go, etc. I’m feeling that “a dollar a roll” is a reasonable ask. If you aren’t a Jiu-Jitsu person, a “roll” is a 5-10 minute “live” sparring session with another person. How tough it is really depends on the participants, but it can be extremely draining and painful when your opponent is way better than you are. So, if you think it sounds like an awfully hard dollar, you are probably correct. If you’d rather do it based on time spent, $6-$10 is probably fair for an hour. We will also be doing T-shirts for the participants, and you will receive one with your donation of $50 or more. There will also be prizes available for the participants, and if you are interested in a sponsorship opportunity, please reach out to griff@edmondsbjj.com and we can discuss it directly.”

“Braver & Stronger” Fundraiser T-Shirt by Gawakoto, Meerkatsu and Scramble – Pre-order ends Monday, Nov. 18 Online

To raise money for the victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Phillipines, Gawakoto has teamed up with Meerkatsu & Scramble to produce this one of a kind shirt featuring all three artists’ work. Pre-orders for the first batch will be taken between Thursday 14th until Monday 18th. Tees will begin shipping roughly two weeks after. This way the money from the shirt can be donated quicker. Donations will go to Disasters Emergency Committee.

To order go to: http://store.gawakotoclothing.co.uk/Pre-Order-Fundraising-Shirt-Stronger-Braver_p_45.html 

Any other events or fundraising opportunities? Let us know!

Rolles Gracie in MMA action / GRACIEMAG archive photo

Friday was a big day for the MMA fans who tuned in to One FC: Firstly, it was a thrill for the people of the Philippines, who got to see first hand that the country has some candidates to become MMA stars, like Erik Kelly, who took out Jens Pulver in their featherweight tilt.

Secondly, there was Bibiano Fernandes, who kept up his string of positive results in outpointing fellow Brazilian Gustavo Falciroli in the three-round main event. And it was also a major occasion for three Gracie brothers, who brought their family pride by stepping into the cage in Asia and coming up with two wins and a loss.

Rolles Gracie and Gregor Gracie tapped their opponents out, while Igor lost by technical knockout in the third round to South Korea’s Jung Hwan Cha.

GRACIEMAG.com had a chat with Rolles about the lessons learnt by the three Jiu-Jitsu professors who were born in Rio but have made New Jersey their home.

GRACIEMAG: You played a mature game against Tony Bonello right up until finishing with a rear-naked choke in the third round. What did you learn at this installment of One FC?

Rolles: I went in really calm. My younger brothers inspired me a lot for this fight not just where preparing and training was concerned, but also in the dressing room. I saw how calm they were when they fought and I went in to fight really calm too. I don’t know if I learned that this fight, but I certainly recalled that Jiu-Jitsu is a style of fighting requiring calm and patience, and that’s what I used to get the tapout.

How did the tapout come about?

I’d already softened up my opponent the whole fight. I think at that moment he was already overwhelmed, didn’t have the strength to fight anymore. I made it to his back after getting a takedown, punched him in the head some, stuck in my hooks and squeezed on his neck at the same time. Tony’s a tough guy who knows Jiu-Jitsu—he got 15 of his 16 wins by submission; he’s a black belt who’s won some tourneys in the United States. So tapping him out was not easy. Besides all that, he was slippery; the Vaseline on our faces had spread, and that made it harder for me.

What are your thoughts about Gregor and Igor’s fights?

Gregor went to town. He went in to fight, not to brawl like the last time. He was calm, patient and capitalized on the opportunity to finish when it came. He showed he’s evolved a great deal since his last fight. Now Igor’s fight was a shame. I feel that if any of us three deserved to win, it was Igor, since he was better prepared than Gregor and me put together. And we trained a lot; I don’t remember the last time I was in the shape I’m in today. I feel, with all due respect, that Igor’s a better fighter than his opponent. It just happened that my brother used a lot of force in holding the guy down, and that tired him out.

Is the land of boxing legend Manny Pacquiao, the Philippines, also passionate about MMA?

Yes. This is a really cool country. The people here remind me a lot of Brazilians. Despite all the hardships in life, they’re always smiling and make everything into a reason to have fun. I want to come back to fight again; I really feel at home here.

ONE FC
QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES
AUGUST 31, 2012

Bibiano Fernandes defeated Gustavo Falciroli via unanimous decision.
Eduard Folayang defeated Felipe Enomoto via unanimous decision.
Andrei Arlovski vs Tim Sylvia ends in No Contest (illegal blow).
Eric Kelly defeated Jens Pulver via TKO at 1:43 min of R2.
Rolles Gracie subbed Tony Bonello via rear-naked choke at 1:33 min of R3.
Jung Hwan Cha defeated Igor Gracie via TKO at 1:03 min of R3.
Soo Chul Kim defeated Kevin Belingon via unanimous decision.
Gregor Gracie subbed Nicholas Mann via armbar at 3:28 min of R1.
Phil Baroni defeated Rodrigo Ribeiro with soccer kicks at 1min of R1.
Shannon Wiratchai defeated Mitch Chilson with soccer kicks at 2:30 min of R2.
Honorio Banario defeated Andrew Benibe via TKO at 3:47 min of R3.

Shogun trains with Tuba during GRACIEMAG.com visit to TUF academy. Photo: Carlos Ozório.

“The more popular the sport becomes, the more talent appears all around the world. We’re going to put together a The Ultimate Fighter in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the Philippines. This is a way for us to cultivate talent,” explains Dana White, who also affirmed that the UFC is watched on 500 million television sets around the world and that in the coming months this number should double.

“We’re working on some contracts that will be sealed in the coming months that will put the UFC in a billion homes around the world,” he said.