Business Beat: Michael Evans of Four Gates School of Chinese Martial Arts

In Business Beat, Patch will talk to local business owners in the Patchogue and Medford area of new and established places in the area. Want to be featured? Email michael@patch.com.

The operates out of the Suffolk Aikikai studio on South Ocean Avenue in Patchogue. Sifu Michael Evans owns the school and serves as its head instructor.

Patch: Describe what your business is? 

Evans: The Four Gates School of Chinese Martial Arts serves as a source of high quality marital arts training for the children and adults of the Patchogue area.  Classes use the methods of the ancient Chinese art of Shaolin Lohan Kung Fu, which traces its roots back hundreds of years to the Shaolin Temple in northern China, to teach self defense skills while promoting the development of mental and physical health, self confidence and leadership.

Patch: Where are you from and what is your personal/professional background? 

Evans: I grew up in Eastport, NY, spent a year in Turkey as a Rotary exchange student, and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps after graduating from High School. I completed my degree in Massage Therapy and is licensed in NY to practice Massage. I started training martial arts with his father at the age of 11, and met his current teacher, Moises Arocho in 1995.

Patch: Why did you decide to open your business in Patchogue?

Evans: Having formerly run a successful martial arts school in Medford which closed after losing its lease, I was introduced to Sensei Gene Monteleone of Suffolk Aikikai, who, along with a group of students from sifu's former school, encouraged me to continue teaching. Suffolk Aikikai presented a unique nurturing environment for upcoming martial arts schools, and in fact is home to several instructors. Patchogue, itself, also presents an opportunity for our teachings to provide aid to the community in general.  

Patch: What do you hope to accomplish with your business?

Evans: Throughout the history of our system, the disciples of Shaolin Lohan have provided a venue for cultures at odds to join in a neutral forum. In China it was the various sects and ethnicities affected by the never-ending struggles for power. In South and Central America, our schools have taught both government soldiers and rebel guerrillas.

In Patchogue, there are several cultures existing side by side, and we believe that through sharing the training floor together, each can learn not only the tolerance about which our civic associations speak, but genuine acceptance of each other. Whether the issue is bullying, xenophobia, or differences of spiritual path, we see Patchogue as a place that can benefit from a system of teaching that promotes an overall awareness of shared humanity and self perfection while having fun in the martial arts classroom. Our goal is to provide the best of traditional martial arts using the most modern techniques in order to provide each student, whether child or adult, with the skills to stand strong for himself, his family, and his community without succumbing to anything that would threaten to harm his mind or body.

Patch: What age/demographics usually take the classes?  

Evans: The Four Gates currently holds classes for kids and adults. Our youth classes, which are fairly evenly split between male and female, range from kindergarten to early teen, with each group within the class separated by age and skill. Our adult classes begin at 16 years of age, with the belief that a student is never too old to start. 

Everyone takes class for their own reasons. We have people who attend simply for the exercise, some who are heavily into the competitive aspects, a few who are dealing with bullying issues, and even some who are exploring the philosophical lessons of the martial arts.     

Patch: What is your favorite and least favorite aspect of running your business?  

Evans: The absolute best aspect of teaching martial arts is seeing that smile on the face of a student who thought they couldn't, but did anyway. It is the quiet, half hidden acknowledgement of success that was earned. In that smile is both the amazement that the student met a goal and the realization that now, through this one small step, anything is possible. That smile, that small twitch of the lip which transcends gender and age, is what lets an instructor know that every bit of the sacrifice made over the years has been worth it.

The least favorite part of running the business is the actual behind-the-scenes office work; flying through the air when throwing a kick or the fast-paced adrenaline rush of the sparring ring may be more what I imagined when I took my first steps into the realm of professional martial arts, but no business can exist solely on the charisma of its public face, and the hours of paperwork and bookkeeping are definitely the counterbalance to what goes on in class.

Patch: How can people reach you?  

Evans: We can be reached by phone @631-921-8850, by email: Michael.E@FourGates.org, or on Facebook www.Facebook.com/FourGatesNY.  We will also be going live with our new website in the very near future www.FourGates.org.

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