Atemi-Ryu JuJitsu has been serving the Miami Lakes community since the early 1980s. Owner and Grand Master Philip “Doc” Chenique was a Miami Lakes resident for 12 to 15 years. Chenique first discovered his love of martial arts before he was even a teenager. At just 7-years-old, he was already training judo at a local YMCA in New York. He began practicing jujitsu six years later.
His first job at 18 was folding cardboard boxes for Key Pharmaceutical in North Dade. At the end of a work day, Chenique already had 1,000 boxes folded and ready to go. His old manager was stunned, the most anyone had done was 500. By the next day, he folded 2,000.
He was promoted to assistant manager and worked full-time for 13 years, teaching jujitsu all the while on the weekends. After being pitched a $10,000 raise at a competing company, he was let go just a year shortly after accepting the offer. His wife Rita did not waste time in offering her support and another job opportunity.
“She said ‘you lost your job didn’t you? Now you can do martial arts for a living’,” expressed Chenique.
Chenique and his wife used money from their savings to make Chenique’s dream come true. They opened his first school of martial arts in 1977, and the rest is history.
In light of the recent tragedy of the Parkland shooting, Chenique will be hosting free self-defense classes for women. Free classes have been a annual tradition at Atemi-Ryu JuJitsu for the last five years.
Classes are by reservation only and will be held at 2091 West 76 Street in Hialeah. They will be held on Saturdays March 10, April 14 and May 12, 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. To make an appointment, call (305) 825-4063.