Credit: Chris Haston/WBTV
Credit: Chris Haston/WBTV
At 13, Wall started Golden Age Karate, a nonprofit to help seniors build self-esteem, feel empowered and promote a social, happy and healthy lifestyle.
He was inspired by his sister to help others after she started Polished Girlz, a group of volunteer nail artists that painted nails of those who were special needs or hospitalized. His mother was also a nurse who helped people daily.
“When I got my black belt, I realized I wanted to help the community,” Wall said. “I started it and never looked back.”
Wall started learning karate when he was around 6 at Roll On Martial Arts on Gettysburg Avenue in Dayton. He said he and his dad wanted to do something different than the other kids at that time.
“I went in there and did a little high kick and (the instructor) was like, “yeah this is the sport for you,” so I stuck with it ever since," Wall said.
At 10, he was inducted into the Martial Arts Hall of Fame and received his black belt in 2018.
“I just enjoy the discipline aspect of martial arts,” Wall said. “It allows you to be calm and collective in stressful situations.”
The first senior living community he started teaching karate to was Friendship Village in Dayton. He decided to focus on seniors because his grandmother was always happy when he was around. When he wasn’t, she felt lonely and isolated. He thought if she was feeling like that, others had to feel like that too.
Wall starts each class by getting his students stretched out and warmed up. They then go through some basic training such as learning how to hold fists, how to punch, how to block and how to kick.
At the end, they have a chance to try what they learned by punching Wall himself.
“That’s their favorite part,” Wall said. “They love to beat me up.
He teaches about 10 seniors in a class ranging from 65 to 90 with different types of mobility.
“My favorite part is just seeing the joy on their faces and knowing that I’m making an impact on others' lives,” Wall said.
Wall not only teaches classes once or twice a month, he also stops by and visits the seniors he has become close to. During the holidays, he adopted over 200 seniors and bought them Christmas gifts.
Credit: Submitted Photo
Credit: Submitted Photo
He continues to teach karate at Friendship Village, in addition to Omega Senior Lofts and Mad River Manor in Dayton.
Wall is a 2023 graduate from Chaminade Julienne Catholic High School. He is currently a sophomore at the University of Cincinnati studying finance and media production. Upon graduation, he wants to go into investment banking or public affairs. He also has dreams of becoming an executive producer.
He plans to take the discipline aspect of martial arts and apply it to his future career.
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This is not Wall’s first TV appearance. His efforts have been featured on other talk shows such as “The Doctors,” “The Kelly Clarkson Show” and “Tamron Hall Show.”
For more information about Golden Age Karate, visit the nonprofit’s Facebook or Instagram pages (@GoldenAgeKarate).
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