“He was an excellent teacher, very knowledgeable, thorough and patient,” was the way in which patron of the Guyana Karate College Varshnie Jagdeo bid farewell to her former sensei Ian Fung.
According to Jagdeo she heard from Presidential guards that a certain “karate master” would be returning from Canada to take up a posting with the Office of the President. Jagdeo said that she was elated to meet this master.
Fung who died suddenly after being diagnosed with diabetes was a founder member of the Guyana Karate College (GKC) and did not live to see his dream of a successful college being fully run.
Sensei Fung who was the holder of the 5th dan belt was praised by not only the patron but also Master Frank Woon-A-Tai who was a teacher of one of the first batches of karate students to be trained locally, and that batch involved Fung.
Meanwhile Jagdeo remembered her training under the tutelage of Fung who she said sharpened her skills in an art she practiced since she was a college student. She recalled that it was upon the intervention of Fung that she met Sensei Woon-A-Tai and his wife, Maureen and also Master Okazaki and was afterward presented with an honorary Black Belt.
Fung who received a master’s send off at the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) compound was interred according to Muslim rites.
Sensei Fung will be missed by many including Master Frank Woon-A-Tai, Master Okazaki, President of the College Reyaz Husein, and Vice President Andrew DeAbreu, among other loyal friends and students.
