Find a way...or make one!
Professional Associations
Sifu Dane Griffith- owner, instructor
Sifu Dane Griffith 忠 北方 斧
3rd Degree Black Sash (Saam Dyuhn)
Ving Tsun Museum Certified Instructor
Shaolin Wing Chun
World Shaolin Wing Chun Martial Arts Federation
Hung Lung Sin Fu Faat Mun Paai
空 龍 善 虎 法 門 派
A "Kung Fu Viking"?
Imagine if a Viking sailed all the way to Ancient China and studied kung fu...
Well, that's kinda what you get with Sifu Dane Griffith.
He is a Viking re-enactor and a regular at the Ohio Renaissance Festival and the Kentucky Highlands Renaissance Faire. He is an enthusiast of Old Norse and an "armchair scholar" of the old Icelandic sagas and speaks Icelandic, Norwegian and passable German. He has a working knowledge of Welsh and several other languages as a result of his heritage and intensive linguistic training in the US Navy. He is an enthusiast of Chinese Wuxia ( 武俠 ) and is a Lore Master of Norse and Slavic mythology.
Sifu Griffith holds a 3rd Degree Black Sash (Saam Dyuhn) in the Shaolin Wing Chun Kung Fu system, and is the owner and instructor and head instructor of Blue Lantern Martial Arts in Elsmere, Kentucky.
He is a student and Disciple of Ving Tsun Museum Hall of Fame inductee Master John Lambert, and a Third Generation Disciple in the Shaolin Wing Chun Paai under his Sigung, Grand Master Benny Meng.
Under Master Lambert's tutelage, Sifu Griffith has competed in several local tournaments, earning Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals in forms and sparring, and in 2019 he competed in The Arnold Schwarzenegger "Battle of Columbus" martial arts tournament in Columbus, Ohio and the Tiger Dragon Kung Fu Warrior Championship in Dayton, Ohio.
In March 2023 he again competed in The Arnold "Battle of Columbus", earning a Silver in advanced forms, being bested for Gold only by his senior kung fu cousin, Sifu Jeevan Sekhar of Meng's Martial Arts of Richmond, IN... but this time he had students of his own competing, bringing Gold, Silver, and Bronze in multiple categories!
He February 2023 he became certified by the Pan American Wushu Federation as a judge in the Wing Chun division. He was awarded his certification by Grand Master Sunny Tang at the Moy Yee Kung Fu School in Brooklyn, NYC.
He is also an in-demand judge with the local Kentucky tournament circuits Bluegrass State Games and EMAC, and the national USA Wushu Kung Fu Federation.
Sifu Griffith's passion is the warrior/philosopher lifestyle and through the concept of the Three Treasures of Shaolin he has found a way to live and to teach this. The ancient Nordic tradition of the Skald embodied the concept of a well-rounded "drengr": a loyal friend, a philosopher, a shaman, a poet/musician, and most importantly- a warrior who defends his family and his community.
In July 2023 he founded Bluegrass Jomsvikings. The Bluegrass Jomsvikings (YOMZ-veeking) is a Viking Age combat and entertainment troupe that utilizes choreography, storytelling, poetry, education and theatrical skits. Inspired by the legendary Jomsvikings and the Eastern Vikings, the Varangians. Based on Historic European Martial Arts (HEMA) and Traditional Chinese Martial Arts (TCMA). With the goal of performing in the local Renaissance festivals and events.
Professionally, he is a surgeon's assistant in a prominent oncology practice in Cincinnati and specializes in Da Vinci surgical robotics.
He is married, a dachshund dad, and a proud US Navy veteran. He lives in Newport, Kentucky in a historic Italianate home built in 1886.
" To use the body as a unified weapon is to move with purpose; the embodiment of the combination of efficiency, effectiveness, and aesthetics. This is made possible by an approach to physical and mental development, and health sustainment. In effect, embodying the Three Treasures of Shaolin: Chan, Health, and Combat." -- Sifu Dane Griffith 忠 北方 斧
"Find a way or make one!!"
Sifu Griffith is a fourth generation disciple of the Yip Man (Ip Man) lineage through his Sifu, Master John Lambert. He is a third generation Shaolin disciple of his Sigung, Grand Master Benny Meng.
Master Lambert is a 3rd Generation Disciple of Grand Master Yip Man. He is a Disciple of his Sifu, Grand Master Benny Meng, a Disciple of Grand Master Moy Yat, who was himself a Disciple of Grand Master Yip Man. The legendary Bruce Lee was a student of Grand Master Ip Man, which in turn- following traditional Wing Chun family association- makes him a Sibaak or "uncle" of Grand Master Benny Meng.
Proud Kung Fu Family
L-R: Sifu Dane Griffith, Sifu Joshua Barfelz, Sifu Michael Dumas, Master John Lambert, Sifu Steve Knopfer, Grand Master Benny Meng, Sifu Randy Schultz, Master Chango Noaks, Sifu Scott Stapleton, Sifu Jeevan Sekhar.
-2022 Shaolin Wing Chun Disciples-
Pan Am Wing Chun Judge
Sifu Dane Griffith became certified as a Pan Am Wing Chun judge at training held at the Moy Yee Kung Fu school in Brooklyn, NYC in February 2023. Here he is being presented his certification by Grand Master Sunny Tang of Pan American Wushu Federation.
Proud Lineage
L-R: Grand Master Yip Man with Bruce Lee; GM Moy Yat with GM Yip Man; GM Moy Yat with GM Benny Meng; GM Benny Meng with Master John Lambert.
Sifu Griffith's background...
Origins
Dane's martial arts career began while in the 7th grade when one of his friends convinced him that they could be ninja's. Like many kids during the 1980's he was heavily influenced by the karate and ninja movies and TV shows of the time.
His parents felt that the martial arts would be good for him (he just wanted to be a ninja!) so he enrolled in Okinawan Kempo Karate at the local YMCA under Sensei Esther Dye, student of Master Frankie McCoy. While in the Navy he was stationed on the island of Guam and he continued his martial arts journey at the Hagatna Dojo of Guam Kyokushin Karate under Senpai Joseph Tedtaotao.
After Honorable Discharge from the US Navy while working through college he gained a wide variety of experiences. He has worked in new home construction, home painting, was a waiter in a German restaurant, a FedEx driver. He has worked security jobs, has been bouncer at a large Atlanta night club and has worked as a waiter, a home painter, and an assembly line painter for a major tractor manufacturer. He even worked a summer in a coal mine in Southern West Virginia.
