The words "friendship," "cooperation" and "partnership" are posted on the walls of Hicksville's Okinawa Budokan Karate School. Young students punch and crabwalk during a lesson. Some parents stay and watch, cheering and applauding, such as when a boy executes a summersault. At the end of a lesson, the students joke with their Sensei Anthony Buscemi. One even asks his mother if he can come back sooner for his next lesson.

The Okinawa Budokan Karate School, which celebrates its first anniversary at its South Broadway location this September, is led by Buscemi, a Hicksville native and sixth degree black belt. Buscemi has brought this time-honored tradition to his hometown for over 20 years. Male and female students from age 3 to adult learn from Buscemi and his staff under the philosophy of those three words posted on the wall: friendship, cooperation and partnership.

"I love martial arts and I study it very seriously." Buscemi told the Hicksville Illustrated News. "It is important to know that this school is a traditional karate school with hundreds and hundreds of years of history and tradition behind it."

Buscemi explained that the karate tradition taught in his school stems from Okinawa, a Japanese province. After trading with China, the Okinawa people were first introduced to Kung Fu. They soon created Karate, a derivative of Kung Fu. According to Buscemi, the Okinawa people needed to develop karate "on the cuff" to disguise it from the Samurai. In doing so, the Okinawa people invented "Kata" or fighting forms. "Kata to the average person looks like a dance but in reality, you're practicing strikes and kicks." Buscemi said.

Buscemi said his school is one of only a handful to still teach in the Kata fashion. "From every Kata or form, there's a practical application within that form. Although you're practicing a form, you're practicing real-life defense techniques in those forms. That's what makes us different than almost every other karate school," he said. "We practice these applications from the Kata. Most people don't. What they learn in self-defense techniques are certain one-step drills that they come up with themselves. Everything we do is based off of forms." Buscemi added that "forms work to allow you to practice technique in general, which then allows you to be able to adapt to more situations."

The school teaches Shorin-Ryu (meaning "small pine forest") and Shido-Kan (meaning "house of the way of the Samurai") - a branch of karate stemming from Shorin-Ryu. Buscemi said it is the teaching of Shido-Kan that gives his school the direct lineage to hundreds of years of Okinawa teaching. The Shido-Kan karate taught at Okinawa Budokan is based on friendship, cooperation and partnership. Buscemi said that there is a notion that people come to a karate school and get yelled at, beaten and pushed around. He said that his school is absolutely not like that.

"I'm here to help you to learn, to accomplish your goals and do the things you want to do. Let karate be what it is to you. It is very different for each person. People want to start karate for many reasons. What I have to do is find out what's the reason the person wants to start karate," Buscemi said.

Buscemi was awarded a Shibu Dojo Certificate, which means he is officially recognized and certified by Okinawa to teach Okinawan Karate. Buscemi emphasized that what he teaches is based on hundreds of years of tradition and it is that tradition that enables his school to continue to grow. "Because you have this history behind you, we have so much content to teach. My average student has been here 10 years. I have students with 20, 18, 15 years of training with me and in this style. We don't want beginners to come in and then beginners to leave," he said. "We're top-heavy. We have more higher-belts than lower-belts because people stay with us so much longer."

According to Buscemi, the philosophy of his school is to allow anyone and anybody to come in and learn martial arts. From mental benefits such as better discipline, focus, control, concentration and awareness, there are many ways karate can improve one's life. "Karate teaches you what you need to know, it gets you in the shape you need to be in. And it is a very mature art," he said. "It's very adaptable for kids and adults. About one third of the school is women and/or girls. Which means this works for everyone. It really is a very generic type of karate and allows everyone to develop at their own pace." He added that flexibility, muscle tone, stamina and coordination can all be improved with his teachings.

Tracy Mastakouris, of Glen Cove, has two sons enrolled in the school. She said that ever since they began to study karate they have learned to respect their bodies and health more and are more disciplined and focused. Mastakouris said she drives 30 minutes each way to Okinawa Budokan because "It is the best school we've found. It's the best school because of the qualifications of Sensei (Buscemi). No one else has a sixth degree black belt. My children are really learning from him."

As a sixth degree black belt, Buscemi said it is a higher achievement than he ever thought he'd reach. While still a student himself, he says it's the rewards of teaching karate, that he really appreciates. "I get more respect and pleasant surprises each day teaching here. Whether it is from lighting a candle at a sweet 16 or being invited to one of my student's weddings. It's the whole fellowship. That's what is really important."

The family atmosphere of the school is what Buscemi strives for. A Hicksville resident for over 35 years, Buscemi coordinates picnics, tournaments and holiday parties at his karate school. "If we make this a fun and educational environment where you can develop some friends, you're going to want to keep coming," he said. "I'm here to guide a person through their journey. Karate is about the journey; it's not about an end result. We have so much content, so much to learn. I've been studying 25 years, and when I get with my teacher, I feel like a little kid. It is because he has so much to teach." Buscemi said. "It's always constant learning, fine-tuning, making better and that's what we're all about. You don't have to be living and breathing this 24 hours a day. It's not a religion. Somebody wants to come in here, learn and study; they're going to become a good martial artist and, in turn, they'll be very adaptive at protecting themselves. Probably in about 6-8 months of training you'll be able to protect yourself. But once you're able to protect yourself, then you're going to want to learn more and more."