Alberto R. Echevarria, "Al-Hadi" born and raised in New York is Senior Vice President at Alpha Omega Tae Kwon Do, Inc. This is a non-profit martial arts school located in the South Bronx. The school is a retreat for inner city children and adults to get away from the city streets. Its goal is to develop and foster the spiritual, mental and physical strengths of its students.
Alberto is a veteran of over 30 years in the martial arts and has amassed numerous black belts under a variety of disciplines. In the late 1960’s he joined The Kung Fu School under Sensei John Edward Chong. He also studied Judo for a time before entering the Armed Forces. While in the military he became proficient in Karate, Judo, Jujitsu and other forms of self defense. Among his many accomplishments in the army were numerous citations, including medals of honor. After an impressive 7 year tour of duty, he received an Honorable Discharge.
Since leaving the service he has served as a New York City Law Enforcement Officer where he has also received many honors. During this time, he has devoted himself to increasing his knowledge of the martial arts. He joined The Shotokan Karate school where he earned his 1st Shodan. He then started taking Tae Kwon Do and since then has obtained the rank of 4th Dan and is Kukkiwon Certified. He is also a practitioner in the American Bujinkan Dojo which was founded by Shihan Richard J. Van Donk. He earned the rank of 1st Shodan in Aikido under Sensei Rodriguez. He has also been awarded the rank of Judan by the American Federation of Jujitsu and is certified internationally as a martial arts instructor.
Alberto and other martial artists became part of the first United States Deputy Marshalls for the Indian Territories, were he is the Captain. One of the responsibilities of the deputy is to protect a number of Indian Chiefs and Chieftains. They came together for the very first time in history for a parade on October 9, 1999..
Alberto has dedicated his time to martial arts and his community. He is a pioneer, campaigning to bring martial arts into the public school system with the help of the Sports In Schools Foundation, Inc. His after school martial arts program has been evaluated by Washington DC and the New York Board of Education and has been rated the finest program of its kind in The City of New York. He is the chief instructor of Tae Kwon Do and Aiki Shin Jitsu at a public school in the Bronx, where he teaches with his daughter. He also has black belts teaching in other public schools in the New York area.
Amongst Alberto’s varied interests is scuba diving. He is a certified rescue diver, and is an avid outdoor man and who loves to go camping and horseback riding with his family. He is also a 33rd degree member of the Masonic Order, one of the world’s oldest fraternal organizations. He has also earned a Bachelors Degree in Masonic Sciences from the Masonic College. Alberto is also a devoted family man. He and his wife have five children. Three of which are also martial artists.
