Jude Gore was Class President of the last graduating class of Victory High School in Clarksburg, West Virginia in 1973. In 1977, he received a Bachelor of Music Education Degree from West Virginia Wesleyan College in Buckhannon, West Virginia. After teaching middle school band for two years, he attended Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia and obtained his MA degree in Instrumental Theory and Conducting. Throughout his years of teaching, his various musical groups have received 26 Superior Ratings and 5 Excellent Ratings. Along with teaching music, he became a Certified Public Accountant in 1991. Jude recently retired after 30 years of teaching Band and Orchestra in the West Virgina public school system. He presently runs two corporations that deal with oil, gas and other investments, as well as performing tax services.

Jude is married to Sandra Gore, assistant Black Belt Instructor at Mountaineer Karate Club in Meadowbrook, West Virginia. They have two sons, Edmund Jude Gore, Jr. and Truman Joseph Gore.   Jude Jr. and his wife Jamie are graduates of Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and both are band directors in Pennsylvania. Joseph is a sophomore in the Robert Cook Honors College at IUP.

Jude began his martial arts training in Judo at the Clarksburg, West Virginia YMCA in 1967, at the age of 13, after being badly beaten by a high school bully at a local playground. His instructor was a chemical engineer visiting from Japan to study technologies at the local glass plant. Later in high school, Jude studied Karate and Judo with Earl Smith, a Black Belt in Judo from Hawaii and a black belt student of Sensei John Folsom of Salem, West Virginia.

During his years in college, he studied off and on with various teachers at the school, and one summer vacation was able to study Pai Lum Kung Fu with Sifu Bill Golden.

Jude began his study with Sensei John Folsom, now 8th Dan AKS at Salem Karate Club, Salem, West Virginia, in September of 1990 with his oldest son Jude Jr., who was in 2nd grade at the time. While studying with Mr. Folsom, two senior Black Belts, Sensei Robert Leonard and Sensei Bernard VanHorn, took him under their wings. These two Back Belts gave him special attention, not due to his ability, but because they knew he had a desire to learn, listen, and to do his best. To this day, Sensei Leonard continues to advise and assist Jude in his martial arts career. When time allows, Jude studies Akido, Iaido, and Karate with Sensei Bill King of Weston, West Virginia.

Jude attended Jerry Beasley's Karate College at Radford University for several years where he had the opportunity to participate in workshops by Joe Lewis, Jerry Beasley, Bill Wallace, Steve "Nasty" Anderson, and Michael DePasquale Jr.

Jude Gore, 7th Dan AKS, is the Chief Instructor of the Mountaineer Karate Club in Meadowbrook, West Virginia. He is also Assistant Instructor under Sensei John Folsom, 8th Dan AKS at Salem Karate Club, Salem, West Virginia. Jude has been a member of the AKS since 1990, and was awarded AKS Black Belt of the Year at the 2009 AKS Summer Camp, in Muskegon, Michigan.

Jude is an outdoor enthusiast and an avid fly fisherman. He enjoys riding motorcycles, bird watching, photography, and nature studies.

• 1st Dan  American Karate System, June 15, 1994
• 2nd Dan  American Karate System, March 26, 1997
• 3rd Dan  American Karate System, December 18, 2002
• 4th Dan  American Karate System, June 23, 2004
• 5th Dan  American Karate System, July 18, 2008
• 6th Dan  6th Dan American Karate System, Master Level, July 13, 2012
• 7th Dan  American Karate System, Master Level, July 21, 2017

• 2010  Academy of Masters - Instructor of the Year
• 2009  A.K.S. Black Belt of the Year

Mr. Gore continues to train and learn through his teaching and active involvement in the American Karate System.