Volume 29, number 1/2/3
January/February/March 2015
PNKF DATEBOOK
- Mar 28, PNKF Board, Sat, 3-5pm, Kent.
- Mar 28, Shinsa-In Workshop, Sat, 9am-4pm, Sno-King. Learn the skills to improve being an
examiner for Shinsa. Cost is FREE. Conducted by Jeffrey Marsten. - Apr 4, PNKF Shinpan Seminar, 1-5pm, open keiko 5-6pm, Kent.
- Apr 11, UW Taikai, Sat, 10am, IMA.
- Apr 28, Cherry Blossom, Sat, TBA.
- May 9, PNKF Board, Sat, 3-5pm, Kent.
- May 16, Bellevue Junior Taikai, Sat, 9:30am-3pm.
- Jun 13, Rose City Taikai, Sat, doors open 9am, check-in closes 10am, opening ceremonies 10:15am, PCC Cascade Campus, 705 N. Killingsworth, Portland.
- Jun 26/27/28, 8th US Nito Kendo Seminar, Fri/Sat/Sun TVCC Ontario, Oregon.
- Jul 11, Kodansha Kendo Skill Seminar, Sat, open to 3-5 Dan participants, with focus on performing skills
needed for higher Dan Kendo in preparation for testing, taught by Jeffrey Marsten and Robert Stroud. - Jul 18, PNKF Board, Sat, 3-5pm, Kent.
- Aug 8, PNKF Shinsa, Sat, Iaido 9am-12noon; Kendo 12:30-4pm, open keiko 4-5pm, Kent.
- Sep 19, PNKF Board, Sat, 3-5pm, Kent.
- Sep 26/27, PNKF Iaido Seminar, Sat/Sun, Rain City Fencing, 1776 136th Place NE, Bellevue.
- Oct 3, PNKF Shinpan Seminar, 12noon-4pm, open keiko 4-5pm, Kent.
- Oct 17, Tacoma Taikai, Sat, 10am-4pm, TBA.
- Nov 7, PNKF Taikai, Sat, 9:30am, Kent.
- Nov 21, PNKF Board, Sat, 3-5pm, Kent.
- Dec 12, Kent Taikai, Sat, report time 9am, start 9:30am, Kent.
OTHER DATES
- Apr 11/12, AUSKF Board, Sat/Sun, Denver.
- Apr 17/18/19, Nabeshima Cup, Fri/Sat/Sun, Episcopal School, Dallas.
- May 27/28/29/30/Jun 1, 16WKC, Wed/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon, Nippon Budokan, Tokyo, Japan.
- Jun 18/19/20/21/22, AUSKF Iaido and Jodo Seminar, Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun, San Jose City College.
- Aug 1/2, 5th AUSKF Junior Open National Championships and Youth Seminar, Sat/Sun, Huntington Beach, California, with surprise special guest. Sat, Aug 1: Championships; Sun, Aug 2: Junior Kendo Camp. Huntington Beach, California.
- Nov 14/15, AUSKF Board, Sat/Sun, TBD.
PACIFIC INTERCOLLEGIATE TOURNAMENT – January 24, 2015, UW IMA
Non-Bogu 0-3 Kyu 1st place - Spencer Myrtle, SFU 1st place - David Yun, UW 2nd place - Angela Law, UBC 2nd place - James Borchers, UW 2 Kyu and Above 1st place - Ryota Kuki, UBC 2nd place - Masumitsu Sawaoka, SFU 3rd place - John Magaling, SFU 3rd place - Michael Sean, SFU Teams 1st place - UW A (V.Le, B.Lin, E.DeJong, T.Tagami, C.Blomquist) 2nd place - SFU (J.Ching, M.Sean, C.Cheng, M.Sawaoka, B.Hsu) Ted Davis Fighting Spirit Award - John Magaling, SFU
53rd ANNUAL STEVESTON KENDO TOURNAMENT – February 14, 2015, McMath High School
10 Years and Under 11 to 13 Years 14 to 15 Years
1st place - T. Ariga, Butokuden 1st place - K. Sakumo, Renbu 1st place - E. Lee, Renbu
2nd place - C. Robillard, Steveston 2nd place - R. Kim, Renbu 2nd place - K. Toyokawa, Tacoma
3rd place - A. Ito, Steveston 3rd place - B. Park, Bellevue 3rd place - O. Jeong, Kogakukan
3rd place - R. Nakano, Steveston 3rd place - M. Fukuoka, Tozenji 3rd place - A. Nagasawa, Bellevue
Non-Degree 0-4 Kyu Non-Degree 1-3 Kyu Ladies 1 Dan and Under
1st place - E. Yamashita, Seattle 1st place - H. Shim, Renbu 1st place - J. DeJong, Highline
2nd place - J. Borchers, UW 2nd place - T. McManus, Kent 2nd place - Y. Kim, Renbu
3rd place - O. Young, Renbu 3rd place - J. Ching, SFU 3rd place - C. Cheng, SFU
3rd place - YA Chen, UBC 3rd place - C. Chan, UW 3rd place - Y. Takamizawa, UVic
Ladies 2 Dan and Over 1-2 Dan 3 Dan
1st place - J. Kurahashi, Renbu 1st place - G. Mizutani, Renbu 1st place - T. Hamanaka, Tozenji
2nd place - A. Sugiyama, Ontario 2nd place - J. Stelck, Edmonton 2nd place - R. Asato, Vancouver
2nd place - R. Nakamura, UVic 3rd place - S. O'Sullivan, Steveston 3rd place - V. Vulfson, Northwest
3rd place - J. Chen, Sno-King 3rd place - C. Ruiz, Spokane 3rd place - A. Lee, Vancouver
4 Dan and Above
1st place - D. Ara, Renbu
2nd place - T. Ariga, Butokuden
3rd place - S. Kamata, Ontario
3rd place - R. Tamaru, Ontario
Junior Team Senior Team
1st place - Renbu A (H.Chun, K.Sakumo, 1st place - Team Canada Men (T.Hamanaka, T.Yamada,
I.Kim, E.Lee, R.Kim ) R.Tamaru, M.Raymond, S. Kamata)
2nd place - Bellevue (B.Park, K.McManus, 2nd place - Team BC (A.Asato, A.Lee,
M.Blechschmidt, A.Nagasawa, M.Ohata) T.Okitsu, E.Kita, S.Jung)
3rd place - Renbu B (K.Squance, Y.Lee, 3rd place - Steveston A (S.O'Sullivan, B.Chung,
I.Fujita, M.Homma, E.Fujita) N.Nakano, T.Kondo, I.Takagaki)
3rd place - Tozenji (N.Kono, A.Shimizu 3rd place - Team Canada Ladies (MS.Ma, A.Sugiyama,
M.Fukuoka, K.Kono, S.Takahashi) J.Kurahashi, H.Yamada, A.Fukushima)
Sportsmanship Pledge - Diane Wang Consul General of Japan S. Okada Trophy - tbd
38th ANNIVERSARY HIGHLINE MUDANSHA CHALLENGE CUP – March 14, 2015, White Center
Mudansha Yudansha 1st place - JW Chen, Bellevue 1st place - B. Lin, UW 2nd place - C. Ogier, UW 2nd place - M. DeJong, Highline 3rd place - E. Lam, Everett 3rd place - V. Le, UW 3rd place - A. Miller, Portland 3rd place - S. Stern, RenMa 4th place - V. DeBellis, Portland 4th place - C. Chan, UW 4th place - A. Law, Sno-King 4th place - D. McLean, Portland Teams 1st place - UW, 51 points 2nd place - Portland, 29 points 3rd place - Bellevue, 24 points Highline Ki Award = Outstanding spirit leader - Brian McCarry Voted in by membership and only given out sparingly
19th HARVARD/RADCLIFFE SHORYUHAI KENDO TOURNAMENT – March 21/22, 2015, Cambridge
Teams 1st place - NYU A (HSKim, A.Feng, C.Smith, T.Whetten, SHChoi) 2nd place - UCLA A (A.Tseng, H.Miyawaki, H.Choi, J.Song, J.Chan) 3rd place - UW (V.Le, B.Lin, E.DeJong, C.Blomquist, T.Tagami) 3rd place - UCSB A (J.Leung, R.Urai, D.Williams, R.Ichimura, D.Shimokawa) Individuals 1st place - Naonori Suto, UCSD 2nd place - Damian Williams, UCSB 3rd place - Philip Kwon, Bergen CC 3rd place - Viet Nguyen, UCSD
57th ANNUAL CALIFORNIA NORTH/SOUTH TOURNAMENT – April 17, 2011, Leigh HS, San Jose
10 and Under 11 to 13 Years 1st place - E. Kim, SCKF Torrance 1st place - P. Ikeda, NCKF San Mateo 2nd place - J. Huang, NCKF San Jose 2nd place - N. Suzuki, SCKF Costa Mesa 3rd place - M. Hong, NCKF Salinas 3rd place - B. Hur, SCKF Torrance 3rd place - N. Yu, SCKF Covina 3rd place - E. Chen, NCKF San Jose 14 to 17 Years Adult Kyu 1st place - E. Offutt, SCKF Sho Tokyo 1st place - N. Dyer, NCKF Salinas 2nd place - K. Tohmon, NCKF Palo Alto 2nd place - J. Chung, SCKF OCB 3rd place - M. Sugiyama, SCKF Sho Tokyo 3rd place - D. Goleta, NCKF Oakland 3rd place - K. Roberts, NCKF San Francisco 3rd place - E. Choi, SCKF Torrance Women 1-2 Dan 1st place - K. Kikunaga, NCKF San Jose 1st place - D. Kumagai, SCKF Torrance 2nd place - E. Kim, SCKF Gedatsu 2nd place - K. Mizobe, SCKF Sho Tokyo 3rd place - E. Takami, NCKF Berkeley 3rd place - S. Park, NCKF San Jose 3rd place - S. Domen, SCKF Norwalk 3rd place - M. Uto, NCKF Salinas 3-4 Dan 5 Dan and Above 1st place - J. Hatakeyama, SCKF Torrance 1st place - J. Brown, SCKF Torrance 2nd place - K. Umeda, NCKF San Jose 2nd place - H. Ichimura, NCKF Palo Alto 3rd place - Y. Hamamura, SCKF Norwalk 3rd place - E. Anderson, SCKF Sho Tokyo 3rd place - B. Joo, NCKF San Jose Seniors Kantosho 1st place - M. Harada, NCKF San Mateo Youth - S. Tada, Sho Tokyo 2nd place - A. Mizunoue, NCKF Oakland Women - A. Dong, SCKF Costa Mesa 3rd place - K. Lee, SCKF Chuo Yudansha - K. Chiba, NCKF San Jose 3rd place - C. Park, NCKF San Jose Youth Team won by SCKF Women Team won by SCKF Kodansha Team won by SCKF Yudansha Team won by NCKF
PASSAGE
Yosuke Joe Maita
One of the earliest members of the PNKF, dating back to the days when it was known as the Washington
State Kendo Federation, Kendo 4th Dan Yosuke Joe Maita, passed away peacefully in South Bend, Washington, on
December 11, 2014. Born April 28, 1933 in Tokyo to Yoshiji and Kimi Maita, the third of six children, he
received his bachelor’s degree at Hokkaido University, and went on to grad school as a first officer on the
training ship Oshoromaru. In 1959 he accepted a job working for his relative Jerry Yamashita in Purdy,
Washingon. On February 17, 1969 he married Mariko Maeshima. After working in Purdy for twelve years, he
moved to Coast Seafood Company in Quicene, famous for oysters, and later was promoted to the main office in
South Bend. Well-known in the Ki Aikido community and a close personal friend and avid golfing buddy of the
great Yoshihiko Hirata Sensei, the direct student of Morihei Ueshiba and Shinichi Suzuki, Maita Sensei
memorably showed up on August 23, 1980 with daughter Chris and her little boys at a large Aikido seminar at
Ford Worden Port Townsend. All the spouse kenshi could enjoy a good tough keiko with him. He played golf
daily regardless of the weather at the Willapa Harbor Golf Course, and it was here that the celebration of
his life was held on January 10, 2015. Our deepest condolences to his wife Mariko, daughter Chris, son
Sidney, grandchildren, two younger sisters, one younger brother, and large extended family.
Arthur Ichiro Murakami
The PNKF lost a loyal and devoted friend and faithful supporter when Kendo Kyoshi 7th Dan and Iaido 6th
Dan Arthur Ichiro Murakami passed away peacefully on January 14, 2015. Born December 23, 1929 in Long Beach,
California, to Nisei parents Kazuo Harvey Murakami and Yomiko Inouye Murakami, in 1935 he moved to his
grandparents’ vineyard in Florin, and in 1937 to Lomita. His Kendo career began in 1937 when his Grandfather
Kato took him to study with Takeno Sensei at Redondo Beach. In February 1941 he became a rare Sansei Kibei,
when his grandparents took him to Hiroshima for school, along with his brother Toshio Eugene and cousin Sayoko Lois Yagi, where he attended Noboricho Grammar School
and Koryo High School, while continuing his Kendo.
On August 6, 1945, his brother was in the mountains with his schoolmates, but Murakami Sensei had been
left back at the school in Ujina because he’d stepped on a nail the day before. He was about 2.5 miles from
ground zero when he saw the atomic bomb drop. The blast blew him through an open door, and that’s what
saved him. A building collapsed on Sayoko, but she was rescued too. The grandparents passed away later from
radiation poisoning.
Meantime, the parents were interned in a series of relocation camps, and on May 8, 1947 the three
children arrived back in the US. He attended high school, and graduated from East LA Junior College. On
June 24, 1949, he volunteered for the US Army, and served as a combat medic in the Korean War, continuing
after the war in the 155 Station Hospital in Yokohama, and it was here that he met his wife Lena Hisako
Takahashi, and they married June 1, 1953.
Due to Kendo being prohibited following World War Two, Murakami Sensei practiced Judo and Karate until
invited back to the re-started Kendo by Yutaka Kubota Sensei in 1960, and there at Denker Playground he had
the immense good fortune to become a student of the great Torao Mori Sensei who profoundly influenced his
Kendo from then on. In 1965 Murakami Sensei joined the SCKF, was treasurer for 19 years, then Vice
President, and President, serving on the board continuously for 50 years. He has also been the AUSKF Vice
President of Promotion and Examinations, and President 2006 through 2008, in 2009 honored by the FIK as Vice
President of the America Zone, in which capacity he cheerfully traveled all over the hemisphere.
Much loved and cherished in the Korean community because of his service in the Korean War, his outreach
in greater LA to the Korean Kumdo clubs and members has been a huge service to the entire Kendo community.
He always attended the large festive annual Gwangbokjeol picnic celebrating Korea’s liberation from the
Japanese, and was highly honored there, proudly wearing his Korean War Veteran caps.
Closer to home for us, the PNKF frequently benefitted from his special commitment to Iaido, as well as
Kendo, of course, as he visited here often to encourage us. Our deepest condolences to his wife Hisako,
daughter Julia Mitsuko, son Timothy Kazuo and wife Norma, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and large
extended family.
SHINKYU SHINSA
PNNF NAGINATA SHINSA, February 7, 2015, Mercer Island Community Center
5TH KYU: Andrew Chor (PNNF). 4TH KYU: Jonathan Chan (PNNF). 3RD KYU: Kristin Wyatt (PNNF). 2ND
KYU: Michelle You (PNNF). 1ST KYU: Nell Shamrell-Harrington (PNNF), Akane Yoshikawa (PNNF),
Kyoko Yoshikawa (PNNF).
PNKF IAIDO SHINSA, February 28, 2015, Tyee Educational Complex, SeaTac
3RD KYU: Callie Anderson
(Everett), Thane Mittelstadt (AiShinKai), Victor Whitman (Seattle). 2ND KYU: Lora Berger (RMKIF), Stuart
Hagler (Obukan), Robert Neff (Tonbo). 1ST KYU: Francis Maier (Everett). 2ND DAN: Benjamin Cassel
(RenMa), Anh Trieu (AiShinKai), Masami Hill (Tonbo), Ryuichi Shimizu (Seattle). 3RD DAN: Matthew Gaylord
(Seattle).
PNKF KENDO SHINSA, February 28, 2015, Tyee Educational Complex, SeaTac
5TH KYU: Ffion Mabale
(Seattle), Eugene Kim (Seattle), Isabella Lee (Federal Way), Nagato Orita (Seattle) 4TH KYU: Kasey Kitchel
(Sno-King), Simon Lee (Federal Way), Josh Kim (Federal Way), Kendall Foley (Sno-King), Catherine Park (Bellevue),
Brandon Nguyen (Northwest). 3RD KYU: Jonah Redaja (Edmonds), Vashon Kirkman (Edmonds), Spencer Kua (UW),
Carlos Matutes (Idaho), Phong Nguyen (Northwest), William Simpson (Obukan), Nik Pershing (UW), Rick Shibata (UW),
Hien Nguyen (Edmonds), Tyler Yamashita (Seattle), David Nash (Edmonds), Yinghe Chen (UW), James Borchers (UW),
Rahul Devanarayanan (UW), Stephen Ting (Northwest), Michael Ciesielski (Spokane). 2ND KYU: Maya Blechschmidt
(Bellevue), Soo-Hyung Kim (Seattle), Max Miller (Spokane), Dylan Monaco (OSU), Yuriko Lee (Obukan), Fritz Borchardt
(Edmonds), Addison Knappett (OSU), Peter Palmer (Northwest). 1ST KYU: Soohmin Lee (Bellevue), Andrew Yuen
(Seattle), Leo Shibata (Bellevue), Chris Mackay (Alaska), Corey Chan (UW), Brandon Sweezea (Northwest), Isaac Deal
(Spokane), Murray Bratland (Bellevue), Trinh Ho (Northwest) 1ST DAN: Keeley McManus (Kent), Jane Higa
(Bellevue), David Altug (UW), Kenneth Gordon (Obukan), Kevin Tsang (UW), Nathan McRae (Spokane), Jacob Huegel
(OSU), Van Le (UW), Terry McManus (Kent). 2ND DAN: Dan Park (Bellevue), Tiarnan Marsten (Kent), Rio
Takayanagi (Obukan), Jennifer DeJong (Highline), Connor Blomquist (UW). 3RD DAN: Erica DeJong (UW), Melanie
DeJong (Highline), Shuhei Nakagawa (Idaho), Chris Ruiz (Spokane), Takao Yamashita (Seattle).
THE LAST WORD
Conversation was also interspersed with questions about my progress in school, comments about weddings
and funerals in Wahiawa, and sometimes my family. “Your mother understands more than she realizes about
Kendo,” he commented, and then chuckled and added, “more than you know about it, yet.” I’d be incredulous,
but did not dare question or contradict him. “Just look at her flower arrangements, her sewing or her quiet
performance of the tea ceremony. She performs the tea ceremony as if it is the last thing she will do in
this life; extending hospitality to another person is a particular occasion never to recur in one’s
lifetime, so she attempts to make the occasion perfect. Notice her tranquility and stillness in the midst of
all of you children. Then you’ll see.” This was his explanation, but I didn’t see, and Miura Sensei had
neither a wife or children. Nonetheless, I’d nod agreement, long ago having abandoned doubting him. I did
pay more attention to my mother, too, admiring her calm attention to every detail in our household. Perhaps,
she, too, was a master, I thought after Miura Sensei told me the story of a tea ceremony master who was
challenged by a Samurai to a sword duel.
–Rod Nobuto Omoto,
Autobiography, edited by Charlotte Omoto, 2014, p. 13. Available as free download at lulu.com.
Kenyu – Monthly Newsletter of the Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation Kenyu Online
Tom Bolling, Editor – 7318 23rd Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98115