News

Kenyu – September/October/November/December 2019

Posted on 2019/11/24 by omb

Volume 33, number 9/10/11/12 September/October/November/December 2019

PNKF DATEBOOK

January 2020
* 1/11: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, Sat, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle. * 1/25-1/26: FIK Kendo Referee Seminar for the American Zone (FY 2019), Sat-Sun, British Columbia Institute of Technology Athletic Gymnasium, 3700 Willingdon Avenue, Burnaby, BC V5G 3H2 Canada. Accommodation: Delta Hotel by Marriott Burnaby Conference Center, 4331 Dominion Street, Burnaby, BC V5G 1C7. – Participants should be members of FIK affiliated organizations in principle. – Kendo 5 Dan or higher, and practice Kendo regularly. – No age limit to participate.
February 2020
* 2/1: PNKF Kata Seminar, Sat, Kent. * 2/8: Steveston Taikai, Sat, 9am, McMath High School, 4251 Garry Street, Richmond BC. * 2/14-16: East Coast Iaido Winter Seminar, Fri, Ken Zen in NYC, and Sat-Sun, CERC Indoor Gym in Jersey City, NJ. * 2/29: PNKF Kendo Shinsa, Sat, Chinook.
March 2020
* 3/14: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle. * 3/21: Highline Taikai, Sat, doors open 8:30am, opening ceremonies 9:30am, White Center Community Center, 1321 SW 102nd Street, Seattle. * 3/28: PNKF Shinpan Seminar, Sat, Seattle, time and venue TBD.
April 2020
* 4/4: AUSKF Junior Open Championships, Sat, Marina High School, 15871 Springdale Street, Huntington Beach, California 92649. http://auskf-jrnationals.com/. * 4/18: UW Taikai, Sat, Intramural Activities (IMA), UW campus, Montlake Boulevard NE. * 4/1??: PNKF Iaido Seminar and Shinsa, Sat, TBD. * 4/26: Cherry Blossom demo, Sun, Seattle Center. * 4/??: Vancouver Taikai.
May 2020
* 5/2: Rose City Taikai, Sat, Portland, time and venue TBD. * 5/9: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle. * 5/16: Bellevue Junior Taikai, Sat, 9:30am start time, Highland Park Community Center, 14224 Bel-Red Road, Bellevue.
June 2020
* Probable 13th Annual US Nito Kendo Summer Camp, venue, date, and time TBD.
July 2020
* 7/18: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
August 2020
* 8/15: PNKF Kendo Shinsa, Sat, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
September 2020
* 9/12: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle. * 9/25-9/27: PNKF Iaido Seminar, Tournament, and Shinsa.
October 2020
* 10/3: Kent Taikai, Sat TBD, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
* 10/17 or 10/24: Tacoma Taikai, Sat, TBD.
November 2020
* 11/7: PNKF Taikai, Kent. * 11/14-15: AUSKF Board meeting. * 11/15: AUSKF Kodansha Shinsa. * 11/21: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
May 2021
* 5/27-30: 18WKC, Thu-Sun, Paris, France.

PNKF BOARD NEWS

At their November 16, 2019 meeting, the 2019/2020 Board was seated, and Officers were elected. President – CJ Chaney (Sno-King), Vice President – Doug Imanishi (Seattle), Treasurer – Mary DeJong (Highline), Secretary – Tom Bolling (Bellevue), UW Advisor – CJ Chaney.

Other Board members are: Masa Ando (Alaska), Jonathan Bannister (AiShinKai), Sean Blechschmidt (Bellevue), Steve Choi (Portland), Karin Fedderson (Tacoma), Mark Frederick (Northwest), Jane Higa (UW), Trinh Ho (Northwest), Bryan Imanishi, Michael Mabale (Seattle), Curtis Marsten (Kent), Tiarnan Marsten (Kent), Vicki Marsten (Federal Way), George Nakayama (Portland), Ed Olson (Tonbo), Chris Ruiz (Spokane), Russ Sinclair (Spokane), Blake Sprenger (Obukan), Stephen Ting (Northwest), Mark Verrey, Frank Wessbecher (Highline), David Yotsuuye (Bellevue).

The PNKF has been notified by M. Kajitani, AUSKF Vice-President for Promotion, that the AUSKF will require Bokutoni Yoru Kendo Kihonwaza Renshuho (BKKR) 1-9 be added to the Shinsa for 2nd Kyu. Official starting date is April 1, 2020, so this requirement will be added to our August 15, 2020 Kendo Shinsa. At the Shinsa, we are allowed to provide assistance to the candidate during the test, and this is not intended to fail anyone. The whole purpose is to integrate BKKR into regular Kendo practice. We plan to do a demo of this BKKR 1-9 at our February 29, 2020 Shinsa.

2019 PNKF IAIDO TAIKAI – September 29, 2019, Rain City Fencing Center, Bellevue, Washington

Sportsmanship Pledge – Derek Reynolds, Alaska
Mudansha 0-1 Kyu                          Yudansha 1-2 Dan 
1st place – Brian Burton, AiShinKai       1st place – Alden Vanderspek, AiShinKai
2nd place – Derek Reynolds, Alaska        2nd place – Thane Mittelstaedt, AiShinKai
3rd place – James Thorne, AiShinKai       3rd place – Nikhil Varma, Seattle
3rd place – Abigail Benoit, Tonbo         3rd place – Sean Horita, Musokai

Yudansha 3-4 Dan (Noguchi Cup)
1st place – Lynn Miyauchi, Musokai
2nd place – Hans Andersen, AiShinKai
3rd place – Loren Nishimura, Spokane
3rd place – Christopher Parkins, Ren Ma
Fighting Spirit – Loren Nishimura, Spokane

2019 HAWAII STATE KENDO CHAMPIONSHIPS, September 29, 2019, Halawa Gym

Yonenbu                                   Shonenbu
1st place – Shu Etsumi, Kenshikan         1st place – Noa Mulder, Wahiawa
2nd place – Maiki Uda, Kenshikan          2nd place – Gavin Ushio, Lihue
3rd place – Hayato Matsuda, Kenshikan     3rd place – Malia Stachiewicz, Kenshikan
3rd place – Blair Musashi, Daijingu       3rd place – Junsei Tanizaki, Kenshikan

Seinenbu                                  Women’s Open
1st place – Gabriel Hart, Lihue           1st place – Zidi Hiramoto, Kenshikan
2nd place – Neil Shimabukuro, Aiea        2nd place – Megan Kirk, Wahiawa
3rd place – Jacie Matsumoto, Kenshikan    3rd place – Tina Kaku, Kenshikan
3rd place – Mari Shimabukuro, Aiea        3rd place – Jacie Matsumoto, Kenshikan

Yudansha 1-3                              Yudansha 4 and Above
1st place – Yuta Shimohara, Kenshikan     1st place – Makio Koga, Myohoji
2nd place – Vincent Koyo Yancey, Daijingu 2nd place – Bert Shibuya, Seibukan
3rd place – Nicklas Matsumoto, Kenshikan  3rd place – Carl Nakamura, Mililani
3rd place – Daiki Miura, Myohoji          3rd place – Dan Liu, Meikyokan

Grand Championship Winner
Hyun Kim, Kenshikan

18th LONGHORN INVITATIONAL TEAM KENDO TAIKAI – October 12, 2019, Austin, Texas

 
1st place – New York Kenshinkai A (N. Alcorn, Mat. Schultzel, M. Hamasaki, P. Winters, CH Huang)
2nd place - Asociacion de Kendo Nuevo Leon (A. Wong, R. Sevilla, I. Rodriguez, M. Gonzales, C. Martinez)
3rd place – Houston Kendo Kyokai A (Y. Kimura, A. Darrah, J. Kan, D. Choe, T. Nguyen)
3rd place – Dallas/Ft. Worth A (Y. Cho, K. Yamamoto, A. Navarro, R. Solitano, JK Kim, Z. Gonzales)

Longhorn Awards
Takashi Yabuta, 2D, San Diego Kendo Bu/UCSD, San Diego, California 
Carlos Martinez, 2D, Asociacion de Kendo del Estado de Nuevo Leon, Monterrey, Mexico

20th INVITATIONAL TACOMA KENDO TAIKAI – October 26, 2019, Curtis High School, University Place

9 and Under                               10-12 Years Kyu
1st place – Saiichi Johnson, Seattle      1st place – Juah Paik, Tacoma
2nd place – Nicklas Frederick, Tacoma     2nd place – Nicholas Chu, Bellevue
3rd place – Strummer Maxfield-Matsumoto,  3rd place – Nina Underhill, Northwest
              Highline
13-15 Years Kyu                           16 Years and Up Round Robin
1st place – Jonathan Yu, Northwest        1st place – Danny Chung, Cascade
2nd place – Devin Chung, Cascade          2nd place – Aaron Fung, Cascade
3rd place – Sean Kim, Seattle             3rd place – Catherine Park, Bellevue

1st Dan
1st place – Keichi Underhill, Northwest
2nd place – Josh Kim, Federal Way
3rd place – Kyle Hale, Seattle

Junior Teams
1st place – Cascade A (John Ryu, Ai Fukuda, Devin Chung)
2nd place – Northwest 1 (Nina Underhill, Isabella Lee, Jonathan Yu)

Senior Teams
1st place – Mixed Senior (Joshua Paik, Josh Kim, Danny Chung)
2nd place – Northwest (Keiji Underhill, Simon Lee, Koki Takamatsu)

National Anthem Singer – Juah Paik
Sportsmanship Pledge – Daniel Kao
Shinpan Cho – David S. Yotsuuye

45th ANNUAL PNKF KENDO TOURNAMENT – November 2, 2019, Kent Commons Recreation Center

4 Dan and Above                           10 Years and Under
1st place – R. Asato, Vancouver           1st place – KA Yoshimura, Renbu
2nd place – B. Imanishi, Cascade          2nd place – M. Ishizuka, Youshinkan
3rd place – K. Chun, Hawaii               3rd place – Y. Asaoka, Youshinkan
3rd place – T. Hamanaka, Tozenji          3rd place – A. Kobayashi, Youshinkan

11-12 Years                               13-15 Years
1st place – N. Son, Renbu                 1st place – K. Squance, Renbu
2nd place – KE Yoshimura, Renbu           2nd place – Kei. Underhill, Northwest
3rd place – J. Paik, Tacoma               3rd place – S. Tominaga, Renbu
3rd place – F. Benson, Youshinkan         3rd place – Y. Lee, Renbu

Women Kyu                                 Women Dan
1st place – K. McIntosh, Federal Way      1st place – T. Koike, UBC
2nd place – C. Park, Bellevue             2nd place – C. Takeuchi, Youshinkan
3rd place – J. Oh, Highline               3rd place – Z. Hiromoto, Hawaii
3rd place – J. Lee, UW                    3rd place – B. Park, UW

0-4 Kyu                                   3-1 Kyu
1st place – M. Tu, Seattle                1st place – A. Kim, Bellevue
2nd place – R. Long, UBC                  2nd place – D. Chung, Cascade
3rd place – C. Chu, UW                    3rd place – B. Wong, UW
3rd place – A. Yang, Bellevue             3rd place – C. Slater, UW

1-2 Dan                                   3 Dan
1st place – K. Higo, Renfrew              1st place – K. Yancey, Hawaii
2nd place – K. Fukuda, Cascade            2nd place – F. Wessbecher, Highline
3rd place – B. Sprenger, Obukan           3rd place – M. Murakami, UW
3rd place – D. Yao, Steveston             3rd place – M. Price, Seattle

Junior Team
1st place - Renbu A (N. Son, K. Squance, H. Homma, C. Liao, Y. Lee)
2nd place - Steveston A (J. Hung, C. Robillard, L. Takahae, R. Nakano, D. Chui)
3rd place - Steveston B (J. Lam, T. Kwong, E. Chui, E. Nakano, D. Lam)
3rd place - Northwest (I. Lee, N. Underhill, J. Yu, Kei. Underhill, E. Dong)

Senior Team
1st place – Youshinkan (A. Kobayashi, Y. Asaoka, F. Benson, T. Okurano, O. Benson)
2nd place - Renbu (A. Son, F. Yoshimura, R. Kim, O. Young, E. Kita)
3rd place - Hawaii (K. Chun, K. Yancey, D. Miura, Z. Hiromoto, A. Fujimoto)
3rd place - Bellevue (N. Smith, M. Blechschmidt, L. Tsybert, A. Samkange, B. Lee)

Taikai Co-Chairs – CJ Chaney and Taryn Imanishi
Shinpan Cho – Jeffrey Marsten
Court Manager - David S. Yotsuuye
Sportsmanship Pledge – Josh Kim, Federal Way
Shoji Trophy – Keiji Underhill, Northwest

PASSAGE

Terrance Allan McManus finally lost his protracted and extremely painful battle, first with throat cancer, and then with acute myeloid leukemia on September 8, 2019. Born July 22, 1961 at Madigan Army Medical Center, Terry had recently celebrated his 58th birthday with an enthusiastic spirit of optimism in anticipation of a bone marrow transplant. Terry’s older daughter Keeley Noel started Kendo at Kent when she was seven, and Terry became frustrated because she wouldn’t do what he told her, so finally when she was twelve he gave in and started Kendo himself. We soon saw in him clear reflection of Keeley’s characteristically tough, stubborn, resilient, never-say-die kind of Kendo. Jolly, in-your-face, full-tilt streetfighter type of Kendo which took no prisoners, and done with a laugh, he didn’t cut himself any slack either, frequently dislocating his right shoulder and then just popping it right back in, and continuing the match without missing a beat. After a stint in the Marines right out of high school, Terry became a widely-admired airline purser flight attendant, first with Northwest, and then for many years with Delta, it was in this profession where he met his beloved beautiful wife Niki, who also shared that calling. Keeley was soon followed by a second beautiful daughter, Kylee Alaina, currently a star athlete with the BOOST Volleyball Club. Based all his life in Tukwila, Terry traveled extensively in the Kendo world, as far as Osaka, Taipei, Kaohsiung, Amsterdam, Mexico, Texas, California, Canada, making friends everywhere in our global Kendo community. Our deepest condolences to the family.

SHINKYU SHINSA

     PNKF KENDO SHINSA, September 22, 2019, Conestoga Recreation and Aquatics Center, Beaverton, Oregon
5TH KYU:  Owen Kaufman (Portland), Iori Ohashi (Obukan).
4TH KYU:  Akio Freauff (Portland), Christopher Kocurek (Portland), Marina Wain (Portland), Brandon Yep (OSU).
3RD KYU:  Liqiang Huang (OSU), Eamon Nyiri Klein (Portland), Daniel Theophanes (Obukan), Megan Vinkemulder (Portland), Qi Wei (OSU), Zhongliang Xie (OSU). 
1ST KYU:  Sanae Anderson (Portland).

     PNKF IAIDO SHINSA, September 29, 2019, Rain City Fencing Center, Bellevue, Washington
2ND KYU:  Maurice Benas III (Tonbo).
1ST KYU:  Derek Reynolds (Alaska), James Thorne (AiShinKai), 
1ST DAN:  Abigail Benoit (Tonbo), Brian Burton (AiShinKai), 
2ND DAN:  Nikhil Varma (Seattle).
3RD DAN:  Thane Mittelstaedt  (AiShinKai), Garrit Pillie (AiShinKai), Ken Tawara (Idaho). 

     AUSKF KENDO KODANSHA SHINSA, November 10, 2019, Griffin Elite Sports and Wellness, Erlanger, Kentucky
5TH DAN:  John Beaty (GNEUSKF), Brian Beckford (MWKF), Lewis Chi (SEUSKF), Tracey Choi (EUSKF), Taishi Kato (GNEUSKF), Manabu Matsunaga (ECUSKF), 
Kentaro Nagao (SWKIF), Yongki Ryu (AEUSKF), Ryoko Sato (SCKO), Paul Winters (AEUSKF), Norio Yasui (SEUSKF), Kazuto Yasuda (SEUSKF).
6TH DAN:  Shinichiro Fukui (AEUSKF), Mark Kerstein (SUSKIF), Satomi Lane (ECUSKF), Hiroyuki Morobayashi (ECUSKF), Takaya Zembayashi (SCKF).
7TH DAN:  Daniel Nobutatsu Yang (SCKF).
 RENSHI:  Jin-Kee Hyun (SEUSKF).

THE LAST WORD

But nothing was the same. My grandfather had always been a poor farmer, but now he had only a small garden where he grew potatoes, yam, soybeans and turnips. His rice field had been filled in by the Japanese army to construct a two-story barracks for the soldiers. Hastily built, unlike the little two-room house built by my great grandfather more than one hundred years ago, the building had already started to fall apart. The building was useless now, but even more significant, the rice field was also destroyed. This field not only supported my grandfather, but also helped to provide food for eight other relatives and their families living next door and throughout the hills surrounding my grandfather’s house. My father used to say that if you put energy into planting seeds, probably you’d have a harvest. But if you’re lazy and don’t plant anything, there won’t be any possibility of a harvest. Every day I worked to reclaim the rice field. First I moved the old building wood into a pile, and then the long task of clearing the dirt began. The army had covered the low wet field with about 3 feet of hard packed sand and dirt. There were no tools for dirt clearing, so I used garden tools. I filled an old wheelbarrow, pushed it up the hill, dumped it and started again. Every day I hauled until there was a small area restored to plant a little rice. This was a start, and after a few months, I had cleared about an acre. But seeds were scarce, and what seeds we could find seemed to grow very slowly. Meanwhile, hunger didn’t wait; everyone needed more rice. There was a salt shortage in Japan, so we made our own salt from the sea. First I found a sheet of galvanized tin, and made a square frying pan out of it, by bending the four sides. Then put it on some rocks to create a hole underneath it. Then I hauled the sea water, about 30 yards away with a clean new honey bucket on each end of a pole. I had to make several trips with it on my shoulder. Fortunately I had ample wood to burn from the old Japanese Army barracks. But it took quite a while to boil sea water to make some salt which we ate but also bartered and sold. We had food, but not enough. My aunts and uncles, the whole family, shared whatever was available. Sometimes there was only one bowl of rice for each person for an entire week. We added the vegetables from the small garden. Sometimes some of our vegetables would be traded for barley. Most of the time we added weeds to the rice. Most of the fishermen had been drafted and were dead; the sea had been contaminated by fuel oil and war debris. The small fish that had been left for my grandfather before the war now were rare. There was little difference between gathering food in Hayashi Yama and when I walked to Kure, when anything that moved in the sea or on land became food. My aunts traded their silk kimonos and obis for rice. Often they walked miles to barter, but returned with cupfuls of rice at best. We were hungry, but we didn’t starve. Despite our condition, my grandfather continued to save rice to place into the three cone shaped containers for the butsudan. Now, however, he placed only a few grain of rice in each container and with a shaking hand, slid the containers into the curved slots in the center and carefully placed them on each side of the altar. As he had always done, he then took out the lacquered black box from the altar drawer which contained his one book, opened to the “Sho Shin Ge” page and began to chant. He had the whole book memorized, but to learn, I would follow the words as he turned the pages of the book. I noticed that often he was not chanting from the opened page. When I asked him about this, he nodded and said, “kamawan” “That’s okay,” and continued chanting. I realized from him that intent is as important as correctness; it is not the practice of reading, but the quality of the practice that gives energy to the spirit by doing it every day. It is not just “what” you do as much as “how” you do it. We worked side by side. He worked as hard as I did – maybe harder because he was at least 80 years old. To cultivate the land, he tied the end of the wooden pick with a straw rope and then tied the other end across his back. Then he pounded the pick into the ground and pulled it with his body. He did not have enough strength to pull it with his hands. Every evening after work he cooked whatever we had in a kettle of water over a small fire heated by the wood he gathered nearby. He didn’t want help cooking and told me to sit near the hearth and watch. My jobs were mostly about carrying dirt, water and “honey.” I carried cold spring water in a clean water buckets on my shoulders from the well and poured it into a 5 gallon ceramic tub in the kitchen. The well was about one block down the steep hill. It was easy going down but exhausting coming up. And a lot of water was needed, not only for cooking but also bathing. The water would be poured into a cast iron, one-person tub, and then heated with wood, leaves and twigs gathered from the forest or wood from the debris of the barracks. Everyone bathed before me, and by the time it was my turn, the water was neither warm nor clean. But it didn’t matter; the only clothes I had were my Japanese army uniform, which by then was permanently soiled. I also collected the filled honey buckets from the outhouse and carried them on a wooden pole across my shoulders down the slope to the rice field. I recalled the man who collected “honey” in Kyoto. He was more skilled than I, but then I never thought I would do this job. The hill was slippery, and sometimes I had to jump from one tier to the lower tier. Balance was difficult. When my bucket tilted, I was showered with raw honey. I still wore my tattered military uniform, and despite rinsing in salt water, I smelled down to my bones for days. Labor hard, eat little, and fall into bed exhausted and sleep – life now was not much different than it was at Busen or when I was in the army. Actually, the army was more difficult because I didn’t agree with the training. It was brutal. Beating as a means of indoctrinating the recruits with the military spirit was a mistaken interpretation that perverted the samurai tradition. Without the Budo spirit, routine beatings, if survived, merely instilled greater brutality in the trainees. War is apt to bring out the worst qualities in men. Kendo training was tough, but part of a long tradition of training to be of service, not the training of several months in boot camp. Miyamoto Musashi’s teaching requires: “A thousand days of practice is forging and tempering your body and soul, and ten thousand days of practice is polishing the forged and tempered body and soul, while continuing to forge and temper.” –Rod Nobuto Omoto, Autobiography, edited by Charlotte Omoto, 2014, p. 43-45. Available as free download at lulu.com. Kenyu – Monthly Newsletter of the Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation PLEASE NOTE: Kenyu Online IS THE EDITION OF RECORD FOR THIS NEWSLETTER – http://www.pnkf.org/ Tom Bolling, Editor – 7318 23rd Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98115

Posted in Kenyu, Uncategorized

Kenyu – July/August 2019

Posted on 2019/08/29 by omb

Volume 33, number 7/8
July/August 2019

PNKF DATEBOOK

September 2019
* 9/7-9/8: Team USA Gasshuku, required to be considered for participation in 18WKC, Sat 8am-4pm; Sun
8am-12noon, Wilson Park, 2200 Crenshaw Blvd, Torrance, CA. Attendance Fee: $50 (checks payable to
“AUSKF Team USA”). Send all checks to: Spencer Hosokawa, 17 Amelia Aliso Viejo, Ca 92656.

* 9/13 and 9/14: Idaho Kendo Seminar, Fri 9/13 Keiko 6-7pm, Fri venue: Boise State Univ, Kinesiology Gym, Room 215; Sat, 10am-4pm, Sat venue: Meridian Homecourt, 736 Taylor Avenue, Meridian Idaho 83642, Court #1. Kendo Kyoshi 7th Dan Robert Stroud. Open to all levels (all ages) including those not yet in bogu, covering Kendo Kata, kihon, and application of kihon for shiai and shinsa.
Cost $25 payable at the event.
* 9/14: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
* 9/27-9/29: PNKF Iaido Seminar, Tournament, and Shinsa, Fri/Sat/Sun, Rain City Fencing, 1776 136th Place NE,
Bellevue.
October 2019
* 10/5: PNKF Shinpan Seminar, Sat, 12noon-5pm, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
* 10/26: Tacoma Taikai, Sat, Curtis High School, 8425 40th St W, University Place, WA 98466, USA.
November 2019
* 11/2: PNKF Taikai, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
* 11/2-11/3: AUSKF Second Team USA Gasshuku, Sat/Sun, venue and times TBD.
* 11/9-10: AUSKF Board meeting.
* 11/10: AUSKF Kodansha Shinsa, after the ASUKF Board meeting, Griffin Elite Sports and Wellness, 700 Dolwick Drive, Erlanger, Kentucky 41018.
* 11/16: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
December 2019
* 12/7: Kent Taikai CANCELLED.
January 2020
* 1/25-1/26: FIK Kendo Referee Seminar for the American Zone (FY 2019), Sat-Sun, British Columbia Institute of Technology Athletic Gymnasium, 3700 Willingdon Avenue, Burnaby, BC V5G 3H2 Canada. Accommodation: Delta Hotel by Marriott Burnaby Conference Center, 4331 Dominion Street, Burnaby, BC V5G 1C7. – Participants should be members of FIK affiliated organizations in principle. – Kendo 5 Dan or higher, and practice Kendo regularly. – No age limit to participate.
April 2020
* 4/4: 2020 AUSKF Junior Open National Championships, Sat, Marina High School, 15871 Springdale Street, Huntington Beach, CA 92649
May 2020
* 5/2: Rose City Taikai, Sat, TBA, Portland.
May 2021
* 5/27-30: 18WKC, Thu-Sun, Paris, France.

2019 AUSKF IAIDO NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP – June 30, 2019, Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon

0-2 Kyu Murakami Cup 1 Kyu–1 Dan
1st place – Cierra Nix, RMKIF Castle Rock 1st place – Eric Marquart, PNKF Idaho
2nd place – Zhuron Long, AEUSKF Ken-Zen 2nd place – Adam Sandor, MWKF Agassiz
3rd place – Reminton Redell, RMKIF Castle Rock 3rd place – Brian Burton, PNKF AiShinKai
3rd place – Frauke Hachtmann, SWKIF Omaha 3rd place – Darryl Woods SWKIF Mushinkan
Kantosho – Aojie Zheng, AEUSKF Ken-Zen Kantosho – Dongying Song, AEUSKF Ken-Zen

Murosako Cup 2-3 Dan Yamaguchi Cup 4–5 Dan
1st place – Allen Smith, SWKIF Mushinkan 1st place – Paul Shin, GNEUSKF Shidogakuin
2nd place – Ric Flinn, MWKF Raccoon Valley 2nd place – Gordon Hall, AEUSKF Ken-Zen
3rd place – Mike Schuldt, MWKF Agassiz 3rd place – Joe Sheldon, SUSKIF River City
3rd place – John Mullin, AEUSKF Ken-Zen 3rd place – Aram Kailian, GNEUSKF Shidogakuin
Kantosho – Sangki Lee, SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth Kantosho – George Nishiura, NCKF Palo Alto

6 Dan (Inaugural Division)
1st place – Jason Hankins, RMKIF ZenBuKan
2nd place – David Bressler, AEUSKF Ken-Zen
3rd place – Terry Fukui, AEUSKF Ken-Zen
Kantosho – Samuel Okuno, SCKF Norwalk

WORLD NAGINATA CHAMPIONSHIP – July 6, 2019, Wiesbaden, Germany

Engi
Shikake-Oji Zen Nihon Renmei no Kata
1st place – A. Ajiki, M. Inoue, Japan 1st place – I. Itagaki, H. Kato, Japan
2nd place – S. Kanaoka, C. Hyashida, Japan 2nd place – I. Dermine, F. Dermine, Belgium
3rd place – C. Coppeans, B. Harrop, USA 3rd place – J. Hernandez, S. Lew, USA

Team Shiai
Shiai Team Women
1st place – Japan (S. Kanaoka, C. Hayashida, A. Shido)
2nd place – Canada (M. Landekic, L. Liu, M. Phan)
3rd place – Belgium (L. Dumonceau, G. Hau, C. Vandersleyen)

Shiai Team Men
1st place – Japan (M. Masuda, W. Kobashi, I. Itagaki)
2nd place – Netherlands (J. Zandstra, A. Noorman, P. Gerritsen)
3rd place – Belgium (J. D’hose, T. Dermine, F. Dermine)

Individual Shiai
Shiai Individual Women Shiai Individual Men
1st place – A. Ajiki, Japan 1st place – Y. Masuda, Japan
2nd place – S. Haruyama, Japan 2nd place – M. Masuda, Japan
3rd place – C. Hayashida, Japan 3rd place – T. Fujita, Japan

Overall Winner - Japan

PNKF 7th NORTH AMERICAN WOMEN’S TEAM TOURNAMENT – July 13, 2019, Renton

Special Guest Instructor – Kendo Renshi 7th Dan Chinatsu Murayama

Team
1st place - SCKF (E. Kim, K. Tada, H. Dong, Liu, A. Shinada)
2nd place – Butokuden A (K. Igarashi, J. Harasawa, H. Ariga, V. Kuo, H. Hsueh)
3rd place – PNKF B (V. Le, M. Blechschmidt, J. Higa, T. Imanishi, J. Frazier-Day)
3rd place – Microsoft (N. Sakamoto, S. Hino, S. Uchino, S. Wakizono, M. Ohara)

Individual Mudansha Individual Yudansha
1st place – Krystal McIntosh, PNKF 1st place – Chigusa Takeuchi, Youshinkan
2nd place – Sammi Cheung, Quebec 2nd place – Wendy Robillard, CKF
3rd place – Heidi Lin, Butokuden 3rd place – Betty Park, PNKF
3rd place – Kate Rice, PNKF 3rd place – Kianna Darbyshire, CKF
4th place – Ai Nakayama, PNKF
4th place – Jennifer DeJong, MWKF
4th place – Isabel Lorimer, SCKO
4th place – Rika Iketani, SCKO
Shinpan Cho - Jeff Marsten
Chair – Elizabeth Marsten
Translator – Ai Nakayama
Sportsmanship Pledge – Janell Frazier-Day

SHINKYU SHINSA

AUSKF IAIDO SHINSA, June 30, 2019, Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon
3RD KYU: Lam Cao (SEKIF Salt Lake), Kaitlyn Fife (RMKIF ZenBuKan), Jonathan Hoopes (SWKIF Salt Lake), Carter Webster (RMKIF ZenBuKan), Michael Webster (RMKIF ZenBuKan).
2ND KYU: Breanne Leach RMKIF Zen Bu Kan), Sarah Scherr (MWKF Agassiz), Mika Shafer (NCKF Oakland).
1ST KYU: Kirill Buzinov (SWKIF Mushinkan), Shamina Chang (SUSKIF Chiba), Alex Cherry (SWKIF Salt Lake), Michael Curtis (RMKIF Rocky Mountain), Frauke Hachtmann (SWKIF Omaha), Zhuoran Long (AEUSKF Ken-Zen), Cierra Nix (RMKIF Castle Rock), Gilberto Perez (SEUSKF TokoBuKan), Tyler Peterson (PNKF Idaho), Remington Redell (RMKIF Castle Rock), Andy Webster (RMKIF ZenBuKan), Aojie Zheng ((AEUSKF Ken-Zen).
1ST DAN: Michio Kajitani (SWKIF Arkansas), Alberto Mera (CLAK Federacion Dominicana), Adam Sandor (MWKF Agassiz), Ben Senderling (SWKIF Omaha).
2ND DAN: Cheyenne Baker (SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth), Jared Bowler (RMKIF ZenBuKan), Michael Jacobson (MWKF Agassiz), Eric Marquardt (PNKF Idaho), Gary Moulder (NCKF Palo Alto), Philip Sevin (RMKIF ZenBuKan), Dongying Song AEUSKF Ken-Zen), Alden Vanderspek (PNKF AiShinKai), Feng (Blade) Wang (SWKIF Mushinkan), Darryl Woods (SWKIF Mushinkan).
3RD DAN: John Baker (SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth), Jordy Davis (RMKIF ZenBuKan), Celeste Rosell (RMKIF ZenBuKan), Allen Smith (SWKIF Mushinkan).
4TH DAN: David Chung-Pei Cheng (CKF SFU Shinbukan), Richard Flynn (MWKF Raccoon Valley), John Mullin (AEUSKF Ken-Zen), Levon Sukiassyan (SCKF Pasadena).
5TH DAN: Brian Beckford (MWKF Detroit), Takanori Furuta (AEUSKF Ittokai), Hiroaki Fukumoto (PNKF Seattle).
6TH DAN: Paul Shin (GNEUSKF Shidogakuin), Cynthia Tanabe (NCKF Salinas).

AUSKF JODO SHINSA, June 30, 2019, Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon
1ST KYU: Cheyenne Baker (SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth), John Baker (SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth), Jonathan Berry (MWKF Minnehaha), David Cooper (SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth), Nicholas Harrison (AEUSKF US Kobujodokai), Tomoyuki Hirasawa (SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth), Cierra Nix (RMKIK Castle Rock), Julian Smith (RMKIF Castle Rock), Donying Song (AEUSKF Ken-Zen), Robert Stroud (PNKF Idaho), Kurt Van Horn (PNKF Hoshu).
1ST DAN: Amber Adams (SCKO Kobujodokai), Abigail Benoit (PNKF Tonbo), Lisanna Dettwyler (PNKF Hoshu), Sarah Scherr (MWKF Agassiz), Bob Schneider (SCKO Butokuden), Michi Takeda (SCKF Kubojodokai), Robert Tranchin (SWKIF Dallas-Ft Worth).
2ND DAN: Bradley Anderson (MWKF Agassiz), David Bressler (AEUSKF Ken-Zen), Michael Jacobson (MWKF Agassiz), Peter Kim (AEUSKF Doshikai), An Nguyen (SCKO Butokuden), Jaden Olah (SWKIF Yamakage), Judit Olah (SWKIF Yamakage), Adam Sandor (MWKF Agassiz), Michael Schuldt (MWKF Agassiz).
3RD DAN: Luis Adolfo Arancibia (CLAK Chile Jodo), Chris Dowling (PNKF Hoshu), Richard Flinn (MWKF Raccoon Valley).

PNKF KENDO SHINSA, August 10, 2019, Kent Commons Recreation Center, Kent
6TH KYU: Louis Liang (Northwest), Yuanchang Liang (Northwest), John Morse (Northwest), Atticus Slosson (Northwest), Koh Tapang (Highline).
5TH KYU: Madeleine Day (Kent), Hideaki Ito (Bellevue), Emerson Lau (Bellevue), Braeden Tapang (Highline).
4TH KYU: Keegan Hirata (Federal Way), Joe Kabeshita (Obukan), Brent Krupp (Cascade), Truman Lau (Bellevue), Yin Ouyang (Seattle), Denise Quach (Seattle), Rina Yuan (Bellevue).
3RD KYU: Nicholas Chu (Bellevue), Mi Jang (Tacoma), Taka Kabeshita (Obukan), Anthony Kelsey (Edmonds), Tory Kim (Northwest), Juah Paik (Tacoma), Rebecca Roland (Portland), Shen Ru (Everett), Hui Shen (Tacoma), Demetria Spinrad (Sno-King), Yi Sun (Bellevue), Michinari Tawara (Bellevue), Nina Underhill (Northwest), Fei Yuan (Bellevue).
2ND KYU: Andrea Calhoun (Portland), Aaron Fung (Seattle), Alex Kim (Bellevue), Sean Kim (Seattle), Seira Kojima (Bellevue), Yoji Konno (Meadowbrook), Juno Lee (UW), Dorrit Lin (UW), Aneurin Mabale (Seattle), Ju Young Oh (Highline), Conrad Slater (UW), Abigail Tan (UW), Brian Wong (UW), Alec Yuen (Seattle).
1ST KYU: Danny Chung (Cascade), Michael Ciesielski (Spokane), Espen Hellevik (UW), Taiki Miyamoto (Northwest), Connor Mulcahy (UW), Michael Rea (Spokane), Alexander Rossi (Spokane), Zhaoyuan Xu (Cascade), Derek Woodward (Everett).
1ST DAN: Tommy Espinal (AEUSKF U Rochester), Leo Gao (UW), Kyle Hale (Seattle), Eugene Kim (Seattle), Shoichi Kimura (Obukand), Elysia Midorikawa (UW), Matt Miyamoto (Northwest), Emilio Peralta (Obukan), Sung Won Ryu (Cascade), Michele Soleimani (Portland), Joshua Paik (Tacoma), Jin Pak (Northwest), Emilio Peralta (Obukan), Koki Takamatsu (Bellevue), Keiji Underhill (Northwest), Suepapone Vanasouk (Cascade).
2ND DAN: Athena Epilepsia (Bellevue), Kyle McDaniel (Seattle), Peter Palmer (Northwest), Blake Sprenger (Obukan), Shota Wetlesen (Obukan).
3RD DAN: Jacob Colter (Yamauchi) (Cascade), Dan DeLongChamp (Obukan), Soo-Hyung Kim (Seattle), Stephen Ting (Northwest), Andrew Yuen (Seattle).

AUSKF KODANSHA SHINSA, August 18, 2019, Eccles Student Life Center, University of Utah, Salt Lake City
5TH DAN: Guillermo Auvert (SEUSKF), Rex Joshua Hahn (WKF), Kenji Irie (SCKF), Kentaro Ninomiya (AEUSKF), Steven Sasaki (SWKIF), Takuro Yamaoka (SWKIF).
6TH DAN: Donghun Lee (AEUSKF), Nobuo Monji (CCKF), George Ogawa (NCKF), Charles C. Pak (SCKO), Joji Takada (MWKF).
7TH DAN: Jin-Kee Hyun (SEUSKF), Kohjiro Kinno (SCKF).
RENSHI: Akira Banchi (SCKO).

THE LAST WORD

Hiroshima, 1945
We were so isolated in Kochi that we had lost communications with our base in Hiroshima. We didn’t know about the Bomb or the end of the War until few weeks after Japan surrendered. But we weren’t surprised. The old soldiers were tired and already felt defeated, and most of us had known for some months that the war was lost. We just didn’t know the form that loss would take.
We arrived in Hiroshima, completely unprepared for the devastation. We skirted the city. Shicho Tai, our base, had been evaporated. There are no words for what we saw. A bomb, yes, but what kind of a bomb? Annihilation of this magnitude was inconceivable! And the devastation assaulted us wherever we gazed. The central city was flattened. Only the skeleton of a few brick buildings to the west remained. The sky was still thick with smoke from smoldering buildings and funeral pyres where bodies could no longer be cremated separately with respect and proper ritual, but stacked in piles for mass disposal. There was no ability to dignify death. Nonetheless, bodies were everywhere, horribly maimed and decaying, magnets for millions of flies. And there were the injured and dying, waiting and hoping for help. Two hundred thousand people died after the initial explosion. The city was eerily quiet. The sobs and screams of children occasionally pierced the silence, but adults didn’t speak. What could be said? People continued to die. But there were no words. There was no time for mourning. There was little food. Drinking water was scarce with the rivers weaving through the city contaminated with dead bodies and the fallout from the bomb. There was neither help nor medical supplies. There were too few doctors. Shock and suffering, chaos and destruction …
Of course we, like the citizens of Hiroshima and the military leaders, did not know the nature of the bomb, only rumors. Many had heard the Emperor’s surrender speech, the first time he had spoken on the radio in a language that common people had difficulty understanding. A joint army-navy meeting on August 10, under the auspices of the Imperial Headquarters, confirmed that the Americans had dropped the atomic bomb. But the information filtered to the people more slowly and it was more than a week for most to hear the truth but it was almost impossible to understand. There was no comprehension and certainly no knowledge of the long-term effects of radiation. Moreover, the Allied Occupation GHQ issued a press code on September 19, 1945 restricting references to the atomic bomb in speech, reporting, and publications; GHQ had to give permission, and generally refused, prohibiting any publication of A-bomb information.
Kendo training teaches not to be afraid. Fear alters the body, creating tension and compromising response. Kendo training failed me at Hiroshima. This was a world gone mad, pure destruction and I felt a deep, dark, paralyzing fear beyond reason or action. But maybe Kendo training did help, because I did remember to breathe deeply, five meditative breaths to the hara, and regained some calm. At the Hiroshima railroad station, from where no trains were now dispatched, I turned to my soldiers and asked if they had a home. Their replies were immediate. “Hai, hai, hai!” Everyone had a home. “Go,” I said, and they all started walking toward home.
Then I realized I was alone. Did I have a home where I could return? The question was empty, an echo from nowhere. I had no home. I longed for Hawaii, but I could not return. But Wahiawa was where I longed to be, in the gentle islands smelling of plumeria and wild ginger. Even rotting mangoes have a fecund, sweet smell. All I could smell here was burnt flesh, and that smell is something I tried to forget. In fact, I try to forget everything about Hiroshima after the Bomb.
During the times when I had nearly been killed, I lost the capacity for fear. No flinching, no jumpiness. Instinct takes over; no thoughts of terrible possibilities or hopes of the future, or even dying. I just blocked everything. The War was finished but war is never finished just because one side surrenders. Hiroshima is proof of that. I turned toward Kure and my grandfather’s house. There was no other choice. I didn’t know whether the house was even there. But I was lucky. I was alive, not injured, and I had to respect this life I was given and get up, move, act.
I set out from Hiroshima Station to walk the ~50 miles to Kure. All I had was my soldier’s uniform to cover my skin, a military backpack, and my Japanese sword hung from my left side. I didn’t know whether I would get there or not. There was no time commitment for me. I didn’t care. I just walked at a slow pace chewing on the remains of hard crackers that I had left. It was the only food I had, and soon I had none. I had no water. And the Hiroshima in August is hot and humid.
I was thirsty and hungry. When I saw a green plant along the road, although most often it was only a blade of grass, I ate it. Fasting is said to enhance clarity. Perhaps, but starvation is just painful. I understood hunger. The gut feels like it is ripping apart, twisted and stretched. All I could think of was food, and then nothing. I just put one foot in front of the other.
The road was full of other soldiers and entire families leaving Hiroshima. There was no food for any of us. We were all helpless. We were all in rags. Nobody was in any position to give help. There was no shelter. People slept by the side of the road, under rags or lean-to’s made of debris or pieces of metal; abandoned vehicles gave some respite. It was cold at night, boiling during the day; at times it rained, at times the wind blew, but there was no shelter.
I turned east toward the shores. Along the shores between Hiroshima and Kure were seaweed, clams and some small fish. I scooped them up with both hands and stuffed them into my mouth, whole and raw. I ate everything raw. I told myself, “If anything moves, eat ‘um.” Living creatures are either prey or predator. I would live, but I no longer cared. Walk, walk, walk. Continuing to walk but no longer caring whether I got to Kure or not. One foot at a time. Walking, walking…
CHAPTER 4 Wind
To renew, when we are deadlocked with the enemy, means that without changing our circumstances we change our spirit and win through a different technique. (Musashi)
I don’t remember how many days it took me to reach Hayashi Yama (now Miharashi Cho), my grandfather’s village in Kure, but when I finally looked up it was sunrise, and I saw my grandfather working in the fields just as he had done when I had left for the army that morning in 1942. Unlike the 15 million homeless people throughout Japan, I had a home to live in and some food.
–Rod Nobuto Omoto, Autobiography, edited by Charlotte Omoto, 2014, p. 39-43. Available as free download at lulu.com.

Kenyu – Monthly Newsletter of the Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation PLEASE NOTE: Kenyu Online IS THE EDITION OF RECORD FOR THIS NEWSLETTER – http://www.pnkf.org/ Tom Bolling, Editor – 7318 23rd Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98115

Posted in Kenyu, Uncategorized

Kenyu – May/June 2019

Posted on 2019/07/01 by omb

Volume 33, number 5/6 May/June 2019

PNKF DATEBOOK

July 2019

7/6-7/13: North American Women’s Kendo Tournament and Seminar, led by Kendo Renshi 7th Dan Chinatsu Maruyama, five time All Japan Champion, Seminar 7/6-7/11 Sat-Thu. Championship 7/13 Sat, 9:30am-5pm, Renton Community Center, 1715 Maple Valley Hwy, Renton. https://womenskendo.com/ or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/WomensKendo/ for full schedule.
7/14: Western Kendo Federation(WKF) 2019 ENGO Scholarship Junior Kendo Championship, Sat, John Burroughs High School Gymnasium Building 5, 1920 W. Clark Ave, Burbank, California. Registration deadline June 20, 2019.
7/20: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
7/28: Toubukan International Friendship Kendo Summer Practice, Sun, 9am-3pm, Toubukan Dojo, Mito, Ibaraki, Japan.
7/28-7/29: Hoshu Dojo Jodo Mini-Camp, Sat 10am-4pm, Sun 9am-12noon, Rain City Fencing Center, 1776 136th Place NE, Bellevue.

August 2019

8/9-11: PNKF Summer Camp, Fri, Sat, Sun, Highland Community Center, Steve Cox Memorial Park.
8/9: Friday, 8-9:30pm, Highland Community Center (Bellevue Kendo Club). Content: kodansha shinsa – we will have a mock exam with feedback from sensei that sit on the AUSKF Kodansha Board. This mock exam is for 4D and above only.
8/10: Saturday, 9:30-11:30am, Kent Community Center (Kent Kendo Club). Content: 3 stations – bokuto kata, kendo kata and shinsa prep for 4D and below. This content will be flexible based on attendance. Saturday, 12:30pm-3pm – PNKF Shinkyu Shinsa 3-4:30pm -Open keiko
8/11: Sunday, 10am-3pm, Steve Cox Memorial Park (Highline Kendo Kai). Content: shimpan and shiai for jodan and nito – we will have matches to improve our shimpan experience with jodan and nito players, as well as shiai techniques for countering them. 12pm-1pm -Lunch break – you will need to provide your own. 1pm-3pm – Junior matches – shimpan practice for adults and coaching pointers from PNKF 2020 team coaches.
Please note, you need to be a PNKF member to participate in all events. Brandon Harada sensei, 7D, former Team USA member, is coming to lead our seminar, participate in the shinsa, and keiko with us as part of the AUSKF/Team USA Giving Back program.
8/16-8/18: AUSKF Summer Camp, Fri/Sat/Sun, George S. Eccles Student Life Center, University of Utah Campus, Salt Lake City. Event hotel is University Guest House and Conference Center, 110 S. Fort Douglas Blvd, Salt Lake City, Utah 84113. For info please contact Steven Sasaki phone 402-968-0615 stevensasaki@comcast.net

September 2019

9/7-9/8: Team USA Gasshuku, required to be considered for participation in 18WKC, Sat 8am-4pm; Sun 8am-12noon, Wilson Park, 2200 Crenshaw Blvd, Torrance, CA. Attendance Fee: $50 (checks payable to “AUSKF Team USA”). Send all checks to: Spencer Hosokawa, 17 Amelia Aliso Viejo, Ca 92656.
9/14: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
9/27-9/29: PNKF Iaido Seminar, Tournament, and Shinsa. October 2019
10/5: PNKF Shinpan Seminar, Sat, 12noon-5pm, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
10/26: Tacoma Taikai, Sat, venue and time TBD.

November 2019

11/2: PNKF Taikai, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
11/2-11/3: AUSKF Second Team USA Gasshuku, Sat/Sun, venue and times TBD.
11/9-10: AUSKF Board meeting.
11/10: AUSKF Kodansha Shinsa.
11/16: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.

December 2019

12/7: Kent Taikai, Sat, TBD, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.

May 2021

5/27-30: 18WKC, Thu-Sun, Paris, France.

TEAM PNKF HEAD COACH IS ELIZABETH MARSTEN

At their May 4, 2019 meeting the PNKF Board elected Kendo Renshi 6th Dan Elizabeth Marsten Head Coach of Team PNKF for the 2020 AUSKF Championships. The PNKF Head Coach oversees the assistant coaches of the men’s, women’s, and juniors’ Teams. For years she was the PNKF Advisor to UW, and has competed in many events, including at the World Kendo Championships in 2000, and in 2003, when her Team won the bronze medal in Glasgow, Scotland. She captained the PNKF Womens’ Team which won second place at the 2017 AUSKF Championships in San Jose, California.

TOUBUKAN INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP KENDO SUMMER PRACTICE

In the early Meiji Era, Toubukan Dojo inherited Hokushin Ittouryu, the origin of the modern Kendo. Takaharu Naito Sensei, who was sent to Kyoto Budo Senmon Gakko (Busen) from Toubukan, later produced many Kendo instructors. Through them, Kendo was introduced to the rest of the world. Gordon Warner Sensei, who taught Kendo in the USA, and with Junzo Sasamori Sensei wrote This Is Kendo, also spent time at Toubukan, which appears in his book. Practicing Kendo at this historical Dojo in Japan would be an unforgettable experience.

Program:  
1) Opening
2) Demonstration
  - Iai
  - Hokushin Ittouryu
  - Shin Tamiyaryu
  - Naginata
3) Kodansha Tachiai
4) Keiko

Purpose: To nurture friendship through Kendo (Kou Ken Chi Ai). They are keen to hold a friendship Kendo match/keiko inviting Kendoists from overseas. Our friend Katsunori Osuga Sensei has practiced extensively overseas, including here in the PNKF, so they asked him to check if anyone is interested to come. The cost for the trip and stay in Japan will have to be borne by the participants. It will be held on Sunday, July 28, 2019, in Mito City, which is a two-hour bus ride from Narita. Practicing Kendo in this famous traditional Dojo will be an unforgettable experience. toubukan.or.jp Since time is pressed for planning, please let Osuga Sensei know if anyone is interested to come. The number of participants is not limited. Osuga Sensei’s address is: katsunoriosuga@hotmail.com

29th ANNUAL BELLEVUE JUNIOR KENDO CHAMPIONSHIPS – May 18, 2019


10 and Under                            11 and 12 Years
1st place – S. Johnson, Seattle         1st place – J. Yu, Northwest
2nd place – V. Chen, Oakland            2nd place – N. Chu, Bellevue
3rd place – E. Cocoro Marx, Federal Way 3rd place – I. DeBlieck, Sno-King
3rd place – O. Kaufman, Portland        3rd place – D. Chung, Cascade

13 and 14 Years                         High School Girls
1st place – J. Paik, Tacoma             1st place – B. Park, Bellevue
2nd place – A. Mabale, Seattle          2nd place – A. Fukuda, Cascade
3rd place – M. Ayers, Sno-King          3rd place – S. Kojima, Cascade
3rd place – E. Kim, Seattle             3rd place – H. Son, Federal Way

High School Boys
1st place – Keiji Underhill, Northwest
2nd place – Kengo Underhill, Northwest
3rd place – K. Takamatsu, Bellevue
3rd place – A. Yuen, Seattle

Junior Teams
1st place - Bellevue (M. Tawara, H. Koob, K. Takamatsu, J. Chu, L. Ohata)
2nd place - Seattle (A. Mabale, S. Kim, A. Fung, E. Kim, N. Orita)

High School Teams
1st place – Cascade (Da. Chung, K. Fukuda, A. Garr)
2nd place – Seattle (K. Hale, M. Hsu, A. Yuen)
Awesome Spirit Award – Kyle Fukuda, Cascade
Centurion Bellevue Highline Sno-King Youth Leadership Award – Issei DeBlieck, Sno-King
Head Shinpan - David Yotsuuye; Taikai Chair – Michi Ohata; Sportsmanship Pledge – Michi Ohata

4th ANNUAL VANCOUVER KENDO TOURNAMENT – June 1, 2019, Byrne Secondary School


9 Years and Under                       10 to 12 Years
1st place – Y. Asaoka, Youshinkan       1st place – N. Son, Renbu
2nd place – A. Kobayashi, Youshinkan    2nd place – C. Liao, Renbu
3rd place – M. Ishizuka, Youshinkan     3rd place – B. Buckham, UVic
3rd place – M. Tanimura, Seattle        3rd place – Ke Yoshimura, Renbu

13 to 15 Years                          16 to 20 Years
1st place – K. Underhill, Northwest     1st place – K. Muramatsu, Renfrew
2nd place – B. Miki, Steveston          2nd place – H. Shim, Renbu
3rd place – K. Squance, Renbu           3rd place – G. Kitamura, Tozenji
3rd place – R. Nakano, Steveston        3rd place – D. Imanishi, Seattle

21 to 30 Years                          31 to 40 Years
1st place – K. Unzei, Aoi Budogu        1st place – K. Kobayashi, Yushinkan
2nd place – R. Asato, Vancouver         2nd place – G. Suzaka, Seattle
3rd place – T. Hamanaka, Tozenji        3rd place – J. Magaling, SFU
3rd place – A. Xie, Youshinkan          3rd place – A. Yen, Seattle

41 Years and Over                       Women
1st place – M. Rose, Renfrew            1st place – C. Takeuchi, Youshinkan
2nd place – HK Park, Century            2nd place – A. Fukushima, Vancouver
3rd place – F. Yoshimura, Renbu         3rd place – K. Darbyshire, Vancouver
3rd place – J. Schmidt, Youshinkan      3rd place – N. Fukushima, Vancouver

Junior Team
1st place – Renbu A (N. Son, K. Squance, H. Tominaga, A. Son, Y. Lee)
2nd place – Steveston A (A. Iwai, C. Robillard, D. Chui, B. Miki, R. Nakano)

Senior Team
1st place - Youshinkan (K. Takeuchi, A. Xie, K. Kobayashi, J. Chien, C. Takeuchi)
2nd place – Bellevue/Highline/Sno-King (E. Park, Y. Shim, F. Wessbecher, K. Unzei, L. Tsybert)
Fighting Spirit - M. Shirai, Youshinkan and M. Underhill, Northwest
Shinpan-Cho – Motoki Asaoka; Master of Ceremonies - Bill McMichael; Sportsmanship Pledge – John Leung

3rd TADAO TODA HAI MEMORIAL KENDO TOURNAMENT – June 16, 2019, Caldwell, Idaho


Lower Division (2 Dan and Below)        Upper Division (3 Dan and Above)
1st place – Jordy Davis, Zenbukan       1st place – Fumihide Itokazu, Covina
2nd place – Tyler Peterson, Idaho       2nd place – Jason Steick, Edmonton
3rd place – Yumon Wei, NYC              3rd place – Ryan Atagi, Idaho
3rd place – Blake Sprenger, Obukan      3rd place – Paul Winters, New York Kenshinkai

2019 ROSE CITY TAIKAI – June 22, 2019, Conestoga Recreation and Aquatic Center, Beaverton, Oregon


Women’s Open                            Juniors 12 and Under
1st place – A. Nakayama, Portland       1st place – J. Paik, Tacoma
2nd place – K. Croes, Portland          2nd place – J. Kabeshita, Obukan
3rd place – A. Epilepsia, Bellevue
3rd place – K. McIntosh, Federal Way

Juniors 13-15                           0-3 Kyu
1st place – J. Paik, Tacoma             1st place – L. Bobadilla, OSU
2nd place – T. Ting, Northwest          2nd place – A. Kim, Bellevue
3rd place – T. Kabeshita, Obukan
3rd place – D. Wildman, Portland

2-1 Kyu                                 1-2 Dan
1st place – A. Rossi, Spokane           1st place – Y. Paik, Tacoma
2nd place – M. Rea, Spokane             2nd place – Shun Wetlesen, Obukan
3rd place – T. Jaybush, Bellevue        3rd place – A. Law, Sno-King
3rd place – K. McIntosh, Federal Way    3rd place – G. Vielhaber, Portland

3 Dan                                   4 Dan and Above
1st place – K. Nakaya, Portland         1st place – I. Morgan, Kent
2nd place – D. Anzai, Obukan            2nd place – A. Nakayama, Portland
3rd place – N. Cook, Portland           3rd place – C. Ruiz, Spokane
3rd place – M. Price, Seattle           3rd place – E. Wain, Portland

Junior Teams
1st place - Tacoma (S. Johnson, Juah Paik, Joshua Paik)
2nd place - Obukan (I. Ohayashi, J. Kabeshita, L. Jesequel)

Senior Teams
1st place - Obukan (Shun Wetlesen, Shota Wetlesen, B. Sprenger, D. Anzai, M. Nakamura)
2nd place - Spokane (A. Rossi, I. Morgan, M. Nelson, M. Rea, C. Ruiz)
3rd place – Portland A (K. Nakaya, G. Nakayama, A. Nakayama, E. Waln, T. Toshima)
3rd place – Portland B (N. Cook, G. Vielhaber, J. Kaufman, A. Chervin, K. Croes)
Head Shinpan - Doug Imanishi; Competitors’ Pledge – Joe Kabeshita; Master of Ceremonies – Kenneth Gordon

LEEWARD OAHU KENDO TOURNAMENT – June 23, 2019, Mililani District Park Gym


Yonenbu 8-11 Years                      Shonenbu 12-15 Years
1st place – Leland Hara                 1st place – Devin Chung
2nd place – Takeshi Saito               2nd place – Abigail Mejia
3rd place – Zachary Yamamoto
3rd place – Ken Foltz

Seinenbu Open                           Women’s Open
1st place – Ai Fukuda                   1st place – Zidi Hiromoto
2nd place – Tom Fukuda                  2nd place – Aki Stachiewiez
3rd place – N. Shimabukuro              3rd place – Tina Kaku
3rd place – Gina Kishimoto

Yudansha 1-2 Dan                        Yudansha 3-4 Dan
1st place – Y. Park                     1st place – James Okada
2nd place – Kyle Fukuda                 2nd place – Keith Hui
3rd place – Jake Yamauchi               3rd place – Lonny Hancock
3rd place – Keone Rivers                3rd place – Koyo Yancey

Yudansha 5-6 Dan                        Yudansha Masters 3 Dan and Over 50 Years
1st place – Chris Goodin                1st place – Garrett Matsumoto
2nd place – Bryan Imanishi              2nd place – David Kikau
3rd place – Jack Yamada                 3rd place – Ken Sugano
3rd place – Grant Matsubayashi

Team Match                              Parents/Kids Team Match
1st place – Mililani (Mark Miyamoto, Wesley Fujimoto, Lonnie Hancock, Gina Kishimoto, Andy Fujimoto)
2nd place – Kenshikan (Jack Yamada, Nicklas Matsumoto, Kevin Chun, Zidi Hiromoto, Yuichi Miura)

Parents/Kids Team Match
Parents – 2
Kids - 4
James Oka Fighting Spirit Award – Abigail Mejia

THE LAST WORD

My final order was to return to Kochi to gather the supplies we had saved by scattering them in the hills in farmers’ warehouses. The roads were narrow, the drivers inexperienced and the trucks easily slid into the rice paddies. We had no towing tools so when a truck was stuck, everyone would work together to heave the truck upright and attempt to get it back on the road. But that was easy compared to rescuing our own men who would often become trapped inside the truck when it rolled. One time a truck rolled over and pinned a soldier. Gasoline spilled from the truck and covered his body. We finally rolled the truck off him, but he was in no shape to continue his duties. Due to the gasoline burns, his skin was peeling from his entire body. He suffered horribly, especially when he moved. I sent him back to Hiroshima. Then came the Atomic Bomb that released his pain completely! How perfunctory and cold my attitude now seems – he burned then died. No description of his unrelenting screams of agony, the calls to his mother, the terror in his eyes. But that is what happens in war. Too much suffering and death can drive a man insane unless the senses of pity and horror are numbed. Anger is acceptable. Soldiers are taught not to look in the eyes of an enemy if killing in close combat. Looking into the eyes creates a relationship. We are taught about relationship in Kendo. But there is no time in boot camp to learn how to create a life as well as take a life. In modern warfare, killing is, when possible, more distant. That is probably good for the mental health of soldiers, even though it avoids confronting the reality of death on a bloody battlefield. –Rod Nobuto Omoto, Autobiography, edited by Charlotte Omoto, 2014, p. 38-39. Available as free download at lulu.com. Kenyu – Monthly Newsletter of the Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation PLEASE NOTE: Kenyu Online IS THE EDITION OF RECORD FOR THIS NEWSLETTER – http://www.pnkf.org/ Tom Bolling, Editor – 7318 23rd Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98115

Posted in Kenyu

Kenyu – Jan/Feb 2019

Posted on 2019/03/14 by omb

Volume 33, number 1

January/February 2019

PNKF DATEBOOK

March 2019

3/9: PNKF Jodan Seminar, Sat, 12noon-5pm, featuring Kendo Renshi 6th Dan Harry Samkange, Bitter Lake Community Center (small gym), Sno-King Kendo Club, 3052 Greenwood Ave N., Seattle, WA 98133.
3/16: Highline Taikai, Sat, doors open 8:30am, opening ceremonies 9:30am, White Center Community Center, 1321 SW 102nd Street, Seattle.
3/23: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
3/23-24: Harvard-Radcliffe Kendo Club 23rd Annual Harvard Shoryuhai Intercollegiate Kendo Tournament, Sat-Sun.

April 2019

4/6: AUSKF Junior Open National Championships, Sat, South Forsyth High School, 585 Peachtree Parkway, Cumming, Georgia 30041 http://auskf-jrnationals.com/.
4/6: UW Taikai, Sat, 10am, Intramural Activities Building (IMA), UW campus, Montlake Boulevard NE.
4/13: PNKF Iaido Seminar and Shinsa, Sat, 9am-4pm, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church Gym (Seattle Kendo Kai), 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
4/13-14: AUSKF Board meeting, Sat-Sun. Hotel is Radisson, 18118 International Blvd, Seatac, WA 98188. Gym for Saturday evening Godo Keiko 5-7pm, is Tyee Educational Complex, 4424 S. 188th Street, SeaTac, located right off I-5 at S. 188th Street
4/14: AUSKF Kodansha Shinsa, Sun, 11am-5pm, Tyee Educational Complex, 4424 S. 188th Street, SeaTac, located right off I-5 at S. 188th Street.
4/20: UW Taikai, Sat, 10am, Intramural Activities Building (IMA), UW campus, Montlake Boulevard NE.
4/21: Cherry Blossom demo, Sun, TBD, Seattle Center.
4/??: Vancouver Taikai, Sat, TBD.

May 2019

5/4: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
5/18: Bellevue Junior Taikai, Sat, Highland Park Community Center.

June 2019

6/14-6/15-6/16: 12th Annual US Nito Kendo Summer Camp, Fri/Sat/Sun, College of Idaho, Caldwell, Idaho.
We are pleased to have the following sensei attend this year’s camp:
Ryoichi FUJII, Kyoshi 8 dan, Yamaguchi Japan
Yoshihiro UGAJIN,Kyoshi 7 dan, Tokyo Japan
Futoshi SATO, Kyoshi 7 dan, Chiba Japan
Mitsuyoshi WADA, Renshi 7 dan, Tokyo Japan
Hisashi NAGASAKI, Renshi 7 dan, Oita Japan
Ako FUJII, Renshi 7 dan, Yamaguchi Japan
6/22: Rose City Taikai, Sat, location TBD, Portland.
6/27-7/1: AUSKF Iaido Seminar, Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon.

July 2019

7/6-7/13: North American Women’s Kendo Tournament and Seminar, led by Kendo Renshi 7th Dan Chinatsu Maruyama, five time All Japan Champion, Seminar 7/6-7/11 Sat-Thu, Championship 7/13 Sat, https://womenskendo.com/
7/20: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
7/28: Toubukan International Friendship Kendo Summer Practice, Sun, 9am-3pm, Toubukan Dojo, Mito, Ibaraki, Japan.

August 2019

8/10: PNKF Kendo Shinsa, Sat, TBD.

September 2019

9/14: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
9/27-9/29: PNKF Iaido Seminar, Tournament, and Shinsa.

October 2019

10/5: PNKF Shinpan Seminar, Sat, 12noon-5pm, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
10/19: Tacoma Taikai.

November 2019

11/2: PNKF Taikai, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
11/9-10: AUSKF Board meeting.
11/10: AUSKF Kodansha Shinsa.
11/16: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.

December 2019

12/7: Kent Taikai, Sat, TBD, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.

TOUBUKAN INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP KENDO SUMMER PRACTICE.

In the early Meiji Era, Toubukan Dojo inherited Hokushin Ittouryu, the origin of the modern Kendo. Takaharu Naito Sensei, who was sent to Kyoto Budo Semmon Gakko (Busen) from Toubukan, later produced many Kendo instructors. Through them, Kendo was introduced to the rest of the world. Gordon Warner Sensei, who taught Kendo in the USA, and with Junzo Sasamori Sensei wrote This Is Kendo, also spent time at Toubukan, which appears in his book. Practicing Kendo at this historical Dojo in Japan would be an unforgettable experience.

Program:  1) Opening
          2) Demonstration - Iai
                           - Hokushin Ittouryu
                           - Shin Tamiyaryu
                           - Naginata
          3) Kodansha Tachiai
          4) Keiko

Purpose: To nurture friendship through Kendo (Kou Ken Chi Ai).

They are keen to hold a friendship Kendo match/keiko inviting Kendoists from overseas. Our friend Katsunori Osuga Sensei has practiced extensively overseas, including here in the PNKF, so they asked him to check if anyone is interested to come. The cost for the trip and stay in Japan will have to be borne by the participants. It will be held on Sunday, July 28, 2019, in Mito City, which is a two-hour bus ride from Narita. Practicing Kendo in this famous traditional Dojo will be an unforgettable experience. toubukan.or.jp

Since time is pressed for planning, please let Osuga Sensei know if anyone is interested to come. The number of participants is not limited. Osuga Sensei’s address is: katsunoriosuga@hotmail.com

14th ANNUAL PACIFIC INTERCOLLEGIATE TOURNAMENT – January 19, 2019, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC


Non-Bogu                             2nd Kyu and Below
1st place – Daniel Vera, UBC         1st place – Brian Wong, UW
2nd place – Jiho Kim, SFU            2nd place – Espen Hellevik, UW
3rd place – Lily Zhang, UBC          3rd place – Abby Tan, UW

1st Kyu                              Shodan and Above
1st place – Tyas Kinati, UBC         1st place – Akira Fujii, UW
2nd place – David Wu, Langara        2nd place – Jane Higa, UW
3rd place – Jason Tang, Langara      3rd place – Michael Hong, SFU

Seniors 2nd Dan and Above
1st place – Ryota Kuki, Langara
2nd place – Tsuyoshi Hamanaka, UBC 
3rd place – Kentaro Komoto, UBC

University Team
1st place – UW1 (Jason Nguyen, Jane Higa, Akira Fujii, Elysia Midorikawa, Leo Gao)
2nd place - SFU (Sean Lu, Will Wu, Gina Gu, Gene Ju, Michael Hong)
3rd place – UBC (Tyas Kinanti, Kanami Suzuki, Rory Long, Lily Ruan, Sara Lowes)
3rd place – UW2 (Brian Wong, Espen Hellevik, Abby Tan, Esther Law, Connor Mulcahey)

Senior Team
1st place – UBC (Ellis Cheng, Andrew Chen, Kentaro Komoto, Joon Young Suk, Tsuyoshi Hamanaka)
2nd place – Langara (David Wu, Jason Tang, Noel Gardiner, Anthony Lee, Ryuta Kuki)

Fighting Spirit Award
Rory Long, UBC and Lily Ruan, UBC

Ted Davis Fighting Spirit Award
Gina Gu, SFU

2019 EAST COAST OPEN IAIDO TAIKAI – February 17,2019, CERC (Community Education and Recreation Center), Jersey City, NJ


Mudansha A                             Mudansha B
1st place – A. Zheng, Ken-Zen          1st place – P. Markunas, Ken-Zen
2nd place – S. Hess, Ken-Zen           2nd place – L. Thauvin, Ken-Zen
3rd place – P. Kim, Cherry Hill        3rd place – S. Stadtlander-Miller, Ken-Zen
3rd place – K. Ng, SeiZan              3rd place – C. Colbert, Ittokai
 Kantosho – Y. Seong, Cherry Hill       Kantosho – D. Darlington, Shidogakuin

Shodan                                 Nidan
1st place – D. Song, Ken-Zen           1st place – M. Buonadonna, Shidogakuin
2nd place – R. Higham, Ken-Zen         2nd place – H. Cousin, SeiZan
3rd place – J. Chen, Nichibukan        3rd place – F. Domingo, MuMonKai CKF
3rd place – P. Kim, Doshikai           3rd place – A. Milton, Ken-Zen
 Kantosho – C. Merizalde, Shidokan CKF  Kantosho – K. Kolodij, RaiUnKai CKF

Sandan                                 Yondan
1st place – W. Wagler, Kenshokan CKF   1st place – K. Miyamori, Ken-Zen
2nd place – W. Gallo, SeiZan           2nd place – D. Yang, Cherry Hill
3rd place – M. Botey, Doshikai         3rd place – J. Ni, Hichibukan
3rd place – S. Lee Goyne, Shidokan CKF 3rd place – S. Corchado, Nichibukan
 Kantosho – C. Matchuk, MuMonKai CKF    Kantosho – T. Furuta, Ittokai

Godan
1st place – P. Suen, MuMonKaiCKF
2nd place – P. Shin, Shidogakuin
3rd place – G. Hall, Zen-Ken
3rd place – M. Hodge, MuMonKai CKF
 Kantosho – S. Naji, Shidogakuin

57th ANNUAL STEVESTON KENDO TOURNAMENT – February 23, 2019, Hugh McRoberts Secondary School, Richmond, BC


10 Years and Under                   11 to 13 Years                       14 to 15 Years
1st place – L. Ido, Butokuden        1st place – J. Yu, Northwest         1st place – K. Underhill, Northwest
2nd place – Y. Onitsuka,NCKF         2nd place – R. Ido, Butokuden        2nd place – A. Son, Renbu
3rd place – K. Yoshimura, Renbu      3rd place – F. Benson, Youshinkan    3rd place – J. Kim, Federal Way
3rd place – D. Buckham, UVic         3rd place – N. Son, Renbu            3rd place – C. Robillard, Steveston

0-4 Kyu                              1-3 Kyu                              Women 1 Dan and Under
1st place – B. Wong, UW              1st place – L. Gao, UW               1st place – T. Huang, UVic
2nd place – S. Dan, UW               2nd place – A. Yorita, UW            2nd place – A. Tan, UW
3rd place – J. Kuo, UW               3rd place – A. Rose, Renfrew         3rd place – N. Harris, Highline
3rd place – J. Lee, UW               3rd place – J. Peters, Edmonds       3rd place – K. Onosato, Calgary

Women 2 Dan and Over                 1-2 Dan                              3 Dan
1st place – M. Kitamura, Butokuden   1st place – S. O’Sullivan, Steveston 1st place – A. Fujii, UW
2nd place – B. Park, Bellevue        2nd place – D. Yao, Steveston        2nd place – I. Miki, Steveston
3rd place – C. Takeuchi, Youshinkan  3rd place – S. Suda, Renbu           3rd place – H. Shim, Renbu
3rd place – H. Yamada, Vancouver     3rd place – R. Koyama, Vancouver     3rd place – M. Uto, NCKF

4 Dan and Above
1st place – K. Lee, Chinook
2nd place – K. Unzei, Aoi
3rd place – D. Ara, Renbu
3rd place – R. Asato, Vancouver

Junior Team                                    Senior Team
1st place - Butokuden (L.Edo,T.Miyamoto,       1st place - Hawaii (B.Fukutomi,C.Goodin,
             S.Imura,R.Ido,T.Ariga)                         D.Miura,G.Matsubayashi,G.Matsumoto)
2nd place – Steveston A (R.Nakano,C.Robillard, 2nd place - Youshinkan (K.Takeuchi,A.Xie,
             J.Hung,A.Chang,B.Miki)                         K.Kobayashi,J.Chien,C.Takeuchi)
3rd place - Northwest (N.Underhill,J.Yu,       3rd place - NCKF (K.Fukumoto,M.Uto,
             K.Underhill,J.Kim,T.Ting)                      K.Hamayama,M.Jao,S.Choi)
3rd place – Renbu B (N.Son,K.Yoshimura,        3rd place - Butokuden (R.Okawa,H.Ariga,
             Y.Kawabe,L.Cheung,I.Son)                       M.Kitamura,K.Ariga,T.Ariga)
Sportsmanship Pledge - Elliott Chui

16TH KENSHIKAN KENDO CLUB TOURNAMENT IN MEMORY OF SHIGEO YOSHINAGA AND KATSUMI YAMADA, March 3, 2019, Manoa District Park Gym, Oahu, Hawaii


Novice                    Yonenbu                       Shonenbu                      Seinenbu
1st place – Jesse Jong    1st place – Maiki Uda         1st place – Caden Matsumoto   1st place – Joshua Simpkins
2nd place – Andrew Kim    2nd place – Kosuke Toeda      2nd place – Zachary Yamamoto  2nd place – Neil Shimabukuro
3rd place – Kanon Park    3rd place – Andrew Tomas      3rd place – Brandyn Matsumoto 3rd place – Gariel Hart

1-2 Dan                   Women’s Open                  3 Dan                         4 Dan and Above
1st place – Yunsang Park  1st place – Mari Shiveley     1st place – Daiki Miura       1st place – Hyun Kim
2nd place – Andy Cheng    2nd place – Malia Stachiewicz 2nd place – Taiyo Kanemitsu   2nd place – Jack Yamada
3rd place – Kai Kikishita 3rd place – Tina Kaku         3rd place – Nicklas Matsumoto 3rd place – Billy Kang

Masters                   5 Man Team
1st place – David Kikau   1st place – Kenshikan A
2nd place – Bert Shibuya  2nd place – Aiea Taiheji
3rd place – Carl Nakamura

Katsumi Yamada Kantosho Award – Malia Stachiewicz

SHINKYU SHINSA


AUSKF KODANSHA SHINSA, November 11, 2018, Dallas, Texas
5TH DAN:  Hiroki Fukui (ECUSKF).
7TH DAN:  Brandon Harada (SCKF), Yutaro Matsuura (MWKF), Song Choi Yang (SCKF).
 RENSHI:  Nathan Makino (SCKO), Song Choi Yang (SCKF).
 KYOSHI:  Brandon Harada (SCKF), Christopher Yang (SCKF).

PNKF KENDO SHINSA, February 16, 2019, Tyee Educational Complex, 4424 S. 188th Street, SeaTac, Washington


6TH KYU:  Hideaki Ito (Bellevue), Owen Kaufman (Portland), Emerson Lau (Bellevue).
5TH KYU:  Keegan Hirata (Federal Way) Truman Lau (Bellevue), DongYun Ryu (Cascade), Jonathan Yu (Northwest), Rina Yuan (Bellevue).
4TH KYU:  Issei DeBlieck (Sno-King), Seohee Jeon (Bellevue), Anthony Kelsey (Edmonds), Timothy Kim (Northwest), Tory Kim (Northwest), 
Juah Paik (Tacoma), DongHyun Ryu (Cascade), Shiori Tano (Obukan), Daniel Theophanes (Obukan). 
3RD KYU:  Thabit Ahmed (Edmonds), Lucas Bobadilla (OSU), Jeremy Chu (Bellevue), Devin Chung (Cascade), Aaron Fung (Seattle), 
Ashley Garr (Cascade), Lucian Jesequel (Obukan), Alex Kim (Bellevue), Yeoun Hee Kim (Bellevue), Jason Kuo (UW), Alexander Lam (Bellevue), 
Ethan Law (Portland), Juno Lee (UW), Maoyang Li (Bellevue), Dorrit Lin (UW), Emily McCracken (Bellevue), Mara Poor (Tacoma), Sung Won Ryu (Cascade), 
Daniel Shilov (Highline), Conrad Slater (UW), Hoeun Son (Federal Way), Dan Terao (Cascade), Brian Wong (UW).
2ND KYU:  Matheus (Kai) Bandur (Honda) (Cascade), Danny Chung (Cascade), Espen Hellevik (UW), Esther Law (UW), Taiki Miyamoto (Northwest), 
Connor Mulcahy (UW), Kate Rice (Portland), Neo Smith (Bellevue), Willard Wiseman (OSU), Derek Woodward (Everett), Zhaoyuan Xu (UW), Brandon Yorker (Kent).
1ST KYU:  Robin Allen (Portland), Yue Chen (Seattle), Justin Davis (Northwest), Helen Fukuda (Cascade), Tom Fukuda (Cascade), 
Leo Gao (UW), Yuning Gao (OSU), Kyle Hale (Seattle), Noah Larson (Federal Way), Isabella Lee (Federal Way), Gen Li (OSU), 
Krystal McIntosh (Federal Way), Matt Miyamoto (Northwest), Nagato Orita (Seattle), Jin Pak (Northwest) Emilio Peralta (Obukan), 
Jonah Redaja (Edmonds), Dan Rosanova (Seattle), Michele Soleimani (Portland), Suepapone Vanasouk (Cascade), Anthony Yorita (UW).
1ST DAN:  Kamia Acoba (Everett), James Faulkner (Edmonds), Jin Ho Jeon (Bellevue), Josh Kim (Federal Way), Daniel Lee (Tacoma), 
Simon Lee (Federal Way).
2ND DAN:  John Kliem (Tacoma), Yuriko Lee (Obukan), Hien Nguyen (Edmonds), Bryant Pae (Northwest), Young-ki Paik (Tacoma), 
Edward Park (Sno-King), Shun Wetlesen (Obukan).
3RD DAN:  Nicholas Cook (Portland), Trinh Ho (Northwest), Van Le (Obukan), Mahya Okita (Seattle), Jason Yu (Northwest).
4TH DAN:  Taryn Imanishi (Cascade), BumSoo Lee (Bellevue), Richard Lei (Seattle), Takao Yamashita (Seattle).

2019 EAST COAST IAIDO SHINSA, February 17, 2019, CERC (Community Education and Recreation Center), Jersey City, NJ


4TH KYU:  E. Kwak (Cherry Hill), J. Kwak (Cherry Hill), S. Kwak (Cherry Hill).
3RD KYU:  J. Burton (Wahsinkan), A. Fromqel (Shidogakui), J. Kwak Jr (Cherry Hill), D. Lin (Cherry Hill), Zhuoran Long (Ken-Zen), 
C. Lu (Cherry Hill), S. Scherr (Agassiz), Y. Seong (Cherry Hill), Tom Wendling (Ken-Zen), A. Zheng (Ken-Zen).
2ND KYU:  P. Kim (Cherry Hill), I. Kuznetsova (Shidogakui), J. Kwak Sr (Cherry Hill), D. Ovsyannikov (Nichibukan), E. Seong (Cherry Hill).
1ST KYU:  Sean Hess (Ken-Zen), K. Ng (SeiZan), J. Xie (Cherry Hill).
1ST DAN:  SC Bang (Cherry Hill), C. Colbert (Ittokai), D. Darlington (Shidogakuin), K Ding (Cherry Hill), Nathalie Jaspar (Ken-Zen), 
C. Kim (Cherry Hill), Philip Markunas (Ken-Zen), Joshua Stadtlander-Miller (Ken-Zen), Louis Thauvin (Ken-Zen).
2ND DAN:  D. Abrams (Cherry Hill), J. Chen (Nichibukan), Richard Higham (Ken-Zen), P. Kim (Doshikai), H. Maeda (Idaho).
3RD DAN:  M. Buonadonna (Shidogakuin), David Ducek (Ken-Zen), Alec Milton (Ken-Zen).

THE LAST WORD

When I returned, I trained more new recruits. But this time, they were old, feeble men, often disabled and sick. All the men, college students and young men had already been drafted, leaving only the “Han” squad, these sad old men. The Japanese army was obviously in poor condition, and it was becoming apparent that Japan was losing the war. These old soldiers were throwaway men. I thought that training these old people to fight, some of whom actually belonged in a nursing home, was absurd, a waste of energy, and cruel. So I gave them time to rest and recuperate. I would lead them out of the barracks with great gusto for training, but as we approached the training field, we just lay down and rested. If I had been caught doing this, I would have been court-martialed. But I guess the happy-go-lucky Hawaiian boy had emerged, and I thought, “What the heck! These old people can’t fight. They need rest more than anything else to merely survive.” I felt very sorry for the old soldiers.

–Rod Nobuto Omoto, Autobiography, edited by Charlotte Omoto, 2014, p. 37. Available as free download at lulu.com.

Kenyu – Monthly Newsletter of the Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation PLEASE NOTE: Kenyu Online IS THE EDITION OF RECORD FOR THIS NEWSLETTER – http://www.pnkf.org/ Tom Bolling, Editor – 7318 23rd Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98115

Posted in Kenyu

Kenyu – December 2018

Posted on 2018/12/12 by omb

Volume 32, number 12

December 2018

PNKF DATEBOOK

December 2018

12/15: PNKF Juniors practice, Sat, 5-8pm, cost $5, Seattle Buddhist
Temple, 1427 S Main Street Seattle 98144.

January 2019

1/12: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
1/26-1/27: FIK Shinpan Seminar, Sat/Sun, Dallas, TX.

February 2019

2/2: PNKF Kata Seminar, Sat, CANCELLED.
2/9-10: Boise State University 5th Annual Iaido Seminar, with Iaido
Kyoshi 8th Dan Kazuhiza Kaneda, from Tokyo, Japan. BSU Kinesiology
Gym, 1404 Bronco Lane, Boise, Idaho 83706.
```
     Schedule:  Saturday, Feb 9; 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
                Sunday, Feb 10; 10:00 am to 3:00 pm
```
2/16: PNKF Kendo Shinsa, Sat, 12noon-5pm, including godo keiko at the end of the Shinsa, Tyee Educational Complex, 4424 S. 188th Street, SeaTac, located right off I-5 at S. 188th Street.
2/23: Steveston Taikai, Sat, 9am, Hugh McRoberts Secondary School, 8980 Williams Road, Richmond BC. PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE

March 2019

3/3: UW Kendo Prom, Sun, 6:30-9:30pm, UW Waterfront Activities Center Great Room, 3710 Montlake Blvd, Seattle, Washington 98195. Prom Tickets will be $20 per person and $35 per couple. For students (high school or college) tickets will be $10 per person and $15 per couple. They will also be having a raffle ticket drawing with AMAZING prizes! PLEASE NOTE CHANGE OF DATE
3/9: PNKF Jodan Seminar, Sat, 12noon-5pm, featuring Kendo Renshi 6th Dan Harry Samkange, Broadview Elementary School (small gym), Sno-King Kendo Club, 13040 Greenwood Ave N., Seattle, WA 98133.
3/16: Highline Taikai, Sat, doors open 8:30am, opening ceremonies 9:30am, White Center Community Center,
1321 SW 102nd Street, Seattle..
3/23: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S.
King Street, Seattle.
3/30: PNKF Shinpan Seminar, Sat, TBD.

April 2019

4/6: AUSKF Junior Open National Championships, Sat, South Forsyth High School, 585 Peachtree Parkway,
Cumming, Georgia 30041 http://auskf-jrnationals.com/.
4/6: UW Taikai, Sat, 10am, Intramural Activities Building (IMA), UW campus, Montlake Boulevard NE.
4/13: PNKF Iaido Seminar and Shinsa, Sat, 9am-4pm, St. Peter’s
Episcopal Church Gym (Seattle Kendo Kai), 1610 S. King Street, Seattle.
4/13-14: AUSKF Board meeting, Sat-Sun. Hotel is Radisson, 18118 International Blvd, Seatac, WA 98188. Gym
for Saturday evening Godo Keiko 5-7pm, is Tyee Educational Complex, 4424 S. 188th Street, SeaTac, located
right off I-5 at S. 188th Street
4/14: AUSKF Kodansha Shinsa, Sun, 11am-5pm, Tyee Educational Complex, 4424 S. 188th Street, SeaTac, located
right off I-5 at S. 188th Street.
4/21: Cherry Blossom demo, Sun, TBD, Seattle Center.
4/??: Vancouver Taikai, Sat, TBD.

May 2019

5/4: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S.
King Street, Seattle.
5/18: Bellevue Junior Taikai, Sat, Highland Park Community Center.

June 2019

6/14-6/15-6/16: 12th Annual US Nito Kendo Summer Camp, Fri/Sat/Sun, College of Idaho, Caldwell, Idaho.
We are pleased to have the following sensei attend this year’s camp:
Ryoichi FUJII, Kyoshi 8 dan, Yamaguchi Japan
Yoshihiro UGAJIN,Kyoshi 7 dan, Tokyo Japan
Futoshi SATO, Kyoshi 7 dan, Chiba Japan
Mitsuyoshi WADA, Renshi 7 dan, Tokyo Japan
Hisashi NAGASAKI, Renshi 7 dan, Oita Japan
Ako FUJII, Renshi 7 dan, Yamaguchi Japan
6/22: Rose City Taikai, Sat, location TBD, Portland.
6/27-7/1: AUSKF Iaido Seminar, Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon.

July 2019

7/6-7/13: North American Women’s Kendo Tournament and Seminar, led by Kendo Renshi 7th Dan Chinatsu Maruyama, five time All Japan Champion, Seminar 7/6-7/11 Sat-Thu, Championship 7/13 Sat. https://womenskendo.com/
7/20: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S.
King Street, Seattle.

August 2019

8/10: PNKF Kendo Shinsa, Sat, TBD.

September 2019

9/14: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S.
King Street, Seattle.
9/27-9/29: PNKF Iaido Seminar, Tournament, and Shinsa.

October 2019

10/5: PNKF Shinpan Seminar, Sat, 12noon-5pm, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
10/19: Tacoma Taikai.

November 2019

11/2: PNKF Taikai, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.
11/9-10: AUSKF Board meeting.
11/10: AUSKF Kodansha Shinsa.
11/16: PNKF Board meeting, 9-11am, Peter’s Episcopal Church, 1610 S.
King Street, Seattle.

December 2019

12/7: Kent Taikai, Sat, TBD, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent.

PNKF BOARD NEWS

At their November 17, 2018 meeting, the 2018/2019 Board was seated, and Officers were elected.

President – CJ Chaney (SnoKing), Vice President – Doug Imanishi (Seattle), Treasurer – Mary DeJong (Highline), Secretary – Tom Bolling (Bellevue), UW Advisor – CJ Chaney.

Other Board members are: Masa Ando (Alaska), Jonathan Bannister (AiShinKai), Sean Blechschmidt (Bellevue), Steve Choi (Portland), Sean DeBlieck (SnoKing), Mary DeJong (Highline), Rory Elliott (Everett), Karin Fedderson (Tacoma), Mark Frederick (Northwest), Jane Higa (UW), Michael Mabale (Seattle), Curtis Marsten (Kent), Tiarnan Marsten (Kent), Vicki Marsten (Federal Way), George Nakayama (Portland), Ed Olson (Tonbo), Chris Ruiz (Spokane), Russ Sinclair (Spokane), Blake Sprenger (Portland), Stephen Ting (Northwest), Frank Wessbecher (Highline).

2018 NORTH AMERICAN IAIDO PARTNERSHIP EVENT – December 2, 2018, Canadian Kendo Federation, Etobicoke, Toronto


Pan-American Iaido - National Team Taikai
1st place - USA
    Senpo - Thane Mittelstaedt (AiShinKai Fudo Myoo-Ji Dojo)
   Chuken - John Mullin (Ken Zen Institute)
   Taisho - Paul Shin (Shidogakuin)
2nd place - Canada
    Senpo - Greg Fenton (Mu Mon Kai)
   Chuken - Warren Wagler (Kenshokan)
   Taisho - Juan Vasquez (Shidokan)
3rd place - Chile
    Senpo - Cristian Zumelzu (Asociacion Metropolitana de Kendo)
   Chuken - N/A
   Taisho - Julio Villareol (Asociacion Metropolitana de Kendo)
3rd place -  Mexico
    Senpo - Ireneo Rodriguez (Asociacion de Kendo de Nuevo León)
   Chuken - Saul Rocha (Asociacion de Kendo de Nuevo León)
   Taisho - Oscar Mendez (Asociacion de Iaido y Kendo del Instituto Politecnico Nacional)

Pan-American Iaido – Goodwill Taikai

1st place - Atsuki’s Fantasico
    Senpo - Oscar Mendez (Mexico)
   Chuken - Flavia Silva (Chile)
   Taisho - Hanna Ikeda-Suen (Canada)
2nd place - Senshin
    Senpo - Jennifer Mayo (USA)
   Chuken - Ignacio Lorca (Chile)
   Taisho - David Cheng (Canada)
3rd place - Olivia’s Fantasico
    Senpo - Saul Rocha (Mexico)
   Chuken - Sandy Lee-Gonye (Canada)
   Taisho - Gordon Hall (USA)
3rd place - Espados Hermanos
    Senpo - Ireneo Rodriguez (Mexico)
   Chuken - Edward Vierk (USA)
   Taisho - Guillermo Vargas (Chile)

Pan-American Iaido – Embu Taikai

  3rd Dan - Darwin Chan (Mu Mon Kai, Canada)
  4th Dan - Tak Furuta (Ittokai, USA)
  5th Dan - Patrick Suen (Mu Mon Kai, Canada)
  6th Dan - Carole Galligan (Mu Mon Kai, Canada)

KENT TAIKAI – December 8, 2018, Kent Commons Recreational Center, 525 4th Avenue N., Kent


10 Years and Under                     11-12 Years
1st place – K. Maxfield-Matsumoto, Highline   1st place – A. Mabale, Seattle
2nd place – Y. Ryu, Cascade            2nd place – J. Yu, Northwest
3rd place – K. Ayers, SnoKing          3rd place – J. Paik, Tacoma
3rd place – O. Kaufman, Portland       3rd place – S. Kim, Seattle

13-15 Years                            0-4 Kyu
1st place – J. Kim, Federal Way        1st place – A. Kim, Bellevue
2nd place – K. Underhill, Northwest    2nd place – YI Sun, Bellevue
3rd place – D. Chung, Cascade          3rd place – J. Lee, UW
3rd place – L. Ohata, Bellevue         3rd place – A. Lam, Bellevue

3-1 Kyu                                1-2 Dan
1st place – T. Miyamoto, Northwest     1st place – KE Underhill, Northwest
2nd place – N. Smith, Bellevue         2nd place – D. Imanishi, Seattle
3rd place – E. Midorikawa, UW          3rd place – K. Fukuda, Cascade
3rd place – H. Su, Bellevue            3rd place – A. Yuen, Seattle

3-4 Dan                                Women’s
1st place – I. Morgan, Kent            1st place – T. Imanishi, Cascade
2nd place – Y. Shim, Highline          2nd place – B. Park, Bellevue
3rd place – R. Ono, Cascade            3rd place – R. Ono, Cascade
3rd place – M. Yoneda, Kent            3rd place – M. Blechschmidt, Bellevue
4th place – T. Marsten, Kent
4th place – T. Patana, SnoKing
4th place – F. Wessbecher, Highline
4th place – B. Shieh, Cascade

Junior Teams
1st place – Bellevue (H. Koob, K. Takamatsu, L. Ohata, J. Chu, C. Park)
2nd place – Northwest (Ju. Paik, N. Underhill, J. Yu, Jo. Paik, K. Underhill)
3rd place – Seattle (A. Yuen, E. Kim, A. Mabale, S. Kim, K. Hale)
3rd place – Mixed (S. Johnson, M. Day, O. Kaufman, L. Jesequel, F. Mabale)

Senior Teams
1st place – Northwest (K. Underhill, T. Miyamoto, B. Pae, X. Wang, V. Vulfson)
2nd place – Bellevue (B. Park, M. Blechschmidt, L. Tsybert, M. Ohata, H. Su)
3rd place – SnoKing (D. Lew, M. Suzuki, A. Zee, T. Patana, N. Grimes)
3rd place – Kent (S. Day, J. Orwig, M. Yoneda, I. Morgan, T. Marsten)

Shinpan Sho – Curtis Marsten
Sportsmanship Pledge – Terry McManus

SHINKYU SHINSA

AUSKF KODANSHA SHINSA, November 11, 2018, Dallas, Texas
5TH DAN:  Satoko Boettcher (ECUSKF), Hiroki Fukui (ECUSKF), Eui Rae Ro (SEUSKF), Mark Masakuni Sasaki (MWKF), Mitsukuni Yoshida (MWKF).
6TH DAN:  Masanao Fukuno (SCKO), Pau H. Shin (GNEUSKF).
7TH DAN:  Yutaro Matsuura (MWKF).
 RENSHI:  Russell M. Ichimura (SWKIF), Nathan Makino (SCKO), Song Yi Yang (SCKF).
 KYOSHI:  Brandon Harada (SCKF).

MWKF FALL SHINSA, October 21, 2018, Oveland Park, Kansas
2ND KYU:  Nick Karstens (Moline).
1ST DAN:  Kate Classy Duffus (Moline).
4TH DAN:  Seong Kim (Moline).

2018 NORTH AMERICAN IAIDO PARTNERSHIP SHINSA, December 2, 2018, Canadian Kendo Federation, Etobicoke, Toronto
6TH DAN:  Jonathan Bannister (PNKF).

CKF WEST SHINSA, December 8, 2018, Steveston 
5TH DAN:  Jakob Schmidt (Vancouver).

THE LAST WORD

I thought that training these old people to fight, some of whom actually belonged in a nursing home, was absurd, a waste of energy, and cruel. So I gave them time to rest and recuperate. I would lead them out of the barracks with great gusto for training, but as we approached the training field, we just lay down and rested. If I had been caught doing this, I would have been court-martialed. But I guess the happy-go-lucky Hawaiian boy had emerged, and I thought, “What the heck! These old people can’t fight. They need rest more than anything else to merely survive.”

I felt very sorry for the old soldiers. Once an intake sergeant came to me with a picture of a lady. He said one of the old soldiers who had just been inducted a couple of days before had the photograph in his wallet. It was typical that the old soldiers were harassed for trivial things. To try to “shape them up,” they were given a “Binta,” a hard whack on both sides of the face. But taking the picture was psychological cruelty. I called for the old man and asked him to identify the lady. “My wife,” he answered softly, shaking because he thought I would give him another Binta. “Okay.” I said. “Put this back in your wallet and go back to your bunk.” Then I called the soldier who had taken the picture from the old man. I reprimanded him, and came close to calling him a bully. “Don’t do that to the soldiers. They have the right to carry their wives’ pictures in their wallets,” I barked. “And before you give Binta to any of them, see me first. I want to know why, and it better be a good reason!” Long after the War when I was living in Matsue, this nameless old soldier found me and came to thank me.

Early spring, 1945, I had full responsibility for the welfare of my troops; all were novices, the very young and the elderly. My troop consisted of four six-cylinder Toyota trucks, and four squads, a total of eighteen soldiers including two sergeants, a driver, an assistant, and two flaggers. We were assigned to serve in Kochi City in Kochi Prefecture on Shikoku Island. We rarely stayed in the city, however, and usually camped in scattered places on the hillside surrounding the city.

Our mission was tough, beginning before dawn and ending late at night; some days we worked around the clock. Our rations were minimal, and we were always hungry, but we kept on moving and rested only when we were completely exhausted. We cut and loaded logs from the mountains with no towing tools of any kind, and then hauled them to the Kochi shoreline to furnish barricade materials for the infantry soldiers protecting the Japanese Mainland from invasion. The Allies were at our borders. On the return trip, we hauled food and supplies from the Kochi warehouse for redistribution to the farmers’ warehouses located throughout the hills. Food was critical and in this way we tried to avoid losing all our supplies to bombs and create more access points.

We kept moving through the dark one night, long after we all wanted and severely needed to rest. One of the sergeants asked me to allow the soldiers to sleep in the shoreline warehouse, where we had stopped for a few minutes after loading for the return trip. The warehouse was now half empty and seemed luxurious compared to our usual sleeping conditions. I rejected the request and after a rest of only a few minutes, started up the hill with very unhappy soldiers. About midway, we heard B-52 bombers flying over very high, but they didn’t drop any bombs. “Turn off the lights,” I ordered, “and sleep right where you are!” Shortly thereafter, from way out in the Pacific, a swarm of P-151’s sprayed some kind of liquid flame accelerant on the Kochi warehouse. Then the second line dropped flare bombs. In seconds the entire warehouse exploded, lighting the shoreline of Kochi. They ignored our little convoy, or perhaps never spotted us. No one complained about lack of sleep that night! Once again, luck was with us.

How perfunctory and cold my attitude now seems – he burned then died. No description of his unrelenting screams of agony, the calls to his mother, the terror in his eyes. But that is what happens in war. Too much suffering and death can drive a man insane unless the senses of pity and horror are numbed. Anger is acceptable. Soldiers are taught not to look in the eyes of an enemy if killing in close combat. Looking into the eyes creates a relationship. We are taught about relationship in Kendo. But there is no time in boot camp to learn how to create a life as well as take a life. In modern warfare, killing is, when possible, more distant. That is probably good for the mental health of soldiers, even though it avoids confronting the reality of death on a bloody battlefield.

Hiroshima, 1945

We were so isolated in Kochi that we had lost communications with our base in Hiroshima. We didn’t know about the Bomb or the end of the War until few weeks after Japan surrendered. But we weren’t surprised. The old soldiers were tired and already felt defeated, and most of us had known for some months that the war was lost. We just didn’t know the form that loss would take.

–Rod Nobuto Omoto, Autobiography, edited by Charlotte Omoto, 2014, p. 36-37. Available as free download at lulu.com.

Kenyu – Monthly Newsletter of the Pacific Northwest Kendo Federation PLEASE NOTE: Kenyu Online IS THE EDITION OF RECORD FOR THIS NEWSLETTER – http://www.pnkf.org/ Tom Bolling, Editor – 7318 23rd Avenue N.E., Seattle, WA 98115

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