09/05/2026
20th Anniversary / WTKO Canada
At the end of this month, I celebrate a special milestone for myself and WTKO Canada.
Although it's been twenty years I still remember that drive back from the Winnipeg airport. It was September 30th, 2006, and the Fall air had just begun to cool. I had prepared what I wanted to say to my guest for weeks.
I did not bring Mullin Sensei to Manitoba simply to host a seminar at my Dojo. His sincerity, his kindness, and the way he viewed Karate was exactly what I valued. I believed he shared my view that Karate should remain untarnished by politics. Over the previous year he had rekindled the respect I have for senior Shotokan instructors.
I had first met him at a seminar the year before in Calgary, Alberta, and almost immediately invited him to teach in Brandon the following year. Over the months that followed, we stayed in close contact, and each conversation strengthened my conviction that he was someone I could trust. My personality has never allowed me to dip my toes into anything halfway, and the young WTKO as an organization was no exception. If I was going to align myself with an organization again, it had to be with someone who shared my values. On a personal level it was an exciting time for Dawn and I, as we were set to be parents for the first time. I did not know it on that drive but that would happen nineteen days later!
As we settled comfortably into the drive, I finally asked him about affiliating with the WTKO. My only hesitation, the one thing that held me back, was the memory of how deeply I had been hurt by Karate politics from my previous organization.
He listened closely to what I had to say, and did not hesitate in his reply and cut straight to the chase.
“It’s official,” he said. “You are now part of the WTKO.”
Just like that. No mincing about, no ceremony, no conditions. He believed in me, so I believed in him.
Since that day, I have worked tirelessly to build my vision of an ideal Karate group — one that puts training, support, and friendship above all else. My vision forced me to be a leader who would always strive to do the right things, who would lead by example, and who would never allow ego or politics to tarnish the art. What I wanted was simple, but not easy. To right the wrongs of the past and to build a future rooted in sincerity, discipline, and genuine care for the people who chose to train in our community. Every decision I made from that moment forward was guided by that commitment.
That first seminar had fourteen of my students attend, but that never mattered to me. The success of any group should never be gauged on its size. Twenty years after that first seminar with Mullin Sensei eight other dojos have joined WTKO Canada. Each instructor now is a friend and colleague. What began as a single seminar in a small prairie city has grown into a group built on training, support, and sincerity.
We now hold seminars throughout the year with both WTKO and non‑WTKO instructors, all with one purpose: to build a community of Karate in Canada. The organization has never been about drawing borders or creating divisions. Instead, it has been about opening doors, and welcoming instructors who share the same values. We offer training opportunities without ego, and have an environment where people feel encouraged to grow. That spirit of cooperation has become the backbone of WTKO Canada, and it continues to shape everything we do.
Karate - The Endless Journey!
