History Museum Ceremony

On October 14, 2006, the Martial Arts History Museum held its annual ceremony where it inducts a small number of notable career martial artists into its Hall of Fame. Admittance is not based on popularity or on the number of plastic trophies they've gathered over the years. Rather it is based service; on their positive contribution to community and impact the history of martial arts. As Shinkendoka, we can be very proud that this year, among this short list of martial arts pioneers fell the name Toshishiro Obata. It is good to see the rest of the martial arts community recognizing the contribution made by Obata Kaiso.

The other martial artists who shared the stage with Obata Kaiso were Ark Y. Wong (Grandson Seming accepting), Wen Mei Yu, Wally Jay, Buck Sam Kong, and Cacoy Canete.

For those of you who are unaware, the Martial Arts History Museum project was begun 6 years ago by one individual, Michael Matsuda (reportedly a Kung Fu practitioner) who felt that the origins and traditions of the martial arts in their various forms were deserving of more recognition and preservation than they were getting, and launched on a mission to open the world's first Martial Arts History Museum. While I'm not clear what in the way of artifacts he actually has, he apparently has enough to need a permanent home for the collection, and has recently been gifted with some land in Santa Clarita, CA for his project. Having accomplished this, he will now go about the labor-intensive task of seeking government grants for the non-profit organization. This will include matching fund from any donations, so if you have some spare change you might contribute to this worthwhile endeavor, please consider doing so! For more information about the museum and related things, visit their web site at:

http://www.martialartsmuseum.com/

As a general FYI, the Martial Arts History Museum is not just another fly-by-night, "just for the $$ and the ego boost sort of organization like some of the soke-ship councils and other such superficial fluff. It is sincerely concerned with preserving the actual history of the more traditional martial arts, and those it recognizes as pioneers who have bravely presented their respective arts despite years of tremendous effort, great personal sacrifice in terms of time and resources--and in some cases, against the tide of cultural norms and/or popular notions of what training is about. These are factors that are all too easily forgotten in our "shiny thing of the moment" time and culture. Jeff sensei and I were pleased and proud to be a part of this event, and plan on becoming official museum members as soon as finances permit. M.H.