Post-Conference Notes

The 2025 NWMAF Conference – Forward Together – was amazing! We rolled; we laughed; we kicked, punched, and arm-barred. We listened and learned. We grew. We healed. We celebrated and we hugged. We came TOGETHER in community — and now we move FORWARD.

Thanks so much to every single person who attended, taught, volunteered, trained, performed, donated, and shared their knowledge and experience with open hearts and minds! The learning and friendships created will stay with us for a long, long time.

The Board is still wrapping up final Conference business and attending to whatever personal business we’ve been neglecting these past few weeks (ha!), but we’ll be “moving forward” again soon. So if you have volunteered, nominated yourself or someone else for the Board, or signed up to express interest in leading online classes, don’t worry, you will be hearing from us soon!

Our ‘regular’ end-of-the month newsletter for members will resume at the end of August, full of upcoming meetings, online trainings, member updates and events, and more. For now, read on for more fun pieces from the 2025 Conference!

Petition to Recognize Fukuda Shihan

Many of us attended the screening of Mrs. Judo: Be Stong, Be Gentle, Be Beautiful,

the documentary chronicling Fukuda Shihan’s life. The United States Judo Association and the United States Judo Federation have promoted Fukuda Shihan to 10th Dan, the highest rank in Judo — yet the Kodokan, the home of Judo, has refused to recognize this promotion. Please click here to learn more about Fukuda Shihan and for information on how to write a letter expressing your desire to see them finally recognize her (more than) deserved rank.

Award of Excellence Recipient Bonnie Korte

As announced during the Conference, our Chair, Connie Halporn, and our Digital Coordinator Lia Schnirman Barría, will be presenting Bonnie Korte with the Award of Excellence at the International Judo camp on August 27th, which is Women’s Wednesday — a day when all instructional classes are taught only by women. Congratulations to Bonnie! We will report back with more information and photos when she has received her award!

A Beautiful NWMAF Obi

“For the obi I designed, the snakes at the ends of the belt are for this year’s Chinese zodiac, the year of the snake. The year of the snake is supposed to symbolize renewal, adaptability, wisdom, and intuition. The other 4 animals on the belt are symbols from the martial arts system I studied from 2001-2020.  The tiger represents physical strength. The dragon represents mental and spiritual strength (colored purple since it is my instructor’s favorite color). The phoenix represents rebirth, and continuous reinvention of oneself. The snake wound around the staff is the staff of Asclepius, a Greek symbol, represents healing and rejuvenation.”  – Tamara Machac

We Need Your Feedback! (QR Code & Link)

We want to hear about your Conference experiences and how we can make next year even better. You can access the evaluation form via the QR code below, or by clicking this link!

Final Remarks: Train to Heal, Heal to Train

Submitted by Dr. Amelia Jones
2023 Coleen Gragen Award of Inspiration recipient

As I sit down to write these reflections, we’re still recovering from COVID. Fortunately our symptoms were mild and we did not infect any of our loved ones. First, I would like to express great appreciation for the team that produced such a wonderful event on a tight time frame. North Central College’s facilities and staff are exceptional, even if the accommodations and menu did not measure up to previous years. 

Thursday night’s screening of the documentary, Mrs. Judo, was inspirational. It was a reminder of the moral underpinnings of the martial arts, as well as a call to action. In these times when the country is being governed by misogynists and predators whose go to tactics are bullying, coercion and extortion, we must reclaim and reassert our own power. 

I want to give thanks to the Federation for holding space for the affinity group meetings. It is most important that we find our commonalities, and support each

other. The BIPOC meeting was very emotional and I am grateful to everyone who attended, sharing their experiences and vulnerabilities. It is no easy thing to walk into a room of 100+ warriors for the first time, not knowing if it is a safe space. 

I would like to nominate the Bonobo Sisterhood as the most interesting new concept introduced at the conference. I hope everyone joins and gets someone else to join also. The closer we grow to emulate our bonobo relatives, the better off we all will be. If only we could somehow infuse the concepts of ESD into the collective consciousness of the nation and the world, beginning with, “We are all worth defending.” 

I was humbled by the responses to the Acupuncture Healing Circle. So many attended that I was concerned about my ability to treat everyone within the allotted time. Perhaps two smaller sessions may be offered in the future. Since the pandemic, all of us have been under increased stress and since the beginning of the year many have felt under direct attack. There is a pervasive undercurrent of fear. All at a time when many practitioners are scaling back their practice. I am thankful to be selected for my training to help others to heal, and in doing so, to also heal myself. 

I’ll close with the membership meeting. It is always refreshing to hear the voices of the youth, the future of our beloved organization. And Connie’s admonition, “WE are the NWMAF! You and You and You and ME!!” To paraphrase Octavia Butler, “All that we touch, we change. All that we change, changes us all.” We must be the change that we want to see in the world. The time to act is now.