Sensei Staiger

Patrice Staiger, 4th degree black belt, is a long-time advanced registered nurse practitioner. She is a founding member of and served as President of the KATA Fund nonprofit organization. She is also a fine artist and can often be found biking in Seattle and around the world.

Sensei Hilmoe

Mary Kay, 4th degree black belt, is an acclaimed small animal Veterinarian. Dr. Hilmoe worked at The Family Pet. She received the 2016 Veterinarian of the Year Award in recognition of her outstanding career in veterinary medicine and service to her community and profession.

Sempai Ken

Ken Ballenger, 3rd degree black belt, is a prolific actor both on screen and around local comedy improvisation shows. Retired from the insurance industry, amongst his many accomplishments, Ken is a former UW Husky Football Team Captain and is an award-winning competitive chainsaw carver.

Sempai Brian Steiner

Brian Steiner, 3rd degree black belt, is a well-established Real Estate Broker in Seattle. He is also an accomplished percussionist playing in several bands, most notably in the successful Seattle band Jr. Cadillac.

Sempai Juniper

Juniper Kistner, 2nd degree black belt, is a former manager of the Washington Karate Ballard Dojo. She is an elementary school teacher and enjoys working with young children helping them to love learning through exploring their creativity.

Sempai Patty

Patty Hoban, 2nd Degree black belt, is Director of Financial Aid at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. She has a Masters degree in Classical Languages from the University of Texas - Austin. She is an avid dog sports enthusiast, specializing in Flyball and Agility. Her other interests include gardening, canning, and painting.

Sempai Hashim

Hashim Mehter, 1st degree black belt, is a critical care physician specializing in pulmonology at Virginia Mason Medical Center. Dr. Mehter received his black belt prior to leaving Washington to pursue his studies in medicine and has since returned and continues to train.

Sempai Jim

Jim Larson, 1st degree black belt, owns A Better Clean, an independent window cleaning business in Seattle. He is a longtime Washington Karate Ballard Dojo practitioner and dedicates much of his time and efforts towards volunteer work and community service.

Sempai Paul

Paul Gutierrez, 1st degree black belt, is a financial analyst. He holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and is an avid runner. He is also a three-time, award-winning chili cookoff champion. In the summer, he teaches a special Jiu Jitsu seminar to kids in the Karate Summer Camps.

Sempai SJ

SJ Chiro, 1st degree black belt, is an independent film producer. Her first feature-length film, Lane 1974, has garnered much attention during its 2017 premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin TX, and is making its debut with sold-out screenings in the Pacific Northwest at the 2017 Seattle International Film Festival.

Sempai Kinsey

Kinsey Frick, 1st degree black belt, started training with the Washington Karate as one of the original students at the Northwest Fisheries Science Center Karate Club in 2005 taught by Sensei Gutierrez. Kinsey is a scientist and scuba diver at NOAA-NWFSC. She is also a certified First Aid CPR Safety Training Instructor.

Sempai Nathaniel

Nathaniel Schroeder, 1st degree black belt, started training at the Washington Karate at age 4. He currently attends Shoreline Community College and is studying engineering. Nathaniel was an assistant in the After School Karate Program and has taught the Kinder Karate Program.

Sempai Fernando

Fernando Rivero, 1st degree black belt, is a Business Intelligence (BI) engineer at Nordstrom. He holds 3 masters degrees in IT Mgmt., business, and Human & Family Dev., and wrote a book on BI MicroStrategy. 5 of his children train in karate. He enjoys photography and piano.

Sempai Munya

Munya Chiro, 1st degree black belt, started in the Washington Karate at age 5. He taught the Kinder Karate Program and was an assistant in the After School Karate Program. Munya graduated from WSU, was awarded a prestigious Microsoft Young Entrepreneurs Fellowship, and is currently a Program Manager at Microsoft.

Sempai Kate

Kate Krawchik, 1st degree black belt, started in the Washington Karate at age 6. She assisted in the Kinder Karate Program and Summer Karate Camps. Kate graduated from Holy Names Academy, playing volleyball for the team. She currently attends Carroll College.

Sempai Zane

Zane Reed, Jr. black belt, started karate in California at age 5 and joined the Washington Karate at age 10. He currently attends Lakeside High School. In addition to assisting with Kinder Karate and the Dojo Summer Camps, he enjoys playing saxophone and writing for the school newspaper.

Sempai Grace

Grace A, Jr. black belt, started in the Washington Karate at age 3. She attends Holy Names Academy, in the graduating class of 2024. Grace assists in the Summer Karate Camps and classes. In her free time, she enjoys writing poetry, singing, playing flute and piano, volunteering to work with children at various organizations such as Tilth Alliance, and spending time with friends and her older sister who also trained at the Washington Karate.

Sempai MJ

MJ Magallones, Jr. black belt, started in the Washington Karate Association at age 11. She currently attends Shorewood High School. In addition to her regular karate training, MJ trains in kobudo and helps with the summer camps and Kinder Karate classes. Outside of karate, MJ enjoys playing violin in her school orchestra, being involved with school clubs, and spending time with her family.

Sempai Jonathan

Jonathan Rivero, 1st degree black belt, started training at the Washington Karate at age 9. Jonathan is an assistant instructor in the Washington Karate After School Program. He currently attends Seattle Pacific University, enjoys car spotting, and playing soccer with his siblings.