Sempai John Gough, 1st Dan
John Gough currently holds the rank of Sho-dan and has been practicing martial arts since 2000; a member of Minakami Karate Dojo since 2002. When he moved Seattle at the end of 2001 from the Midwest, it was important for him to find a new karate dojo to continue his martial arts training.
After visiting a number of karate schools in Seattle, he found himself dissatisfied with all of them because of the lack of atmosphere and spirit which he felt was important in karate training. John found what he was looking for at Minakami Karate Dojo. The energy and enthusiasm of the students currently practicing during his visit was exactly what he wanted in a karate school and he knew immediately that MKD was the place where he wanted to continue his training. When he finally met Shihan Minakami, he knew that he had made the right choice.
Aside from raising two young children, one who has begun training in the mighty mites classes, John usually attends classes a few times a week: bo-staff on Monday, sai where he's an instructor, and kata on Tuesday, assisting mighty mites on Saturday and just about any other time his schedule will accommodate.