by Kiai Echo | Dec 18, 2025 | Announcements, Kiai Echo Articles, Kiai Echo Issues
This is why I started Danzan Ryu with the AJJF– John Pfund It was December 1977. I was 10 years old, and it was Christmas break in Livermore, California. My best friend and I decided it was the perfect day to play one-on-one baseball at our school. We walked...
by Website Admin | Sep 24, 2025 | Memorials
In Loving Memory of Thomas Paine Ball Jr. by Jan Ball, Sharmon Ball and Aaron Ball September 5, 1939 – February 8, 2025 Thomas Paine Ball Jr. was born on September 5, 1939, in Weed, California, to Dina Janet Barni (born 1914 in Jackson, CA) and Thomas Paine Ball Sr....
by Website Admin | Aug 11, 2022 | In Memoriam Ohana, Memorials
John Gussman Coach John Gussman began the study of Kodokan judo in 1962 with Frank Hubbard Sensei in Dearborn, MI. He competed on a national level until 1978. Since that time, he has coached and trained judo competitors on the national and international level. He...
by Website Admin | Apr 20, 2022 | Promotions
Congratulations to the following who passed their black belt exams or were elevated in rank at convention: To the Rank of Shodan: Penelope Klein, a student of Professor Robert Hodgkin from Shin Budo Kai Bobby Wen, a student of Sensei Jerold Kunzman from Kodai No...
by Website Admin | May 15, 2021 | In Memoriam Ohana, Memorials
A Tribute to Skip Maxfield By Sean Hummer The AJJF has lost one of our Ohana, Sensei Skip Maxfield of the Nibukikan dojo in Chico, CA. He left us Saturday, May 1st at approximately 2pm. To those of you who never had the good fortune to meet him or know him well, I...
by Website Admin | May 16, 2020 | In Memoriam AJJF Professors, Memorials
After 61 years of marriage, Professor Bud Fuller (84) and his wife, Ella (77), passed away at their home in Grants Pass, OR, within 2 weeks of each other. Both were students of Professor Estes in Chico and had met on the mat at Chico Judo Academy. Their dedication to...