"Building a better tomorrow, By starting today"

TRIANGLE MARTIAL ARTS ASSOCIATION, INC.
ANNUAL REPORT
NOVEMBER 12, 2007

Presented by

KJN GRAND MASTER KEN CRAIG, KCTO, TOMS, ECSM, DSM, PMA
PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
INTERNATIONAL EXECUTIVE CHIEF INSTRUCTOR
INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM DIRECTOR - MARTIAL ARTS PROGRAM
INTERNATIONAL TECHNICAL DIRECTOR - HAPMOOSAKI-DO
INTERNATIONAL TECHNICAL DIRECTOR - TAEKWON-DO

Grand Master Ken Craig addresses the
assocation at the 8th Anniversary of TMAA

On November 12th, 1998 Triangle Martial Arts Association formed its first class at the Eureka Valley Recreation Center in the heart of the Castro Village in San Francisco. Led by three black belt instructors and two color belt assistants, the focus was simple, the goals were limited, and the future was uncertain. Our focus was to provide classes to the LGBT community in the San Francisco/Bay Area. The goal was to empower those attendees with the knowledge and confidence that comes from training in the martial arts. The future?  Who could have imagined then, as we saw six homeless youth attend that first class, that TMAA would come so far, in such a short space of time.

Today as I stand before you, I see a healthy, happy, vibrant, focused, and energetic organization that is looking forward to the future while still remembering the harsh and sobering lessons from which we were born. TMAA was formed out of the worst adversity and travesty that humans can impose upon each other, the horrific kidnapping, torture, and ultimate murder of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard, merely because he was gay. Matthew, like so many other young gay men in 1998 was simply trying to live his life as best he knew how. He was attending college, he was passionate about international relations, and was figuring out what his future would be after college.

Matthew Shepard - Honorary founding
member of Triangle Martial Arts Association

Matthews future was cut short when he was kidnapped, brutaly robbed and beaten with a pistol and left to die in a freezing Wyoming October evening. Eight years later, much has changed for the better. Many advanced and enlightened countries around the world have recognized the simple and obvious human right to freedom in the expression of affection and love toward another adult and have enacted laws protecting LGBTQQI individuals. Some states around the world have gone far beyone this to recognize the rights of LGBTQQI individuals to share in the same uniions that their straight counterparts enjoy, without any limitations, adjustments, or limitations. We heartily congratulate and recognize these enlightened, compassionate, and leading states and hope that their fine examples will lead to the same recognition and realization around the rest of the world.

TMAA is committed to the task of advancing LGBTQQI equality in all aspects of every society around the world. This is a grand and ambitious goal that to many will seem impossibly out of reach. Yet just eight years ago, would anyone have believed that Canada would legalize marriage for everyone, that most Europeean states would recognize same sex partnerships and that the LGBTQQI movement would have such power and attention today.

Eight years ago as I founded TMAA in San Francisco, I was told that no-one would be interested in joining a gay club, no-one would allow us to compete in their tournaments, and gays wouldn't be intersted in training hard on a Friday evening rather than going out to the bars. "They" were wrong, and just as TMAA has developed slowly, step by step, sometimes painfully, and sometimes joyously, we are committed to working toward an equal, just, diverse, and happy community - step by step, with your support.

OUR MOST RECENT ADVANCES

Instructor Anne Coverdale 

The last twelve months have seen incredible growth in TMAA and in our ability to press forward with our mission and goals. Our suite of six different programs all target specific areas in which we wish to bring our purpose and skills to bear for the positive benefit of those we serve. 

Martial Arts Program (MAP) directed by International Program Director Grand Master Ken Craig went through some tough times, and some amazing successes in 2006. We expanded our disciplines to include new International Technical Director Sensei Chuck Chung who established the Triangle Jiu-Jitsu discpline in San Francisco, and added two additional clubs to the register with senior instructor Jamye Ford establishing Triangle TaeKwon-Do 5th Street in San Francisco and senior instructor Jim Gardner establishng Triangle TaeKwon-Do Louisville in Kentucky.

We also expanded our regional presence in 2006 with Jim Gardner being appointed Chief Instructor for the Kentucky region, Cindy Dubuqe being appointed President for the New York, New Jersey, and Connecticuit tri-state region, and Janecke Hausken being appointed President for the Colorade region. Through these regional presidents and chief instructors, TMAA will expand our reach beyond the San Francisco area to establish instructors, clubs, and opportunites in communities that desperately need them. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Jim, Cindy, and Janecke for their efforts and contributions to date and I look forward to the time when I travel to these regions to attend Triangle classes, seminars, demonstration and events.

TMAA medalists at the VII Gay
Games martial arts event in Chicago

2006 also saw the seventh quadrennial Federation of Gay Games held in Chicago, following some difficulties with the original Montreal, Canada site. TMAA elected to support the Chicago games rather than the Montreal event and took a team of twelve players and over ten additional friends and family to the event. Triangle students from California and Kentucky attended Gay Games VII in Chicago and earned a total of twenty-one medals as well as the honor of being the association with the most participants at the games. Our students, many who had never competed at an international event before, enjoyed themselves immensely and conducting themselves in an exemplary fashion, elliciting the respect and admiration fo many at the games.

While we began the year with a lower than usual student participation rate, our continued outreach and community efforts resulted in us arriving at this point in the year with around forty-five overall active students in seven clubs spread over three different disciplines and two States in the United States of America.

Youth Empowerment Services (YES) directed by International Program Director and senior instructor Chris Maden continues to develop and solidify the model which we are confident will be expanded to reach other regions and youth within the coming years. Operating at one middle school in the San Francisco are of the California region, the YES program has proved successful and has about ten middle school students participating and enjoying the program.

TMAA youths participating in class

Our efforts in this area are limited at present by the simple fact that almost all of our instructor corps at present is made of of voluntary unpaid individuals who have regular 9-5 day jobs. This severly limits the availablility of instructors to expand the YES program into other schools, areas, or regions. We hope to secure grant and individual funding to help us expand this program by employing one or two instructors full time and will work towards this goal in 2007 and 2008.

Community Outreach Program (COP) directed by International Program Director and senior instructor Jim Garder expanded significantly during 2006 especially in response to increased requests for self-defense seminars in the San Francisco area. Communtiy outreach efforts include seminars, lectures, and demonstrations to help the community at large understand what TMAA does, and how we can help each community address different safety, security, or development issues.

2006 started much as every other year with one or two requests for us to provide self-defense seminars, but reports of assaults and rising crime in the Castro area of San Francisco have resulted in the requests for our self-defense seminars increasing by 400%.  Where we normally host one seminar a quarter for the general community, we have already conducted one a month since September, and have plans to continue at this pace until March of 2007.

Self-Defense seminar participants learning
to say "STOP."

While our demonstration and lecture activities have often been sporadic in past years, we are seeing an upturn in requests for us to speak or provide demonstrations for a number of groups ranging from Parents of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) to the New Leaf organiation. Such opportunities are welcomed by us and are always well received by the requesting groups. We provide these demonstrations and lectures free of charge to other non-profit groups, and often find that we provide insight and information on a range of issues that many have not considered before.  

Community Action Team (CAT) directed by International Program Director and senior instructor Jamye Ford saw significnat expansion also in 2006 primarily due to a request for TMAA to become a involved in the creation of the Castro Community on Patrol volunteer community safety effort.

Community action takes us into the community in support of other non-profit groups, organizations and efforts and 2006 saw us assist in many such efforts, but none have been more important or more satisfying that our involvement with the Castro Community on Patrol (CCOP.)  Established in September 2006 the patrol provides volunteers to patrol the Castro community on Friday and Saturday evenings in an effort to prevent crime and provide safety information and advice to the residents of the community. TMAA was approached very early and has been heavily involved ever since in helping to set up the patrol and in providing the volunteer training itself.

Castro Comunity on Patrol volunteers listen
attentively as TMAA instructors provide their
practical training portion in San Francisco, CA

As well as CCOP, we have provided significant support and assistance for the second year to the Castro Street Fair. They asked us to return in the role of donation couriers to transport the dontations made by fair attendees from the gates of the event to the central counting room in the heart of the Castro. With two teams of four black belts in each courier team, as well as providing security to the counting room itself, TMAA assisted in the collection of over $35k, the bulk of which is donated to local San Francisco non-profit organizations. 

Instructor Training & Certification Program (ITCP) directed by International Program Director and senior instructor Mike Pierce continues to develop significantly and provides an invaluable support system for our incredible corps of black belt instructors and color belt assistant instructors.

With the support of national coordinators instructor Jacob Fisher and senior instructor Jamey Ford, ITCP successfully re-certified ten current instructors and facilitated the new certification of three new instructor additions to the corps. The ITCP is at the core and heart of what makes TMAA a leader in the martial arts communty and so different to the majority of average martial arts entities out there today. The professionalism, training, knowledge, ability, confidence, and experience TMAA instructors present and posses is recognized and appreciated by everyone who meets them.

Instructors in San Francisco at the conclusion
of an instructor advancement class.

This is no small feat, and it is much to the credit of Jacob and Jamye. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their significant contibutions to the overall instructor curriculum and to their committment to the ITCP.

We have also recently entered into discussions with the University of California at Berkeley with plans to create a cetification program in the martial arts in association with the university. Our ITCP was of significant interest to UC Berkeley and we are working with them right now to develop a credible certification progam that will apply nationally recognized credit and certification opportunities to existing and potential new ITCP candidates in California and around the country. This is an exciting development for which we have very high hopes.

We have long recognized the need for professional, competent, and insightful trainiing programs and opportunities for the leaders of our community. Many who teach and call themselves instrutors in the martial arts today have little real knowledge of how to achieve results or manage student relations. TMAA addresses this through our world class ITCP, and our associaiton with UC Berkeley will add to the prestiege of this program, as well as providing us with additional and invaluable resources to expand and improve the program.

Tournament Operations & Procedures (TOP) directed by International Program Director and Grand Master Martin Marcus has seen many signficant enhancements and some milestone decisions in 2006.

In late 2005 the Instructor Executive Council made the decision to withdraw from all events that allowed full power contact as part of their tournament model or rules. Early in 2006 TMAA upheld that decision by withdrawing from three events that we had significantly supported in prior years. Our position that full contact rules are unnecessary and clearly dangerous was bourne out by many senior instructors and masters who elected to support our first series of TMAA Games throughout 2006.

Two players compete in Freestyle
sparring during a Triangle Games event

The TMAA Games model is a new tournament paradigm that is exciting, fun, and growing in popularity. In establishing the new Games rules, we have fully embraced the the goals of equality, community, safety, education, and fun, and we've come up with a model that is all of these and much more. Our first games in January saw TaeKwon-do, Jiu-Jitsu, HapKido, and Kickboxing practitioners from more than seven different schools participate in what everyone agreed was a fun, relaxing, and informative day of challenge and entertainment.

Our preparations for Gay Games VII in Chicago also proved incredibly successful as mentioned earlier with many Triangle instructors and students providing assistance ans support to the martial arts event as officials. With the largest signle contingent of martial artists from a single club at the games, our pink triangle patch was seen everywhere, by everyone. We all exchanged pins, patches, and well wishes with other LGBTQQI and straight martial artists from Germany, Spain, Australia, Japan and too many other countries to mention.   

MISSION PROGRESS

Eugene Wong, Triangle CA

Are we succeeding in our mission goals?  Are we making a difference? Are we worthwhile?

I would provide a resounding and positive YES!

Ask the recently appointed regional presidents who have moved away from the nucelus of TMAA in San Francisco and are building their new lives in new states with new friends and new opportunties who still jumped at the chance to become representatives for TMAA. They could easily have lost contact with us and found new interests to occupy their time and energy, but each have found something in TMAA to encourage and inspire them. Their continued involvement in states where they may be the only Triangle member at the moment encourages me that we are meeting our mission goals.

Ask the Castro TaeKwon-Do student who has successfully found a home, a new direction in his life, and a broader understanding of his self-destructive patterns prior to joining Triangle. Months of instruction, advice, guidance, mentorship, and honest dicussions have helped him to seek out a new path, to forsee a new future, and to believe in himself and his abilities once again. His prior reliance on drugs and alcohol are no longer pre-eminent in his mind and he is on his way to recovery and a new purpose in his life. 

Ask the Castro Community on Patrol organizers who have relied so heavily on Triangle to create, develop, and teach the volunteer patrol training that has made the CCOP effort a reality on the streets of the Castro. "We couldn't have done it without you" commented Carlton Paul, one of the founders of the patrol. "You have been the rock that we've relied upon" he continued. TMAA stepped up to the plate when the community needed us and asked for us, and we went above and beyond that calling by not only preparing and providing training but also by providing three senior instructors who now sit on the board of the partol - continuing to help guide it's development and future.

Ask any of the forty current students from all walks of life, all gender identities, all age groups, and all sexual orientations who participate in our classes regularly, or any of the four hundred former students who are now spread around the United States and the world and I'm sure you will receive a consistent answer.

Yes, we're achieving our mission.  Is there much still to do, and much more we should be doing?  Yes!

IN CONCLUSION

Jamye Ford, Traingle CA

In a community (the martial arts community) which rightly preaches that everyone is equal, deserving of respect, compassion, honesty, value, courtesy, and understanding, we must strive where others patently and egregiously fail. We must set the standard to which others will aspire and endeavor.

There are countless examples available in the media today of a lack of respect, compassion, courtesy, and understanding. Our mission is to create a new world, a new order, a new understanding, and a new paradigm for our students and all those they touch. I believe we are well on our way.
I've often asked my students in class "are you making a difference in the world, or simply existing in it?  Will the world be a better place because you lived, or will your impact be negligible, or worse, negative?"  These are profound questions, and they require equally profound contemplation. It is my contention however that TMAA, and all who support and participate in the fulfillment of its goals and mission are "making a very positive difference in this world."

I thank you sincerely for your time, for your support, for your continued allegiance, and look forward to addressing you in one years time to let you know of the remarkable successes TMAA will realize in this coming new year.