Oku Damashi Martial Arts: About Us

Sensei Tammy Thankachen

Sensei Tammy Thankachen is a 3rd degree Black Belt in Goju Ryu Karate and a 2nd degree Black Belt in Kobudo(Weapons). She has been instructing Karate for over 11 years. Her training of over 16 years has been under Sensei Paul Sukys in conjunction with the guidance of Grand Master Wallace Platt, head of Classical Martial Arts Canada.

Senpai Arek Thankachen

“I have been training in the Martial Arts for seventeen years. The style I've chosen to train in is Goju Ryu. My interest in Martial Arts developed because my dad did Taekwondo growing up and I think his experiences in the Martial Arts was fascinating to me. Growing up, I always looked up to Bruce Lee and wanted to be just like him. “Wwwwwaaattaaahhh!”

When I first tried Karate with Sensei Paul Sukys, I was 4 years old, it was an experience that I wasn't ready for. A year later I came back to try it again for a second time and I loved it! Since then I have trained non stop and have never lost interest in Karate because it's an amazing traditional Martial Art and so different from anything else.

In the future I plan on traveling the world. I especially want to travel to China and Japan, to the places where the Sensei’s before me have trained and mastered the art of Goju Ryu. When in China I plan on climbing Wudang Mountain and hope to train at the temples and at the base and peaks of the mountain.

For my future in the Martial Arts I plan on getting my Black Belt in Kobudo and my Ni Dan (2nd degree) in Goju Ryu. I also want to train in Kung Fu, fight professionally in MMA and of course open my own Dojo.”

PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION TO SAVE BC'S GREAT BEAR RAINFOREST

Save BC's Great Bear Rainforest from Enbridge10,0002,649 2,649 signers. Let's reach 10,000
Why this is importantBC's Great Bear Rainforest (the world's largest remaining coastal temperate rainforest) is under siege! Plans endorsed by Canada's Government are underway to build the Northern Gateway pipeline to pump crude, unrefined bitumen, from Alberta to Kitimat, on British Columbia's north coast. This pipeline would extend a distance of over 1100 kms. It would be built by Enbridge, a company that has been responsible for over 800 oil spills, since 1999. The proposed pipeline would cross many rivers, the Rocky Mountains and pristine wilderness. Much of this area is home to First Nations people. Oil tankers would collect and ship the raw crude to China (the world's largest greenhouse gas emitter).We can stop this irresponsible development- BC's First Nations have a constitutional right to be consulted-- and this hasn’t been met. Newly released documents reveal that the government knows that it cannot address the legitimate concerns of the aboriginal people from the area at risk and is attempting to silence them.Let Canada's government know that the voices of First Nations will never be silenced. Add your voice to the call to uphold the legal rights of the traditional custodians of the land and stop this reckless project from going ahead. It's not a matter of IF an oil spill would happen, but WHEN!An oil spill would have devastating effects on the region and its native species. One species at great risk is the Kermode or "Spirit" Bear, a genetically unique, white Black Bear possessing a recessive gene. With only approx. 400 of these bears left in the wild, they are rarer than China's Giant Pandas. In 1987, the Valhalla Wilderness Society started the Spirit Bear conservancy campaign and, along with many others including Simon Jackson's Spirit Bear Youth Coalition, were successful in 2006 in over 1/2 million acres of spirit bear habitat being protected from clearcut logging. Protection never would've happened without the full support of the Kitasso Xai'xais and Gitg'at First Nations. Now a larger threat looms for the Spirit Bear, which relies partly on the marine environment, including salmon. Giant oil tankers are planning to bring bitumen to Asia via the proposed Enbridge pipeline from Alberta's tar sands. Given the narrow marine channels, huge Pacific storms and the risk of Tsunamis in the Spirit Bear's homeland, an inevitable oil spill would devastate fragile marine ecosystems for many years to come, including salmon and other marine life that the bears depend on. Such a catastrophic spill would also destroy the traditional livelihoods of First Nations communities and others in the area, representing millions of dollars of loss annually. We can't afford to have another Exxon-Valdez like spill or any significant spill off the BC coast.Stephen Harper's Government has openly dismissed concerns of those opposed to the pipeline. We have a small window of time to influence the final decision during the review, so please sign the petition, which will be sent to decision makers regarding the pipeline hearings. Demand that the moratorium on tanker traffic off BC's coast remain in effect and that the destructive Northern Gateway pipeline should not be approved. We need to explore renewable energy sources and invest in a sustainable future for Canada and the world.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Stop_Enbridges_Northern_Gateway_pipeline/?ctQDUcb

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