Alumni
Club History
The Northwestern University Karate Club has a long history of excellence. The club was founded in 1968 by Shojiro Sugiyama, the former chief instructor of the Japan Karate Association of Chicago and the Great Lakes Region of the American Amateur Karate Federation (AAKF). Mr. Sugiyama led the Northwestern team to the national free sparring championship in 1977 (John Riordan, Delfo Bianchini, and John C. Mui) and again in 1984 (Farhad Patel '88, Peter Drieski and Michael Tobin).
Photo: Ken Sakamoto ('77) returns to the club to help Josh Pinkston and Amay Parikh train (early '98).
Recent Alumni
Alumni are listed by the final year in which they were part of the club (not always their graduating class) with the number of years they were in the club. Non-students are listed separately.
| 1994 | ||
|---|---|---|
| James Lin * | 3 | |
| Nicholas Matlis * | 3 | |
| 1995 | ||
| Betty Hou | 3 | |
| 1996 | ||
| Paul Knechtghes | 3 | |
| Jennifer Lee * | 1 | |
| 1997 | ||
| Remi Auxenfans | 1 | |
| Navreet Basatti | 1 | |
| Roger Chen | 2 | |
| Steven Cheung | 1 | |
| Carolyn Freedman | 1 | |
| 1998 | ||
| Mike Croke | 1 | |
| Brian Menzies | 2 | |
| Val Kucherenko | 2 | |
| Ben Scott | 2 | |
| Vicky Yu | 3 | |
| 1999 | ||
| Ken Mayuga | 1 | |
| Myttle Mayuga | 3 | |
| Nina Wang | 2 | |
| Mike Woo | 2 | |
| Crystal Wright | 1 | |
| 2000 | ||
| Paul Bongaarts * | 5 | |
| Marc Chevalier | 2 | |
| Taryn Cunha | 3 | |
| Angie Guillozet * | 4 | |
| Vinny Hung | 2 | |
| Amay Parikh * | 4 | |
| 2001 | ||
| Andrew Bodart | 1 | |
| Jannette Pinson | 3 | |
| Curtis Mina | 3 | |
| Josh Pinkston * | 6 | |
| 2002 | ||
| Ken Cadwell * | 4 | |
| 2003 | ||
| Stephane Bordas | 3 | |
| Carlos Luna * | ? | |
| Maelo Maldonado * | 4 | |
| Brian Pasquini | 3 | |
| Raymond Wang | 4 | |
| 2009 | ||
| Brendan Higgins | 5 | |
| Staff | ||
| Lionel Edes | 2 | |
Members marked * earned a black belt while with the club.
Mr. Sakamoto, Mr. Bongaarts, and Ms. Guillozet are currently active members at the dojo on Belmont. Ms. Guillozet is the instructor of the children's class, assisted by Mr. Bongaarts.
If you are an alumnus of the club, feel free to drop us a note! If you would like to be added to this page, please include the number of years that you were a club member and the most recent year you participated in the club. We also have a mailing list that you can use to keep in touch. Another good resource for keeping track of people is www.alumni.net.
In appreciation of his contributions to our annual tournament and continued support beyond the call of duty, Anthony Milevsky was made an honorary alumnus following CTJKS 4 (2000).
Anthony Milevsky (honorary alumnus)
Rokudan, JKA - ITKF/AAKF. He received ranks under H. Nishiyama, M. Nakayama and S. Sugiyama.
Teaching Experience
- Chief Instructor for AAKF in Indiana.
Judging Experience
- Class "C" corner judge in 1995 and 1996 for the ITKF Nationals.
- Class "B" corner judge in 1999 for the ITKF Nationals.
- Chief Referee at NU Collegiate Tournament, 1997-2000.
Background
- Started Karate in 1965, started training with Mr. Sugiyama in 1968.
- Member of Mr. Sugiyama's traveling Chicago Team in the early 70's.
- One of the top teachers of kata in the region.
Anthony Milevsky was born in 1942 in Gary, Indiana. He is 7th Dan in the Karate-Do Instructor's Council of Chicago, 6th Dan in the Japan Karate Association and a member of the Black Belt Examination Board for JKA International in the Midwest. As Director and Chief Instructor of the Japan Association Indiana, Anthony Milevsky has been teaching karate in the region since 1967.
After training in another style of karate, Milevsky Shihan began studying with the Japan Karate Association of Chicago, under the direction of Shojiro Sugiyama Shihan. To this day, he still actively trains and teaches at the Midwest Regional Headquarters in Chicago.
Milevsky Shihan has also trained under Hidetaka Nishyama Shihan, the world's most renowned instructor and President of the American Amateur Karate Federation and Chairman of the International Traditional Karate Federation.
Milevsky Shihan is best known for this high energy and innovative instruction, which brings out the best in the student athlete.