Explanation of rank for
Mike Skinner Sr.

Mike Skinner Sr. was without a doubt the individual who was the main caretaker for Kenpo Karate in Aberdeen, Washington and surrounding areas between the years of 1983 and the mid-nineties. His instructor closed her school and moved to another part of Washington State in 1983. Mike did not officially retire from teaching until 2001.

Kenpo Karate in Aberdeen was an early version of what is now called Shaolin Kenpo. It was brought to Washington in 1969 by Rick and Maria Warwick, and it was simply referred to as Ralph Castro's Kenpo Karate. The International Shaolin Kenpo Association did not even come into formal existence until 1981.
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Mike Skinner Sr. was one of the individuals who constructed the school from which Maria Warwick taught. He and others - notably Barry Alexander and Rich Beeman were instrumental in providing a home from which Maria Warwick could build her legacy. She accomplished a great deal from 1975-1983 when she taught Ralph Castro's Kenpo Karate to literally thousands of individuals. Sadly, medical issues prevented her from teaching much beyond 1983, but there were exceptions.

Her first Black Belt of many was Mike Skinner Sr., who earned the rank in May of 1977. He was not the first Black Belt in the lineage in Washington State, but he was the first promoted by Maria Warwick as the primary instructor. He was present and assisted with the journeys of many who came after him, filling in at times for Maria Warwick to guide the sixteen names who followed him.
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After Maria's retirement from teaching in Aberdeen, Clay Micheau took up the mantle of running a school, but it was not purely Shaolin Kenpo at that time, as he had become very accomplished in what is known as International Freestyle Karate. Mike Skinner Sr. would also teach during this time, but at Grays Harbor Community College, and as a Physical Education credit. Both of the efforts of these gentlemen covered the years from 1984-1986.

Remembering all the requirements in those days required a memory like a steel trap. All that most possessed were handwritten notes. Mike Skinner Sr., along with Ray Warwick and Wayne Toy collectively sought to remedy this. Word processors were starting to come into fashion and the three of them began putting what they knew to typed format. Nearly all of the typing was done by Mike Skinner Sr. as he was the one who owned the word processor. Requirements up to Dance #12 were placed to paper to assist students in remembering sometimes very complex movements.
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In 1992, Mike Skinner Sr. re-opened Aberdeen Kenpo Karate, using both the crest and the business name, with the permission of his instructor Maria Warwick. Such was his respect for his instructor that he obtained this permission in person by taking a two-hour drive to request her blessing on this business endeavor. The school operated very smoothly until one of Mike Skinner Sr's. students elected to strike out on his own in 1994. This student did not create a school from the ground up as Mike had done but instead convinced nearly all the upper belts to join him in this endeavor.

In addition to the above, Mike Skinner Sr. was the creator and webmaster of Karate1.com. This website attempted to bring Martial Artists together by providing contact information, royalty-free clip art, and tournament information before such attempts at unity were en vogue.
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Incorrect information was brought to the attention of the International Shaolin Kenpo Association during a visit in 1995. This occurred during a school split which unfortunately weakened rather than strengthened Shaolin Kenpo's presence in Washington State.

As a result of this faulty information, the ISKA unfortunately made a decision based on only one side of the story and Great Grandmaster Ralph Castro offered Mike Skinner Sr. a 3rd Degree Black Belt despite his individual tenure being substantially more than the collective tenure of those around him who were recognized ahead of him at the same rank. Mike did decline, but very respectfully so.
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Ranking should be considered based on effort and time in the art. Advanced ranking should be considered based on how many students you have taken through the system and a consistency of character that is without question. Although he was not recognized as such, Mike Skinner Sr. had well over 20 years invested in the art at the time of the ISKAs visit to Aberdeen in 1995.

Because of the ISKAs decision to promote someone with less than two years at Black Belt ahead of someone with nearly 20 years at the same ranking there have been hard feelings. Someone who earned their rank with years of hard work versus another who was given a promotion simply for being in the right place at the right time.
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Since 2023, I have at times very vocally tried to bring the true information to the attention of the ISKA in the hopes that what the Skinner family felt was an egregious wrong could be rectified.

This was not to be the case as Great Grandmaster Rob again only wished to offer a 3rd Degree Black Belt to Mike Skinner Sr. I have provided significant proof of my claims in all areas. The ISKA bylaw of being two ranks below your instructor simply does not apply to the practitioners of Washington State.

The Black Belts under Maria Warwick, while still not entirely correct, contain many names that were not there before. That was the hard work of Shaolin Kenpo Martial Arts of Olympia as a group, and not the efforts of an individual who claimed credit for something they did not do.
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Shaolin Kenpo is but a firm branch on the much larger tree that is Kenpo Karate. If any of us lived indefinitely, we would still not know the entirety of what Kenpo Karate could become. Although our instructors might impart on us all that we know, they do not typically share all that they know. With each generation, a small dilution of the art takes place.

Again, higher ranking should be based on what you have given back to the arts. Many of the Black Belts claimed by another in our lineage were provided their base at Mike Skinner Sr's. capable hands.
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Due to this oversight, Mike Skinner Sr. has been recognized effective May 2026 by several high-ranking Black Belts on the west coast as a 6th Degree Black Belt. Among those who are recognizing him are 10th Degree Black Belts (3), and 9th Degree Black Belts (2) who were present or nearby when the school split occurred in 1994. The signatories are from several different lineages.

While not sanctioned by the ISKA, this Black Belt is legitimate in sacrifice and dedication to the larger art of Kenpo. Not for what he is doing now, but what he did to help in positively changing the lives of so many from 1975-2001.
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Not only that, but this promotion also satisfies the two-belt separation within the ISKA bylaws for an instructor over one of his students - even though it is not ISKA recognized.

This website was created with the intention of providing historical accuracy. If his direct lineage is unwilling to embrace the truth of what happened, then truth will be embraced by his peers who know what his presence and sacrifice meant to the Martial Arts in Washington State. The decisions in 1995 were made with partial information, which unfortunately was completely untrue in the manner it was accepted.
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This page of the website is completed purely by Mike Skinner Jr., and does not speak for everyone with whom I train.

This promotion is not intended in any way to show disrespect to anyone. I knocked on the door for three years and was not ever provided a concrete answer for what I felt was a reasonable request and an opportunity for truthful information to prevail. Sometimes when doors remained closed, other methods of entry must be explored.