What is the Okinawan Karate Club of San Francisco?

OKC San Francisco is a traditional martial arts school that practices Shorin Ryu karate as taught by Eizo Shimabukuro, Grandmaster and Shudokan karate as taught by the late Walter Todd, Shibucho for the late Kanken Toyama. The dojo is directly affiliated with and follows O'Sensei Shimabukuro of Okinawa. OKC San Francisco's founder and head instructor is Michele Elefante Sensei.

Our Philosophy

 The club's intent is to create well-balanced martial artists focusing on the development of a person's mind, body and spirit emphasizing traditional principles and techniques. Traditional karate becomes a medium helping the student gain understanding while excelling physically and mentally through training and conditioning. 

Training

At OKC San Francisco the training consists of: basic drills, physical conditioning, two person and self-defense techniques, kata and its application. Traditional Kobudo or weapons are taught at the brown and black belt levels. These weapons are the bo, sai, kama (sickle), tonfa, nunchaku and eiku (oar).

About Elefante Sensei

Michele Elefante Sensei head instructor at OKC San Francisco has been studying in the martial arts since the early 1990's primarily in Germany where she both taught and competed. She began her study of Shorin Ryu at the Okinawan Karate Club of Dallas under Ilene Smoger Sensei (6th dan in Shorin Ryu and 7th dan in Shudokan) in 1999. Elefante Sensei was presented her rank of Shodan directly by Shimabukuro O'Sensei.  She  received the rank of Nidan (2nd Degree) in 2003. While at  OKCD she instructed both adult and youth classes.

She has been an instructor at the National Women's Martial Arts Federation's (NWMAF) Special Training camp, the Pacific Association of Women Martial Artists (PAWMA) training camp and the Association of Women Martial Arts Instructors (AWMAI) conference