Chief Instructor – Mish Handwerker (Sensei Mish)
Sensei Mish Handwerker believes everyone deserves to be and feel safe. This is what drove his interest in the martial arts, eventually inspiring him to begin teaching. Due to over protective parents, Sensei did not begin his martial studies until mid 1990, after he turned 18.
Like many, his training began in the Korean sport of Tae Kwon Do. It was during this time an instructor of his introduced him the Okinawan style of Ryukyu Kempo and the Dillman theory of Pressure Point Fighting. Not being a sport minded individual, the arts of Kyusho-Jitsu and Tuite-Jitsu, and the idea of a purely self-defense style was extremely appealing to him and this has been his main focus ever since.
While keeping Kempo as his main style, Mr. Handwerker has explored other arts and styles such as Modern Arnis, its younger blade cousin Modular Knife and the Presas Bolo, Aikido, Judo, Kung Fu, Tai Chi, Small Circle Jujitsu™, and Kenjutsu. He has had the privilege of training with high-ranking and highly skilled instructors in these arts, most notably Sensei George Dillman, Jim Corn, and Mark Brian Kline of Ryukyu Kempo/Kyusho-Jistu; Professor Wally Jay of Small Circle Jujitsu™ and Professor Remy Presas the Father of Modern Arnis, along with Professor Dan Anderson and Grandmaster Bram Frank.
Sensei Mish presently runs Artisan Martial Arts, teaching Kempo, Modular Knife, and other safety skills. He occasionally teaches seminars and is the author of several DVDs and books. Sensei Mish is also the producer and host of the web series, Kyusho Korner™ where each episode is dedicated to the exploration of attacking pressure points and other kyusho topics. He continues his studies of Kempo and Kyusho under the guidance of Grandmaster Mark Kline who he hosts several times per year. He also continues his Modular Knife studies under its developer, Grandmaster Bram Frank, also hosting his Birthday Bash Instructor Camp. In 2021 GM Bram Frank announced Mr. Handwerker as the Inheritor and Heir Apparent to CSSD Modular and everything included under Modular umbrella.
Before dedicating his time and energy to Artisan Martial Arts full time, Sensei Mish spent almost 20 years in the security industry. Having worked in most of the industry standards… Bouncing, Contract Patrol, Access Control, Maritime, but the last 14 years of his time was spent in Healthcare Security. He was the primary safety skill instructor at Providence for several years and was one of the primary architects behind their security academy. He has also taught security teams for several night clubs in down town Portland, as well as Security teams for Kaiser Permanente and Tuality Health.
Awards, Credits, and Certifications
- 7th Degree Black Belt – Ryukyu Kempo / Kyusho Jitsu
- Inheritor / Heir Apparent – CSSD/SC Modular | CRMIPT | Bolo | Combat Arnis
- 2nd Degree Black Belt (Dalawa Lakan) – Combat Arnis (Modern Arnis)
- Senior Instructor – MBC2 (Modular Blade Concepts/Combat)
- Senior Instructor – CRMIPT(Control Range Medium ImPact Tool)
- Advanced Instructor II – Bolo
- Certified Handcuffing Instructor (ASP / PATH)
- Certified OC instructor (OCAT / Personal)
- Expandable Baton Instructor (MEB / ASP)
- TASER Instructor (Previously Certified)
- PMAB Master Instructor
- DPSST Unarmed Security PSID#27828
- BLS – Basic Life Support (CPR/AED)
- Life Saving Medal – Portland Police – June 2010