The Highline Kendo Kai was founded in 1976 and has been a major influence on the growth of kendo in the region for over forty years, developing kenshi that have competed at the highest levels of competition. The club offers instruction through the King County Parks and Recreation department.
Highline Kendo Club serves the south Seattle and southwest area of Seattle. It has one of the best records of competition of any club in the PNKF, and has an exceptional number of “home grown” high ranking members. Highline has produced more blackbelt kenshi than most of the clubs in the United States. The facility is located in a historic King County facility in south Seattle, and looks and feels like the practice halls in Japan. Several of the Highline members and sensei have had extensive training in Japan with not only the Osaka special police, but also the Tokyo special police. These are both very prestigious and famous kendo dojo that have produced many of the All Japan Kendo Champions.
Because the club has a high population of blackbelt members, a new student essentially receives a private instructor all to themselves. Students are taught a set curriculum that is adjusted to the student’s physical and mental ability and the student moves from unit to unit based on their progress in mastering the material.
Our facility, the White Center Community Center, is located in Steve Cox Memorial Park, 1321 SW 102nd St, Seattle and is a historical building constructed as a Works Progress Administration project in 1940. It was one of several built in the King County area, of which only a couple still survive. As a historical preservation site, it has not been subject to the steel and glass movement and has maintained its beautiful log cabin look.
