International Women's Day 2025 Yumi Nakamura Shihan, 7th dan

This year to mark International Women's Day the BCAF honours Yumi Nakamura Shihan, 7th dan, who passed away this winter.  Pat Olson has written about her long-time friendship with Yumi Sensei.  Pat is 6th dan and an honorary member of the BCAF, having taught and practiced in BC for more than a generation.  She now lives and practices in Saskatoon.

I Remember Yumi Nakamura: my best friend

It was such an honour and privilege when Past President Barb asked me to write a commemorative article about Yumi Nakamura as we celebrate International Women’s Day this year.

I first met Yumi at Camp Elphinstone on the Sunshine Coast in 1991.  That was the year Waka Sensei (the current Doshu) came to teach at Kawahara Sensei’s annual BC Summer Camp. I was able to practice with so many people and meet talented aikidoists.  Alex Loo was a fun guy at that camp, and he taught the Japanese visitors who came with Waka Sensei how to drink beer the Canadian way. But he was so respectful toward Yumi, even though he made her laugh a lot.  I don’t recall if I practiced with Yumi or not, but I decided then that I would try my best learn from everybody, especially the yudansha women. Therefore, when I visited my Mom in Toronto, I would practice at Yumi’s dojo.

Jim Barnes thought that Yumi and I had an instant “connection”.  I would beg to differ as my friendship with Yumi grew gradually deeper after every Camp and every time I went to Toronto to train with her and Jim.  Yumi was patient in her teaching but also had high expectations.  She was also very strict as to who should teach in a dojo---obviously the Sensei.  People are on the mats to practice, not to teach each other.  Every time she came to teach in Kelowna, she would remind us about that. She also explained that sometimes the senior practitioner was often teaching the wrong way to execute the technique.  However, once she knew that junior students are sincerely looking to her for extra guidance, she would help them either by wordlessly doing the technique the correct way or explain it more fully off the mats.

It is needless to say that Yumi was a wonderful teacher and aikidoist.  But what endeared me most to her was that aikido hierarchy was mainly observed in the dojo.  She would befriend anybody who enjoyed her company regardless of their rank.  Joanie and Deb from Mike Chin’s dojo established a special relationship with her.  I think that we became close because so many people mistook me for Yumi after I received my shodan. Kenji kept saying that we were “sisters”.  After spending more time with her, we realized that we had many mutual interests and common personality traits.  Both of us could talk to strangers at the drop of a hat and somehow establish a connection.  We both laughed a lot and emulated childlike gestures. I suppose that was because we both loved children.  She was the most “motherly” person I have ever met, even though she was not a mother.  She often treated her younger students (Kristos) like a mother.  She loved encouraging aikidoists of all ages.  When she met Martin and Mark at a Calgary seminar and found that they were there for the whole week to learn about Steve Erickson’s kids’ program, she was so proud and happy. She was impressed that these 2 young fellas cared so much about aikido.  She shared that experience with me because she knew that stories like that made me happy.

I do not have to go on about how respected Yumi was here in Canada and beyond because of her mastery in aikido.  She really was a “renaissance woman”.  Jim Barnes found out late in her life that she was more than a medical lab tech.  Here is what he wrote:
 “Yumi was very well-respected as an X-ray technologist. She told me a bit about her background – she had graduated from one of the most prestigious radiological institutes, located in Kyoto, Japan. She told me that their lectures were sometimes
delivered by Nobel prize-winning physicists. 
I found a reference to a major international radiological publication in which she had published a paper. She never mentioned that to me. I know that what was important to her in her career was helping and interacting with people. That was what was important to her – human contact.”

Yumi practiced her shodo daily which is Japanese calligraphy. She won a prestigious shodo prize, a huge accomplishment. I am enclosing the entry here.  The character’s literal meaning is “ascend” = 升. Shodo is essentially the writing of Chinese words i.e. kanji.  Chinese words started as pictographs and this word especially demonstrates the rising up with the 2 vertical lines. She was great at snorkeling and took me under her wing to give it a go. She never ceased to learn new things. She decided to learn how to play the piano in her 60s, and she was able to play Beethoven’s Ode to Joy. In her last year, she was learning to play Nobuyuki Tsujii’s (a blind composer) Elegy for the Victims of the Earthquake and Tsunami. 

Yumi was my best friend, inspiring mentor and wise counselor.  Whenever I needed crucial advice, I just had to pick up the phone and ask her for help.  She delivered 100% of the time.  Her advice was always golden. I cannot bear to delete her contact information from my phone as I still dream of phoning her. As we celebrate International Women’s Day this year; let us remember this wonderfully talented person: Yumi Nakamura.  Let us remember that her greatest accomplishment was her ability to love and nuture us, regardless of our gender.

Pat Olson
March 6, 2025