Ryan Buffett

I stared karate in 1992 at the age of 5. L.J. Sampson played a big part of convincing my parents to join the class. It quickly grew into a major part of who I was. I fell in love with the art. As a child I didn't understand what it fully brought to my life. As an adult, I now understand all of the intangibles it produced. Integrity, determination, confidence, respect and character were all nurtured through my martial arts training under Sensei Mike Hess. 

At the age of 12, in 1999, I was fortunate to achieve the rank of Jr. Black Belt under Sensei Mike Hess. It was an amazing accomplishment after 7 years of training. However, just a few ears after that I left karate in pursuit of sports, music and eventually higher education.

Fast forward to 2025 and I returned to the dojo. As a father of two boys that asked continuously about training karate, I knew there was only one place I would want them to train. In July of 2025 my two boys entered the dojo of Sensei Mike Hess for the first time. It was a surreal experience to watch my Sensei begin the first lessons with them. Sensei continued to be persistent about me joining again. After a few weeks I arrived in a gi and it has been the best decision to be back on the mats and do it alongside my boys. In September 2005, I was honored again as my rank of Jr. Black Belt became Shodan. It has truly been an honor to be welcomed back and I look forward to many more years training with my boys.