Mamura Sensei, surrounded by love, died on July 30, 2000, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was born on June 1, 1918, in Koolau, Kauai, Hawaii. His father, Tokutaro and mother, Owari, had moved to Hawaii from Kumamoto, Japan, prior to his birth.

While Mamura Sensei had many interests including raising orchids and gardening, his greatest passion and joy was that for aikido. He was first introduced to aikido in Hawaii by his family. In 1965, he began studying aikido in Chicago, Illinois. In 1967, he became one of the founders of the Milwaukee Aikido Club Inc. where he trained with C. Sasaki, Sensei, Y. Hirata Sensei, C. Takeguchi, Sensei, 1. Takahashi, Sensei, and K. Tohei, Sensei and A. Tohei, Sensei. His life was dedicated to the study of aikido and he took every opportunity he could to learn from others and continue to grow in his aikido practice.

Mamura Sensei was the Chief Instructor of the Milwaukee Aikido Club Inc. He held the rank of 6th dan and was honored to be appointed to the teaching position of Shidoin in the Midwest Aikido Federation of the United States Aikido Federation. The Milwaukee Aikido Club, Inc. recently became a member of the Aikido Schools of Ueshiba.

Mamura Sensei was beloved by many Aikidoists throughout the years. He was known to have a profound influence on both the practice and lives of many of his students. He taught his students to use aikido practice as a means to strive to become better persons. With this philosophy, he had a far reaching extended family of practitioners who would "stop in to catch a class" with him from across the country. He is survived by his wife, sisters, daughter, son-in-law, two grandsons and his dear Aikido family.

The following is a tribute to Mamura Sensei written by one of his students.

Sensei Norio Mamura did more than teach the principles of Aikido he embodied them. He had a sense of caring that one rarely encountered, about his students, fellow Aikidoka, and everyone he met. No person came into the dojo during one of his classes without Sensei Mamura taking time to talk with them. He enjoyed meeting new people and prospective students.
His passing, Sunday July 30th 2000, was a great loss to all who knew him and to the Aikido community. Even as his time with us here was coming to an end his concerns were not with himself but rather with his students and his dojo. His caring for his students was boundless. He made each of his students feel special and he accepted them for themselves. He welcomed their uniqueness to the dojo with open arms, and helped his students use their talents and passions to receive the most from Aikido. He only expected that you be true to yourself and try "to be better than you were last month, last week, yesterday or even the last second."

His passion for teaching and learning Aikido never stopped. He often viewed tapes of instructors from all over the world; always looking for another perspective on Aikido, another new technique, and another way to learn. A few weeks before his death we celebrated his 82nd birthday. Takeguchi Sensei and Friedl Sensei, both longtime friends of Sensei Mamura, taught at the birthday seminar held in his honor. Sensei was too ill to attend the practice, but made sure that it was video taped so he could review what was taught.

To have known Sensei Mamura was to be truly blessed. To feel his love and caring for you was a feeling too great for words. His body may no longer be with us, but his love has not stopped. He can never die because he gave his students hope for bettering themselves and their world. He wholeheartedly believed that Aikido was the path to peace within oneself and the world in which we live.

The students of the Milwaukee Aikido Club Inc. and many throughout the Aikido world mourn his passing and all that he still had to teach. We celebrate the chance to have known such a great man, to have been touched by greatness, and to have known his love.

Sensei Mamura we love you!