It is with great sadness Kodokan Aikido Blacksburg announces the passing of Jon Harris Sensei. After a long bout with pancreatic cancer and undergoing treatments for about a year Jon passed away on Sunday March 24, 2019.

Jon began training in the martial arts at age 7 studying Judo, which lead to him joining the wrestling team in high school. While he was stationed in Okinawa Japan with the Navy in 1990, he studied Tai-ji Quan with a local sifu and one of his students who was stationed at Kadena Air Base. It was there, that Jon was first introduced to Aikido although there was no local dojo for him to train at on a regular basis.

After returning to Blacksburg in 1995 Jon joined the Kodokan Aikido Dojo under Truman Capone Sensei. For the past 23 years Jon remained a dedicated student and Sensei to the Kodokan Aikido Blacksburg Dojo where he achieved the rank of Yondan (black belt, fourth degree). He also spent those years training with our fellow Aikidoka at the Kodokan Aikido Greensboro Dojo, and the principle instructors from the Kodokan Aikido Dojo in Okazaki Japan under Shihan Tadamitsu Tanaka when they visited from Japan.