In 2015, Seichou Karate® was again voted “Best Martial Arts Classes” by readers of the Washington City Paper.

2016 was bittersweet at Seichou Karate® Dojo because Romero’s instructor, Soshu Shigeru Oyama passed away in February. However, after paying respects to Soshu, we opened a second location in the Hollin Hall area of Fairfax County. This satellite dojo received accolades from the community, and we were delighted to bring authentic Japanese karate and culture to more Northern Virginians. Seichou Karate® was again voted “Best Martial Arts Classes” by readers of the Washington City Paper.

In January 2017, Romero published 121 Thoughts on My Life in Karatedo. A collaboration between Soshu Oyama and Romero, the book describes how Oyama’s experiences growing up in the rubble of post WWII Tokyo motivated him to become one of the most inspiring martial arts masters of the last 100 years and sets out his philosophy and hopes for the future of traditional martial arts. 121 Thoughts on My Life in Karatedo is available at OyamaSpeaks.com. Seichou Karate® was again voted “Best Martial Arts Classes” by readers of the Washington City Paper.

Seichou Karate® was again voted “Best Martial Arts Classes” by readers of the Washington City Paper.

Seichou Karate® was again voted “Best Martial Arts Classes” by readers of the Washington City Paper.

In March 2020 when COVID 19 hit humanity hard, Romero responded decisively by moving all Seichou Karate classes online. At the height of the Pandemic, Seichou instructors were conducting 60 online classes each week. Then, together, with the support of the Seichou Community Council, Romero devised and deployed protocols for keeping students safe and, thankfully, we experienced no COVID outbreak at our Dojo. Although we weathered the Pandemic well, we closed our Hollin Hall location to protect the fiscal integrity of the Old Town Dojo. Seichou Karate® was again voted “Best Martial Arts Classes” by readers of the Washington City Paper.

In October 2021, our Old Town landlord notified us that he had sold the building in which the Dojo was located, and we began an arduous search new home.

In April 2024, after numerous false starts, we purchased a commercial condominium in Annandale, Virginia as the new home for the Dojo. After a lengthy 157-day administrative review, Fairfax County approved our buildout plans and issued our construction permit. Very happily, we completed the buildout and began teaching classes in December at 4534B John Marr Drive, Annandale, Virginia. The Dojo has a 1,050 square foot unobstructed training mat with a sprung floor, a 45-foot mirror, heavy bags, impact pads and crash mats. We’re also delighted to have a classroom where we offer our unique Kids Interdisciplinary Culture and Karate® cultural arts program that integrates Japanese language and calligraphy with karate training for holistic personal development.