Josh became involved in martial arts at a young age, but it was not until discovering the arts of the Bujinkan as a teenager and experiencing the depth of its teachings that he felt truly satisfied with the training he was doing. His interest further deepened after getting to experience the training at the highest levels in Japan where he studied for a year in university. That experience offered the opportunity to regularly experience the skills of Bujinkan Sōke Hatsumi Masaaki and his top disciples several times a week after having only had chances to see them at seminars in the U.S. After graduating university, Josh soon returned to Japan where he has continued to train four to five times weekly for over 20 years. He now endeavors to share the art with as many people as possible in order to help them learn to both protect themselves and enrich their lives.
Before spending his third year of university in Japan, Josh was told by his teacher in the U.S., Ed Martin (a.k.a. “Papa-san) that he should visit each of the Japanese shihan while in Japan but that he should make certain to train with Shiraishi Isamu Sensei, who was Sōke Hatsumi Masaaki’s main uke, attending all of his weekly trainings at the Bujinkan Hombu Dōjō in Noda City as well as the Tōkyō Budōkan in Ayase. Following this advice, Josh became a student of Shiraishi-sensei soon after arriving in Japan and attending several of his trainings during the first month. More than 20 years later, he now continues to train with his teacher 3-4 times a week at both the Bujinkan Hombu Dōjō and in Kashiwa, where he acts as both the primary uke and translator, as well as assistant instructor for the classes. He also travels to overseas Taikai conducted by Shiraishi-sensei to act in those same roles.