Meet the Grantees
Empowering Local Martial Artists to better Serve their communities
We are proud to announce the selected grantees for 2024.
Sensei Honma
Honma Dojo
New York, New York
Sensei Honma has been practicing traditional Japanese Karate for over 40 years. Born and raised in Japan, he started training in Tokyo at 15 and moved to the US at 24 to study for a master’s in physical education. His dojo can be found in the East Village of Manhattan, which he built from scratch with his partner Marissa in 2007. With over 100 students raging from ages 5 to 78, his students are as racially and economically diverse as all of NYC itself. With the help of Better Fight and in conjunction with a handful of senior homes in the city, Sensei Honma is piloting a program that uses martial arts as a means to get older, less mobile members of the AAPI community active in order to increase health outcomes and social connections.
Andrew and Sarah Degar
Third Ward JiuJitsu
Houston, Texas
Our first two time grantee!
Third Ward Jiu-Jitsu was founded in 2019, with a mission to provide affordable self-defense in the Third Ward of Houston, TX. With a passion for building community, Andrew and Sarah launched their gym with specific programs for women and the LGBTQ community. Opening in January of 2020, they quickly closed their doors in March due to COVID, then reopened in the Fall of 2021 with their inaugural Women’s Week. This program highlights female grapplers from Houston, giving them opportunities to teach and join the instructor roster at 3WJJ. In August of 2022, 3WJJ launched their first LGBTQ only program, and started offering monthly LGBTQ only classes in February 2023.
With this year’s grant, Andrew and Sarah will be hosting a gym summit in October 2025, inviting gyms and martial artists from around the country to come to Houston in order to meet up in person, brainstorm and share resources on how they can better serve their communities.
Amanda Piepgras
Amanda’s Adaptive Martial Arts
San Diego, California
Amanda’s martial arts journey started in 2006, when, on the advice of her doctor, she took up training to improve her mental and physical health. Her journey started at the legendry Tiger Schulmann academy, before relocating to San Diego in 2015. She has a broad based experience in Karate, muay thai, JiuJitsu and taekwondo.
Amanda grew up with a sister with Spina Bifida, and seeing people like her sister denied access to the same life-changing art form seemed to her not only the highest form of injustice, but contrary to the moral framework that informs so many martial arts systems like Karate. Amanda’s Adaptive Martial Arts is the only studio in San Diego where those with disabilities can train in various martial arts disciplines. All of the students who train at her gym have developmental or physical disabilities.
With her Better Fight grant, Amanda is establishing a new wellness program, Family Flourish, which offers emotional, social, and basic needs support to the families of the children who train at her gym.
Matt Gioia
Harlem Free Fight
New York, New York
Training out of Unity JiuJitsu, Matt was first attracted to the sport as a means of personal transformation following a difficult adolescence. JiuJitsu taught him invaluable lessons in hard work and discipline, while offering him a community committed to supporting and uplifting one another. This sense of purpose helped lead him to Harlem Free Fight, where he currently serves as the Director of Fundraising and head JiuJitsu instructor. The organization was founded by Rich Rodriquez in 2020 in response to the COVID pandemic. It offers free training in boxing and JiuJitsu to youth in Harlem. The program has grown steadily over the years, with separate chapters currently operating out of the Boys Club of New York and New Heights Academy. Harlem Free Fight is using their Better Fight grant as a part of a larger fundraising drive to build out their own dedicated facility.