ITF AMERICA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Master
- Master Alvin Bernard / Board Member
- Member of Committee
Master Alvin Bernard is a 7th Degree Black Belt and an Olympic Coach. His formal training in Taekwon-Do began in Aachen, Germany under the direction of Mr. Peter Koch in the early 1980's.
He has trained and competed in numerous styles of martial arts in order to expand his abilities and knowledge. Master Bernard is the owner and chief instructor of Team USA Taekwon-Do Fitness for over 24 years. His TKD school is the longest operating school in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Team USA Taekwon-Do Fitness has demonstrated to be one of the most successful schools in the United States. He has produced national and international champions and Olympic athletes in numerous styles of Martial Arts. Some of his students including, four-time USA National Team member Merissa Pico, 2014 World Cup Champion Marc-Dimitri Akda and 2012 Olympian, Kenneth Edwards.
Achievements
Job Titles:
- Master Becky Faarborg / Board Member
Master Faaborg holds the rank of 7th Dan (A-7-72)
She was an assistant instructor and opened Mr. McGinnis's second dojang location in Albuquerque, NM. She opened her dojang, Edmond Trails TKD, in 2006. Master Faaborg joined the ATFI in 2004 and became the Promotions/Membership Chair from 2011 to 2019.
Achievements
ATFI Promotions and Membership Chairperson for 9 years, where she became acquainted with members, ITF Headquarters and worked closely with her instructor, Master Fabian Nunez. During the course of her ITF TaeKwon-Do career, she has met many TaeKwon-Do practitioners around the world. Master Faaborg opened Edmond Trails TKD in 2006, providing learning opportunities to many students from diverse backgrounds.
Job Titles:
- Master Becky Faarborg / Board Member
Job Titles:
- Co - Chair
- Member of the Board
- Member of Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Master
- Member of Committee
Job Titles:
- Co - Chair
- Member of the Board
- Member of the ITF Business and Marketing Committee
- Professor of Economics
In addition to being elected to the Board of Directors of ITF America, Dr. Shurchkov is a member of the ITF Business and Marketing Committee. Outside of Taekwon-Do, Dr. Shurchkov received her Ph.D. in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2008, where she won the prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship. Her teaching at Harvard University was recognized with the Derek Bok Center Certificates for Excellence in Teaching and the Allyn Young Teaching Prize for Excellence in Teaching of Principles of Economics.
Dr. Shurchkov is a tenured professor of Economics and the Director of the Knapp Social Science Center at Wellesley College. Her previous academic appointments include a visiting professorship at Columbia Graduate School of Business and a research fellowship at the Harvard Kennedy School's Women and Public Policy Program. During her academic career, she has served on and chaired numerous committees, including the Tenure Track Advisory Committee and the Committee on Admission and Financial Aid Policy. Dr. Shurchkov is a member of the American Economic Association, the Economic Science Association, and the Committee on the Advancement of Women in the Economics Profession. Over her many years of service and leadership in the economics profession, she has developed expertise in event planning, personnel management, fund-raising, communication with funders and donors, and budgeting.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Member of the Officers Team
- Treasurer
Job Titles:
- Co - Chair
- Member of the Officers Team
- President
- Grand Master
- Member of Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the ITF International Umpire Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Master
- Member of the Board
Master Bernard was a US National Team Member in 2003 & 2007. At the 2003 US Nationals, Master Bernard won two gold medals in both Sparring -63kg and 4th Dan Patterns. In 2003 representing the USA in the Australian Open, Master Bernard won three gold medals in Individual Sparring, Team Sparring and Team Breaking. He also placed second in Individual Patterns. After retiring from competition, Master Bernard became a coach for the USA National team for many years. In 2012, he was elected to coach in the London Olympic Games. He is also a Certified International Instructor who is often selected to assist at the IIC courses. He was selected to assist with teaching the 1st Dan thru 3rd Dan black belts in the 2013 International Instructor Course in Jamaica W.I. and again at the 2015 & 2019 IIC in Las Vegas, USA. He is also a certified International Class A Umpire/Referee. In 2014, he was selected to referee on center stage for the World Cup in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Beginning in 2014 to date, Master Bernard has been selected to umpire on Center Stage in every World Cup and World Championships. Annually, Master Bernard can also be seen on the ESPN network umpiring the "Night of Champion" ITF Continuous Sparring.
Master Cancelliere has held the ITF Certified rank of 8th Dan (A-8-28) since June 2019. He became the successor to the USTC's RED TIGER TKD, a Philadelphia based ITF Group, after the passing of his father Mario in October 2018. He has owned and operate his own do-jang since 1988.
Following the General's passing in 2003, he met with GM Tran Trien Quan in Philadelphia to help form a new National Taekwon-do Association. He has since served on various National Taekwon-do Organizations including Board Member, Liason Merger Committee, Secretary General and Sr. Vice President. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Temple University and a Secondary Education Certificate in Biology and true to his passion for Taekwon-do has served as a full-time instructor since 1988.
Achievements
Master Cancelliere was also an active and accomplished National and International competitor. He was a 5x National Champion and 4x US National Team Member (1994, 1997, 1999, 2007). He was twice selected Team Captain (1997 & 1999) by his peers and went on to later serve as the US National Team Coach 2005, 2009 and 2013. His dedication and hard work earned him a Bronze Medal (Russia 1997) and Silver Medal (Argentina 1999) in 4TH Dan Patterns at the respective Sr. ITF World Championships. He also enjoys sharing his experience and knowledge with aspiring competitors through seminars and in daily classes with his own students, many of which have become accomplished athletes of their own.In 1994, Master Cancelliere established a "Black Belt Class Team Fund" that sponsored its Philadelphia based black belts for international competition. He hopes to expand this project to one day provide full sponsorship to OTFA's athletes, coaches and umpires nationwide. In 2003, he was inducted into the Multiple Sclerosis Society's Hall of Fame for his extensive charity work raising over $250,000.00 for the foundation the USTC's RED TIGER Taekwon-do.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Officers Team
- Secretary General
- Master Don Kerner / Secretary General
- Member of Committee
- Retired Information Technology Manager
Master Don Kerner holds the rank of 8 th degree black belt and has been active in ITF TKD since 1991 when he was introduced to Master Peter Thibado and the United States Taekwon-Do Federation (USTF). Soon thereafter, Master Kerner opened a school and Sun Belt Martial Arts was born. The school was successful and served the Mandarin community of Jacksonville, FL for 14 years and grew to over 200 active students. In 2004, Master Kerner joined the American Taekwon-Do Federation International (ATFI) and was appointed a founding member of the Board of Directors and served in that position until 2019. He has regularly supported regional and nationwide events including IIC's, National Tournament, Umpire Courses and many other events. He trains and teaches with Master Fabian Nunez.
In addition to his martial arts career, Master Kerner is a retired Information Technology Manager for a large financial institution and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business.
Achievements
Having dedicated much of his adult personal time to learning Taekwon-Do, being promoted to the rank of 8 th Dan, Master Instructor, is certainly a special achievement for Master Kerner. He is also proud of having run a successful martial arts school for many years and thankful for the relationships that were built around the country and the world in the process.
Master Kerner has worked for many years in service to the organizations he has ben a part of. He was appointed to the Board of ATFI in 2004, selected as a member of the merger committee, appointed to the interim Board for ITF America and now as an elected officer for ITF America. Other highlights include his participation as an umpire for ITF World Championships in 2004 in South Korea, the ITF World Championships in Italy in 2015 and ITF World Cup in Budapest in 2016.
Master Kerner began his martial arts career in 1976 at Bowling Green State University (Ohio) with the American Karate Association (AKA) where he attained a brown belt. After relocating to Florida in 1980, his training resumed with the American TaeKwonDo Association (ATA) where he attained his 1 st and 2 nd degree black belts. In addition to his formal martial arts training, Master Kerner trained with an organization from 1991 - 2000 that specialized in personal defense methods and tactical self-defense techniques widely used by law enforcement agencies. In 1991 his journey with ITF TKD began and has been a large part of his life ever since.
Master McNamara served as an Assistant Instructor under Master Jim Murray in Pennsylvania from 1983 to 1995 while earning a bachelor's degree in finance from Pennsylvania State University. Upon graduation, he relocated to Hood River, Oregon and began service as State Director for the Oregon Chapter of the United States Taekwon-Do Federation. In 2014 Master McNamara collaborated with the OTFA as Vice President, Chair of the Ethics Committee and member of the Technical, Tournament and Promotion Committees. With this experience, Master McNamara has learned that an open line of communication with the ITF America Board of Directors and its Members is imperative to the success of the organization.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Business Development & Marketing
- Member of Committee
In addition to his work with Original Taekwon-do/MMA & Fitness, Master V.A. Affatigato has been both a National and International competitor, winning medals at the 6th ITF World Championships [Hungary], 1988 ITF friendships Games [Yugoslavia] and numerous competitions throughout the United States. In 1999 and 2001, he was the USTF National Grand Champion for 5th and 6th Degree black belts. He has taken the knowledge and experience gained from his years as a competitor and used it to become one of the top coaches in the USA, serving as USA Team coach in numerous ITF World Championships and International competitions. Many of his students have gone on to become successful USA Team members and medal winners.
For more than 20 years, Master Affatigato worked as a Center referee in all major Taekwon-do competitions throughout the USA before focusing his time and energy on conducting Sparring, Self-defense and Pattern seminars in the USA and abroad. Also, for over 15 years, Master Affatigato served as an officer of the United States Taekwon-Do Federation, which until 2002 was the NGB in the United States for the International Taekwon-do Federation. In 2010 he Co-Founded the Original Taekwon-Do Federation of America (OTFA) and served as President from 2010-2019 before merging into ITF America.
Through the first 20 years of his training, Master Affatigato had the privilege to train and spend time with the Founder of Taekwon-do, General Choi Hong Hi on numerous occasions. In 1991, due to Master Affatigato's technical ability, General Choi Hong Hi selected him as part of the group to film the ITF Training Video. For almost 30 years, he had the privilege to train under GM Charles C.E. Sereff, Founder of the USTF, past Vice-president of the ITF and the second person promoted to Grandmaster by General Choi Hong Hi.
Since the passing of General Choi, Master Affatigato has continued training and participating in the many ITF International Instructor Courses and seminars conducted by the ITF Technical Committee throughout the world.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Grand Master
- Grand Master Ruben Suarez / Board Member
GM Ruben Suarez holds the rank of 9th Dan, Grand Master (A-9-7), awarded to him by the ITF Grand Master Promotions Committee on December 19, 2019.
GM Suarez started his training in 1973 in his native Cali, Colombia under the instruction of Jorge Luis Avendano, one of the pioneers of Taekwon-Do in Colombia. In 1990, moved to the USA where he opened Queens Taekwon-Do Center in Jackson Heights, N.Y. only two years later.
GM Suarez remains an active, full-time instructor at QTC, which has become one of the most renowned ITF schools in the USA. In 2007, he was awarded the honor of Best ITF Instructor at the 2007 ITF World Championship in Quebec. His dedication to teaching shines through at every level and he remains committed to teaching regular Technical Seminars in several different countries, including his native Colombia (since 1996), Puerto Rico (since 2006), Dominican Republic, Anguilla, and Guatemala, among others. He has also remained a dedicated instructor of numerous students and instructors across the USA and around the world. His school is always open to visitors from near and far, and his teaching has expanded to include distance learning for students via the internet.
In addition to being a full-time instructor, GM Suarez is currently a member of the ITF International Umpire Committee, as well as the ITF Development Committee for the Caribbean and South America.
Achievements
As a student and competitor, GM Suarez was the holder of numerous titles at the national and international level. After earning a bronze medal in patterns at the 1989 ITF PanAmerican Championships (Tegucigalpa, Honduras), he went on to earn two bronze medals at the 1990 ITF Senior World Championships (Canada), and multiple titles at several USTF National Championship in patterns, sparring and power breaking.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Master
- Member of Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Co - Chair
- Member of the Officers Team
- Vice President
- Master Vincent a. Affatigato / Vice - President
Master Vincent A. Affatigato: Since June 2015 Master V.A. Affatigato holds the ITF Certified rank of 8th Dan [A-8-23]. He has been part of the ITF since his formal Taekwon-do training began in January 1980 with GM Kwang Sung Kim, who operated Kim's Taekwon-do School, the 2nd largest ITF Taekwon-do dojang in New York City at the time. He has trained in numerous martial arts aside from Taekwon-do, but has always remained true to his first art and used this knowledge to become a complete martial artist, instructor and coach.
Master V.A. Affatigato has been a full-time Taekwon-do and fitness instructor since the late 1980's. He is the owner and chief instructor of Original Taekwon-do/MMA & Fitness Center located in Brooklyn, New York, which has been one of the leading ITF Taekwon-do schools in the USA since it's creation. Original Taekwon-do Center served as one of the main dojangs in the Tri-state area for ITF Black Belt trainings, seminars and examinations.
Achievements