Datu Tim Hartman

25 Years Without Professor Remy Presas

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the passing of the late Grandmaster Remy Presas.

To the martial arts world, he was a legend and the Father of Modern Arnis. To me, he was much more. He was my teacher, my mentor, my friend, and my adopted father, my Tatay.

He left us far too soon. He never had the opportunity to witness just how deeply he would continue to influence my life decades after his passing. But if you believe in a greater power, as I do, then perhaps he knows exactly what he did and how many lives he continues to touch.

Twenty-five years, a quarter of a century, and somehow, it still feels like yesterday.

I remember traveling with him, training hard at seminars, and going out to eat afterward. I remember dancing until all hours of the morning, only to wake up the next day to the sound of banging sticks and begin all over again.

Those were exhausting days, wonderful days, and some of the greatest days of my life.

Professor Presas changed the world one person at a time. Over the course of his life, he crossed hands with tens of thousands of people. He traveled the globe sharing not only his martial art, but also a piece of Filipino culture everywhere he went.

At that time, many of us knew very little about the Philippines or its people. There was no Google. Hell, there was barely an internet. We didn’t have translation apps or instant access to information about another culture. That sometimes created misunderstandings and moments that made you stop and wonder.

But as the years passed, I came to understand him more clearly.

He was a great man, and much smarter, more perceptive, and more purposeful than many people ever realized. His impact cannot be measured only in techniques, seminars, black belts, or organizations. His true legacy lives in the people he inspired and in every person they have taught since.

This past May, I hosted my final memorial camp in his honor. From this point forward, I want to focus less on mourning his passing and more on celebrating his life, his art, and the incredible legacy he left behind.
But today, I will pause.

I will say a prayer. I will cherish the memories. And I will remember the man who changed my life forever.
Twenty-five years later, I still miss you more than words can express.

I miss you so much, Tatay.
Tim Hartman

🔥 ONLY 19 DAYS TO GO! 🔥

The World Modern Arnis Alliance Instructor Development Camp is coming September 18–20, 2026, at Horizon Martial Arts — WMAA Headquarters in West Seneca, NY.

This weekend is about more than improving your martial arts. It’s about improving how you teach, communicate, lead, and develop your students.

🥋 Become the instructor your students deserve.

We’ll dive into delivery systems, class structure, teaching methods, communication, leadership, student development, and more.

CAN’T MAKE THE FULL CAMP?
Join us Saturday for the Modern Arnis Immersion Seminar — The Hands of the Warrior.

📅 Saturday, September 19
⏰ 12:00–3:00 PM
🥋 In Person OR Live Virtual

And here’s the best part: every Immersion Seminar registrant receives a digital copy.

Train with us in person. Join us virtually. Or, if your schedule gets in the way, register and watch the seminar later.

SPRING CAMP ATTENDEES SAVE $50!

If you attended the WMAA Spring Camp this past May, you’ll receive $50 off the Instructor Development Camp. Contact us directly for your discount code.

It’s going to be a jam-packed weekend of training, teaching, and growth.

👇 REGISTRATION LINKS BELOW 👇

🥋 Instructor Development Camp: https://sparkpages.io/?i=_Ca0b

⚔️ Modern Arnis Immersion Seminar — In Person or Virtual: https://sparkpages.io/?i=_eGEb

📍 Horizon Martial Arts | West Seneca, NY
📧 [email protected] | 📞 (716) 675-0899

Train. Teach. Grow. Lead.
Become the instructor your students deserve.

Respectfully,
Datu Tim Hartman
World Modern Arnis Alliance

2009 WMAA Camp — When We Stepped Outside the Box

In 2009, the WMAA Camp took a slightly different turn.

Modern Arnis would always be our foundation. Stick and blade were in our blood. But that year, I wanted to open the doors a little wider and expose our family to something different.

So we brought together Filipino Martial Arts, Muay Thai, MMA, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under one roof.

And we brought in two very special guest instructors: Grandmaster Ron Browning and Kru Matee Jedeepitak.

GM Ron Browning was a longtime friend of our late teacher, Professor Remy Presas. Ron brought an incredible background to the camp—not only as a martial artist, but as a former professional boxer who fought for Don King and a trainer who helped guide Guy Mezger to a UFC championship.

Kru Matee brought another level of experience entirely, sharing the skills and fighting spirit that made him a multiple-time Muay Thai world champion.

For three days, we hit. We kicked. We grappled. We worked sticks and blades. We trained hard, laughed harder, and probably didn't sleep nearly enough.

And judging from some of the pictures from that weekend, the lack of sleep eventually caught up with a few of our instructors. 😂
But those pictures tell part of the story.

People traveled from different time zones, trained all day, stayed up talking and laughing at night, then got up and did it all over again.

Because WMAA Camps have never been just about techniques.

They are reunions.

They are extended family coming together from different places, backgrounds, and martial arts to share the floor again.
That was something Professor Presas understood very well. Modern Arnis was the reason many of us originally met, but the relationships created through the art became bigger than the techniques themselves.

That is the legacy we are trying to preserve.

Not by freezing Remy's art in time, but by continuing to explore, train, grow, and pass it forward to the next generation.
The 2009 camp captured that spirit beautifully.

Different arts. Different instructors. Different approaches.

One family. One weekend. A whole lot of memories.

Were you there in 2009?

If you attended this camp, share your memories in the comments. And if you have photographs or videos tucked away somewhere, please share those too. We're continuing to build our WMAA digital archive, and every old photograph helps us preserve another piece of our history.

Some memories shouldn't be allowed to disappear.

Respectfully,
Datu Tim Hartman
Modern Arnis' Tribal Chief