I originally met Sensei Gagne 31 years ago. I have been privileged to be taught by him and his instructor Sensei Coffman. There are no harder working traditional karate instructors anywhere I have ever seen. Believe me, I have looked. But it is more than that. They are also decent, compassionate and most importantly humble men. I have the highest respect for both of them. With all that said, this is REAL karate. The strikes are true and effective. You will actually learn to defend yourself if you ever find yourself in the unfortunate circumstance. Interestingly I learned that I did not really know how to fight as well as I had thought when I first started. Something you don't come to understand until you meet someone like Sensei Gagne and his years of expertise and dedication to the art and craft of Karate. I highly recommend that if you are interested in learning martial arts that you take a look at the Okinawan Temple. I would also suggest that you take a look at other schools in the area and watch really carefully too. You'll see that was is being taught at the Okinawan Temple is much much much more effective, even to the untrained eye. We, all of who have taken Karate with Sensei Gagne, are honored and privileged to be taught by one of todays greats in martial arts. I can not recommend the school enough. One last thing. I, myself, have never had to use what I have been taught to any other degree but as to diffuse a situation. Much of that I attribute to the confidence gained from Sensei Gagne. I have, on occasion, had to use some force. But it was minimal as the opposition quickly learned that I actually had some knowledge of fighting. That I can only credit to Sensei Gagne and Sensei Coffman. read more

I first started training at the Okinawan Temple Karate Studio in 2003 when I was 16 years old. This was my first experience in a professional martial arts setting. Let me preface this was a personal background: My plan was to join the Marine Corps shortly after High School. I felt that martial arts training would instill discipline, help get me into shape, and prepare me for the combative aspect of joining the Marines. I did not realize HOW MUCH the training I received at the Okinawan Temple would carry into my military career, not only through boot camp and Infantry training, but to a combat deployment to Fallujah, Iraq in 2006. "Muscle memory" was something I was already familiar with as a student under Sensei Gagne's direction. Having a "combat mindset" and "situational awareness" were all terms and mindsets I had already embraced, thanks to my training at the Okinawan Temple. Since having trained at the Okinawn Temple, I have never had to utilize my karate training against someone outside of a monitored atmosphere. Not once. I've had people get in my face and attempt to get me to throw down, but when they look me in the eyes, they see something they've probably never truly seen before: Confidence. Fearlessness. Inside, I'm shaking, because that's what adrenaline does to the body, but outside, I'm cool as a cucumber, thanks to Sensei Gagne's training. Even after several years of being outside the loop, my body KNOWS what to do, thanks to the muscle memory type of military training that Sensei Gagne instills. It is really incredible. Sensei Gagne's leadership abilities are unquestionable and top notch. I have seen him work with young, young children, all the way to senior citizens. Sensei Gagne is patient, compassionate, and humble; all qualities of a true warrior. He will never show frustration, anger, or impatience. He works with men and women of all backgrounds, skill sets, and levels of athleticism. If you enter his dojo with an open mind, you WILL take something away. That's what kept me going back 3 - 4 days a week for almost two years straight. I kept learning more and more, not only about the martial arts, but about my own body, the human psyche, and what happens to us when we are in high stress situations. You will NOT find "Angry Old Men" or Black Belt Bullies at this Dojo! Some dojos are indeed run by huge weight lifters with a "martial arts" background. They have their pack of higher level students that they use to beat on the new students in an attempt to break them. The Okinawan Temple is a dojo built upon RESPECT and HUMILITY. Sensei Gagne is NOT a bully, nor would he ever allow bullies to be promoted within his ranks. We trained HARD. We were training for real life situations against potentially life threatening attackers. But never, not once, did I feel that the higher authorities within the dojo were out to break any of us. Never. The leadership encouraged us to work at our own pace, and we did. But when you look up and see a 40-something-year-old-man sweating right through his uniform, giving 150%, striving to reach a new level of athleticism and discipline, well, you can't help but want to fall in line right behind that attitude, whether you're 70 or 17. The martial artists that I've met at the Okinawan Temple are truly inspiring individuals. People who want to learn how to "beat someone up" or "do back flips" do not last very long. They do not fit in with Sensei Gagne's level of practicality and the way he trains his students to be prepared not only physically, but mentally, for life threatening situations. Go sit in on a class. Watch the discipline and the hard work Sensei Gagne's students put in. You will see an elite level of martial arts mastery that is incredibly hard to find in this part of the country. This truly is a place where highly trained, disciplined, humble warriors are created. This is not a day care for kids or play time for adults; you go there to train. Sweat a little bit. It'll do your body good. read more

Everything about this place feels like the real care for student's spiritual and physical growth, and not just about making money. My 7-year-old son enjoys coming here (we attend 3 times a week, coming from Providence - it's definitely worth the extra travel!). The groups are small with LOTS of individual attention. The Sensay is so professional and calm but firm. This is not about building aggression - it's about spending excess energy for the kids. Now after a month, I observe my son as he is more patient and attentive, has a much better self-control, and is actually more caring now. read more

Okinawan Temple - Martial Arts Near Me - Smithfield, Rhode Island

I am a senior student of Sensei Gagne and I have been taking classes three times a week for over three years. During that entire time I have never seen Sensei with a gun. After several years of training with Sensei Gagne in the art of Matsumura Orthodox Shorin Ryu karate, it is my opinion that he certainly does not need a gun to protect himself. Maybe that is why law enforcement professionals choose the Okinawan Temple to send their children. Yuki T is making up stories and has some hidden agenda to discredit a well recognized teacher of the martial arts. This person has discredited their Okinawan honor by creating lies and innuendo and it is my opinion that Yuki T is not Okinawan and has never met Sensei Gagne. read more

This review and talk of guns by Sensei is a completely disgusting obvious ploy by someone who has zero knowledge of what kind of Dojo Sensei Gagne operates. This ploy must be from competition. My son has been there for well over a year now and we were referred to Sensei from a Law Enforcement Officer who's older child trained and worked with Sensei for over 10 years. Sensei Gagne owns, operates, instructs and competes with the utmost honor of the Okinawan Way more than any other Dojo in RI or quite possibly New England. Whoever wrote this bad review certainly did NOT do their homework. Sensei Gagne has a long list of past childhood students who have grown to become quite successful and commendable members of society. read more

Outstanding training for folks of all ages. Our son (9) has been coming here for a year now and we are very pleased with the program. Sensei Gagne is a master of his craft and a no-nonsense instructor. read more