The Karate CAN-DO! Foundation Team

Jeff Fink - President

Jeff spent over twenty five years in investment banking including his last position as Head of Healthcare and Life Sciences Investment Banking for Robert W. Baird & Co, Incorporated. Jeff retired from banking in 2007, and now acts as a strategic and financial advisor for life science companies. Jeff sits on the Board of Navigen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held pharmaceutical company in Salt Lake City, UT and serves as the Special Assistant to the Vice President of Research at the University of Utah, advising on issues surrounding the licensing and commercialization of technologies from the University. Jeff and his wife live in Park City, Utah. He has two sons, is a mediocre skier, and is a black belt in Shotokan.

Rick Hiton - Treasurer

Rick Hiton has trained at North Shore Dojo since 1982. He received his Shodan Black Belt in 1986.  Rick owns a Chicagoland real estate appraisal practice since 1981. He has two children, Lisa and Merrick.  Rick is also a Deerfield Police Commissioner.

David Rowland - Secretary

David is the managing partner of the Chicago office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP, a full service law firm with 9 domestic offices and more than 750 lawyers.  David has been a practicing labor and employment lawyer for more than twenty years.  He has previously served a Member of the Board of Education for School District 28 in Northbrook, IL and as President of the Parish Council at St. Norbert's Church in Northbrook.  David has four children, three of whom have black belts in karate.

Julie Iverson - Executive Board Member

Julie Iverson is a marketing and business communications consultant and owns her own consulting firm, Iverson Marketing Inc. She previously worked for 12 years as an account executive and marketing director for PGM, Inc., a sales promotion agency in Chicago. She has an MBA in Marketing from DePaul University and a BA in Journalism from Marquette University. She and her husband, Dave, have two sons, one of whom has special needs and has benefited greatly from the program sponsored by the Foundation.

Robert Middleton - Executive Board Member

Bob is a partner in the Chicago law firm of Nisen & Elliott LLC and represents private clients in matters of federal tax law, estates, trusts and family business enterprise.  Bob sits on the board of Watt Publishing Company, a fourth generation family owned international publishing company. He received his Shodan black belt in 1999 and continues to train regularly in Shotokan karate at the North Shore Dojo with Sensei Kohn.

Ken Moses - Executive Board Member

Dr. Ken Moses is a psychologist who has devoted his career to helping people deal with crisis, trauma and loss. He is a nationally recognized presenter, consultant, author and psychotherapist who focuses much of his work on parents of children with disabilities and the professionals who serve them. In 1978, after working ten years in the field, he became the father of a child with special needs. Kiel, who was born with physical and sensory disabilities, has benefitted tremendously from karate as taught by Sensei Jeff Kohn, and so, Dr. Moses considers it a privilege to serve on the Karate Can Do! board.

Foundation Founder & Athlete Ambassador

Sensei Jeff Kohn / Founder and Technical Advisor to the Board

Sensei Kohn has been the director and head instructor of North Shore Dojo since its inception in 1979. In February 2010, he was officially appointed USA Karate Chairman of the USA Karate Disabled Program by the United States Olympic Committee. In addition, Sensei Kohn has been invited by the WKF to bring a US National Team to compete in the 2012 World Championships in Paris, France. Sensei Kohn is a graduate with a degree in Physical Education from Illinois State University, as well as a 7th Degree Black Belt and Master Instructor. In addition to his work with elite athletes, throughout his career, Sensei has coached children with challenges such as ADD/ADHD, sensory integration disorder, autism, cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, Down syndrome, developmental delays, behavioral disorders, Tourette's syndrome and physical disabilities. In 2008 Sensei's dream to begin a program specifically dedicated to helping these specially challenged children and adults became a reality when the Foundation was officially launched in 2008.

Michael McCarthy, Athlete Ambassador

Michael was born with anomalies to both lower limbs above the knee and was unable to walk. After surgery that allowed Michael to be fitted for prosthetic legs, he worked with a dedicated team from the Rehabilitation Institution of Chicago that gave him the equipment and skills he needed to walk on his own. At the age of 6, Michael began training with Sensei Jeff Kohn. Now 14, Michael is a black belt in karate and has won many medals in both challenged and typical divisions of national tournaments. He is also is a member of the AHAI Hornets and an avid skateboarder. In November 2010, Michael was the first person to climb to the top of the Willis Tower on one prosthetic leg. He climbed 102 flights in 95 minutes – a world record. The event was SkyRise Chicago and benefited the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.