Jason Taylor

Jason Taylor died of cancer on 10/07/2014. He was a cofounder of the HEMA Alliance, and of his club, Kron Martial Arts. As a professor of writing he was always making jokes about the horrors of the stacks of student papers he was forced to read, but in his teaching he was consistently patient and nurturing. His support will be missed by his colleagues and students both in English and in HEMA. Jason is survived by his loving wife, Heather Whitney.

Jason’s martial arts teaching included Kunst Des Fechtens, Lai Chung Ch’uan Fa Kung Fu, and a women’s self defense curriculum that he developed with Patrick Vee. He is also known in the HEMA community as one of the first translators and researchers of Mair’s peasant sickle, and he was one of the main architects of the HEMA Alliance Instructor Certification rubric. It was important to Jason that his HEMA club be a good environment where people could practice treating each other well as they practiced martial arts. As a result, Kron today is the largest club in the HEMA Alliance, and a happy home to both “hard core” fighters and more casual hobbyists who like to learn about swords and enjoy the feeling of being in a good club. Jason’s legacy will always be part of Kron and the HEMA Alliance.