JAN DENKE
Jan Deneke has been playing with swords since 2004, starting in Calgary with what is now The Forge WMA club. He focused exclusively on KdF for the first 10 years of his HEMA career, but added a study of Fiore in 2014 and Marozzo's Spadone in 2016. He and his wife co-led a chapter of their club for 3 years (2009 - 2012) in Madison, WI. They moved to California in 2012 and Jan joined the Tosetti Institute as a student after deciding to devote more time to his own training and learning.
Jan took over coaching one of the Longsword classes at the Tosetti Institute in 2023 as senior coach after Paul Tosetti retired from coaching. He has continued to teach since that time with this newly formed version of the Institute.
Jan has medalled in a number of tournaments over the years and enjoys sharing his passion for swords with fellow HEMA students of all genders and ages.
EVAN SANGERMAN
I started HEMA in 2016 at En Garde Fencing as a summertime fun activity with my teenage son. We started with rapier, since I’d fenced foil in college. The next summer we added longsword. After two summers, my son and I decided we wanted to continue HEMA during the school year, looked for a gym closer to home, and found the Tosetti Institute.
We started with sidesword at Tosetti only because there were no rapier classes. We actually used our rapiers for the first five months because there were no loaner sideswords! We continued to study both longsword and sidesword. With sidesword, however, I found the sweet spot between cut and thrust that really suits me. Add in a dagger, buckler, or cape, and I couldn’t be happier.
When Paul Tosetti retired, I took over as sidesword instructor. I teach from Marozzo, the Anonimo, and other Renaissance sources. But mostly I teach Tosetti. Paul’s instruction—preserved in an archive of videos—focuses on practical and grounded techniques for sparring. My classes are designed around learning (or reviewing) techniques, partner drills, and having fun.
Geralyn Chin
Geralyn has been practicing martial arts for over 10 years and has been an instructor at the Tosetti institute for over 6 years. As a life long fitness enthusiast, Geralyn uses her personal fitness journey to understand how to motivate and encourage her students to achieve their fitness goals.
Geralyn is also a long distance runner, completing several marathons and half marathons…sometimes in costume. She brings her love of long distance running to the Institute by incorporating a high degree of cardio and endurance training into her classes. And if you’re looking to complete your first 5k, half marathon or endurance race, Geralyn will design a personalized training plan to help get you across the finish line.
Geralyn spends her days as a product marketer in the tech industry. In her spare time, when she’s not out for a run, you’ll find her hiking the local trails and enjoying the outdoors.
DANIELA
Daniela has been practicing martial arts since her grandpa hung a heavy bag from an apple tree. Though beginning with boxing as a kid, over the last 15 years Daniela has gone on to embrace kickboxing, muay thai, yoga, & HEMA. In recent years, she has been teaching MMA-based fitness -- at one point earning an ACE certification, wherein she focused on personal training for folks with physical limitations. Her classes pay special attention to HIIT-based conditioning, employing proper technique, and developing a fighting style that works for you.