Who We Are
Heritage Arts, Inc. is a 501(c)3 tax exempt educational charity, EIN number 81-5406720.
Interested in who we are and where we came from? Explore our origins.
Where we Started
Mixed martial arts rose to prominence in the 1990s, and by 2000 the “no holds barred” revolution had shattered time-honored assumptions about traditional martial arts.
In the spirit of these new discoveries, Robert Mitchell founded Richmond All Martial Arts Club (RAMAC) in 2001. Practitioners of various martial arts gathered at J. Sargent Reynolds Community College where they sparred and shared techniques. Interest in RAMAC faded and the group folded.
A succession of groups followed — Cabal Fang being the most noteworthy — each new version cutting away failed concepts and building upon previous successes.
Heritage Self-Defense is the culmination of two decades of martial seeking and experimentation.
Now, in addition to the martial arts program, which is available in person in Richmond, VA and via distance learning — Heritage Arts offers three more distance learning programs — Heritage Wildwood (nature awareness and survival), Heritage Fitness, (online fitness coaching), and St. Barachiel’s of Richmond (online church services broadcast from St. Barachiel Chapel in Richmond, VA).
About Heritage Self-Defense
Heritage Self-Defense is a practical, pragmatic American martial that is a fusion of boxing, wrestling, and “rough ‘n’ tumble” (the fighting methods of the colonial and indigenous peoples of North America as practiced during the frontier period).
We practice unarmed as well as armed self-defense — kicking, punching, scrapping, grappling, walking stick, and knife.
Our fitness is fighting-specific and geared toward getting you fit to fight.
We also understand that, without a spiritual center, martial arts are at risk of becoming nothing more than dark arts that put pain and punishment on a pedestal.
This is why Heritage Self-Defense includes the four great spiritual disciplines — contemplation, meditation, prayer, and sacred reading — and engages the hearts and minds of its members to promote a strong moral and ethical center.
To some extent we are a study in contradictions. We have to be. Because a martial art must contain sincere contact, fighting realism and real fitness in order to be effective. Yet it must also involve the work of the spirit.
Robert Mitchell, Founder of Heritage ARts, Inc.
Robert “Mitch” Mitchell Jr. has been practicing martial arts since 1986. From 1990 until 2005 he held a number of teaching posts, including Korean Karate instructor for the YMCA and City of Richmond Recreation and Parks, and defensive tactics instructor for private security firms. In 2010 he was awarded the rank of Master by the Combat Martial Arts Practitioner’s Association and in 2019 became an affiliate coach in Mark Hatmaker’s Rough ‘n’ Tumble fighting arts system.
After 20+ years as a religious seeker studying and practicing many religions — Taoism, Buddhism, Shamanism, Wicca, and so on — Mitch came at last to the Christian faith. He is currently a transitional archdeacon enrolled Ekklesia Epignostika Church & Seminary in pursuit of Holy Orders of the priesthood in the Independent Catholic tradition.
He and his wife Karen are the proud parents of four children and five grandchildren.
If you have questions about the services offered by the Heritage Arts, Inc. or if you are in need of emotional or spiritual support, call (804) 516-1224 or email mitch@heritageartsinc.com for assistance.