Raso Hultgren Sensei began Aikido training in 1971 in Santa Cruz, California. At that time Frank Doran Sensei also traveled to Santa Cruz once a week to teach. His warmth and clear images were illuminating and encouraging. In 1977, Hultgren Sensei became a student of Mitsugi Saotome Shihan, moving to Washington, D.C. to continue her studies. She was drawn to the unity of beauty and power, images of nature, extraordinary skill, and heartful connection to O Sensei. She subseqently returned to California, where she continued training and teaching. In 1986, she began a four-year intense training period in Boulder, Colorado, with Hiroshi Ikeda Shihan, who helped to ground and clarify her practice.
Hultgren Sensei has received the rank of rokudan (6th dan) from Saotome Sensei. She is an original member of the Ueshiba Juku, a designation given by Saotome Shihan to his most senior students as a sign of direct lineage from O Sensei through Saotome Sensei, with its responsibility to transmit the Founder’s Aikido principles. Hultgren Sensei teaches regularly at Aikido of Missoula and actively continues her own study. Currently, Hultgren Sensei is the chief instructor of Aikido of Missoula. As a senior instructor for Aikido Schools of Ueshiba, she also teaches seminars in the United States and abroad.