Medical Student Teams Up With Martial Artist to Train Others to Be Street Ready
Between attending Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Yvan Yomba and his friend provide courses in conflict de-escalation, first aid and personal safety
Rutgers New Jersey Medical School student Yvan Yomba and his friend, a martial artist, aim to help as many people as possible handle conflict – whether it’s at home, in the hospital or on the street.
Yomba, a fourth year med student, recalled that he and Michael Loureiro, a martial arts instructor who operates a dojo in the Ironbound section of Newark, were upset by a mass shooting on a New York City subway train in 2022. Although no one was killed in the incident, it was the latest in a string of mass shootings in the U.S.
“We talked about the state of the world, how dangerous things are at the moment, and how we wish that everyone had an emergency toolkit for when crises occurred almost,” said Yomba.
They sought to help in a way that blended their medical and martial arts backgrounds. Together the two formed Street Ready LLC, a business that provides courses in conflict de-escalation, first aid and personal safety.
Yomba and Loureiro have taught their courses for clients such as United Community Corporation, Broadway House for Continuing Care, Newark Academy, Tutela Training Systems, Woodbridge Police, Newark Police, New Jersey City University, students in the Rutgers Northeast Regional Alliance MedPrep Scholars Program, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School students, Aesthetic Temple CrossFit and the Newark Community Street Team under Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka.
“It's a way of life,” said Yomba, who holds a blue belt in Brazilian jujitsu and trains at Anderson’s Martial Arts Academy in New York. “It's a movement. Street Ready means someone who is capable, competent and safe.”
The goal, Yomba said, is to act like a first responder in real-life scenarios, “whether that be a first-aid situation where someone's bleeding out or someone's suffering a seizure,” or on a job site, “knowing how to de-escalate conflict, knowing how to verbally use that verbal judo we teach and knowing how to apply general self-defense. Being ready for life’s challenges is what is means to be Street Ready.”
“We took the self-defense aspect of things and thinking everyone should have an idea on how to protect themselves just in case anything happens,” said Loureiro, a 36-year-old Newark native who attended Montclair State University, where he majored in economics with a concentration in business. “We understand the sense of confidence that comes with practicing and learning martial arts.”
Yomba and Loureiro teach life-saving and defensive skills such as how to tie a tourniquet; what to do if attacked by a dog; what to do if someone tries to choke you; how to escape if someone tries to hold your wrist; and what to do if someone is following you.
Yomba, who was born in the African country of Cameroon, moved to Minnesota when he was 5 years old. He grew up in St. Paul, Minn., where he attended school in the inner city. When he was age 14, Yomba and his family moved to Southern California, where after high school he attended the University of California, Riverside, and majored in biology.
“As a young kid, I only spoke French and didn't speak English for my first few years in the U.S., so I really couldn't talk to many people,” the 24-year-old New York resident said. “I would just have to observe most of the things going on in my environment.”
Yomba turned to martial arts to build confidence.
“At first, it was like a self-defense tool, just knowing how to defend myself,” he said. “But then after you get past that initial stage, you kind of start to learn about the art, the expression. It's a way to be completely immersed in the moment. It's a way to be really present.”
After eight years in California, Yomba opted to pursue his medical degree on the East Coast.
“I thought that it would be a good challenge,” said Yomba, who is focused on emergency and internal medicine and conducts rotations at University Hospital in Newark. “I like Rutgers, what they stood for. I liked that they had an entrepreneurship program. I like that they were in Newark. And I live for adventure, so I said, ‘Let's just see how it goes.’”
George Heinrich, the dean of admissions at New Jersey Medical School, met Yomba during the prospective student’s application process.
“It was clear to me his commitment to others, and he is just genuinely interactive, pleasant and warm,” said Heinrich.
Heinrich noted Yomba’s giving nature, including being a mentor for children and teaching them judo as well as cutting hair. In college, Yvan worked as a barber for his first three years, cutting hair for friends and classmates whenever they had special occasions such as interviews. He also worked with children taking classes at the Riverside Youth Judo Club in California.
“I remember when I met him at orientation at New Jersey Medical School,” said Heinrich, a medical doctor. “I couldn't even get to him. Everybody was talking to him. He's very sincere and it comes across that way, and that's what I find a lot of qualities about what he's done with Street Ready is tremendous. The impact in the community is palpable, and he's doing it because he wants to do it.”
Heinrich also credited Yomba’s friend, Loureiro, for his efforts, saying “he has clearly been an important support for Yvan.”
Yomba happened to be training at a martial arts school in Newark where Loureiro also used to train.
As a martial artist, Loureiro described Yomba as inquisitive.
It's a way of life. It's a movement. Street Ready means someone who is capable, competent and safe.
Yvan Yomba
Rutgers New Jersey Medical School student
“I think that's one of his really, really strong traits,” said Loureiro, who holds a third-degree black belt in Brazilian jujitsu and has studied Muay Thai, karate, boxing and wrestling. “It leads him to finding solutions to problems. And martial arts are really a big game of problem-solution – and his ability to seek out different answers and different perspectives on things really help him evolve as a martial artist.”
Loureiro added, “I feel I'm lucky to have crossed his path. He is a genuine person – super genuine and honest – which is I think one of the greatest qualities you can really have. And then he's disciplined and focused. When he's into something, he goes all in.
“I got to say he keeps me on my toes for sure. I got to keep up with him.”
Yomba, who takes salsa classes and enjoys live comedy shows between his studies, hopes to secure his residency on the East Coast and continue to build Street Ready with Loureiro.
“The goal is to continue Street Ready – really just scale Street Ready,” said Yomba, who would like to bring the company’s de-escalation course into hospitals, “helping doctors, physicians, get it into schools, get into government organizations, really build our team and make sure everyone can be Street Ready.”
