Women’s Self-Defense Seminar

We successfully conducted our first Women’s Self-Defense Seminar on March 14th at the 53rd St Dojo.  Approximately 25 women attended and many others stopped by to observe and donate.  In addition to Mark, a few brave dojo members were in attendance to play the role of attacker for the participants.

The day began with exercises in basic movement, followed by the application of that movement to various assault scenarios.  Each participant had a chance to demonstrate a technique in front of the class and this was definitely the most rewarding (and entertaining) part of the day.  Despite some initial trepidation, almost everyone managed to show an effective application of at least one technique.  Many of the participants surprised themselves and it was awesome to see their smiles when something worked for them.  Those “AHA!” moments keep us coming back to our training!  To supplement Mark’s instruction, many of the participants asked thoughtful questions and presented ideas that were explored during the course of the seminar.  The day was ended with some “helping others” training scenarios. 

This seminar managed to incorporate some of the basics of Budo Taijutsu and effective body movement into practical, real world assault situations.  It is our intent to conduct these seminars on a regular basis so that the training is fresh in the participant’s minds, ideas can be explored and skills can be built upon and further honed.  More to follow on that. 

Perhaps the biggest success of the day was that we raised $450 for Safe Horizon.  This NYC based organization offers counseling, case management, shelters and support programs for victims of assault and domestic abuse.  Their website is www.safehorizon.org. 

Sincere thanks go out to all involved –

• Mark our fearless instructor
• Brayner for the awesome training space
• The guys (particularly Dan) who donated their bodies
• Everyone who donated money
• Everyone who attended

See you next time!

Mike

Seminars-Mar09

March 14th we will host a introduction to women’s self defence techniques and their application, it will take place at the 53rd St Dojo from 12 -2pm, donations on the day will go to a women’s charity TBD by vote on the day, all are welcome, there will be some “crash test dummies” on hand to practice on ( male volunteers). Look forward to seeing everyone on the day, Regards Mark .

Seminars-Feb 09

Thank you to the Guys and Gals of Chapel Hill NC. I had a great time there and felt a great energy and vitality , I was made feel very welcome . For those of you who aren’t aware of the history of their Dojo it was founded by Dr Richard Stack many years ago, in the days when I still some dark hairs on my head, its been over 10years  now since I first made my first foray into the wilds of North Carolina, Myself and Phil Little attended a Steven Hayes seminars Hosted by Dr Stack,  we had a fantastic time all those years ago, we made some live long friends, and found a small piece of tranquillity in the process, a place I return to frequently. Every time I’m down in NC I make every effort to visit the Chapel Hill Quest Center,  and say Hi, last week was no exception this time we covered some basics and their inter-relationship to other techniques in the various ryu’s, some are quite obscure, and some are obvious, but all of these connections are tied with deep roots to the basics.  I look forward to my next vacation and my next visit to the Carolinas.

Sept 9/11 fundraiser update.

Well its still a work in progress, but we have a rough tally of funds raised to date, I say rough simply because the matching funds programs that some of our contributors are members of have slightly different methods and means of completing the fund transfers, so to make a short paragraph longer, when the final tally comes in there will be another posting. We are waiting at this moment for the matching fund tranfers to be completed, so far there’s almost 1,000 dollars in matching donations to come in, which is a fantastic result and a big thank you to everyone invloved.

On the day  Mr Hoban led the way with a espirit de corp and panache that he seems to embody so well. The day progressed in an informative and productive manner, with the level of complexity increasing through out the day, culminating in the now regular annual apprisal of what it is we do, and why we do it, but I feel more importantly why what we do, needs to be done in the first place.

So far we have raised about 2,600 dollars (nearly 13,000  to-date) and as soon as we have the final number we will post it. Thanks again to everyone for taking the time out of their busy schedules to come to our assistance, thank you to our families for supporting us. Thank you to Brynard for his continued support and for  the use of his Dojo.

Fundementally what we are attempting to do is re-connect with the rest of humanity by showing others  that  we care, to those of you that support us in our efforts thank you, to those that haven’t theres always next year….M

Sept 6th fundraiser for The DEA Widows’ and Children’s Fund

Its that time of year again, when we think of helping others in our community, who may need our assistance. This year Mr Jack Hoban, Mr Matt Hilldreth, Mr Brayner Martinez and myself ,will be donating our time and efforts freely for this event.

The Fund is a 501(c)(3) charity and all donations to the Fund are tax-deductible. Donations can be earmarked specifically for any of the above-mentioned trusts or simply sent to the Fund in general by writing a check or money order payable to —

As with this and past events all monies raised go to the charity itself, we have streamlined all expenses to the point where there are virtually none, everything is a donation including the venue, the wrist bands andT-shirts. This yearly event has been and is an important part of the healing process that needs to happen so we as a city and a nation can move forward and heal.

The purpose of our fundraising efforts are to help others while trying not to reopen or renew painfull memories for those in our community that bore the brunt of the tragedies that befell us over the last decade.

Everybody has the right to go to and return home after a hard days work to their loved ones without fear or threat of harm, its is not until we become involved ourselves in an event, that we realize for the first time how many people are involved in keeping us safe and secure everyday. These are our Armed Services, the men and women of law enforcement, the fire department and corrections, the doctors and nurses that tend to us, and even the good Samaritans that happen to pass by unhailed and often remain anonymous.

Our Sept fundraiser is an attempt to acknowledge and say thank you to those that help us and protect us in our daily lives, their unselfish efforts and selfless devotion to our community should never be forgotten.

The daily actions and good deeds made by these brave individuals, whose sole drive is to help others, generally go unnoticed and even less often thanked. We the public are often too quick to remember the negative and slow to celebrate the positive.

This simple effort of ours is but a tear drop in an ocean of apathy, but an effort none the less, so let us open our hearts to those that have made the ultimate sacrifice for us, and keep the memory of their heroic deeds alive, we owe them so much more, they can never be replaced, and they should never be forgotten.