One of my fond memories of my time starting out in the Ashland, Virginia, Wadokai Aikido dojo, was Jerome shihan always encouraging us not to just talk about the principles of Aikido, but to be about them. The way we lived the spirit of Aikido out loud then was through participation of canned food drives, sock and blanket drives, and various other activities to benefit those in need to develop our sensitivity to others and the world around us.
As dojo-cho of Aikido of Suenaka-ha Indiana, I’m proud and honored to continue these traditions in our school. Last year, we participated in the Hoosier Hills Food Bank’s “Plant-A-Row” for the hungry effort, where we planted our own community garden to raise vegetables etc. to donate to the hungry. This was our first collective effort to bring us together as a dojo family and live Aikido off the mat to benefit others.
This year, I’m proud to announce that we concluded our own fund raising effort for those affected by the recent devastating Japan earthquake and subsequent tsunami. We were able to collect several hundred dollars through donations and matching funds from the dojo. In addition, thanks to Dell (my employer), these donations were generously matched to make an even larger impact.
As a dojo-cho, I’m very proud of all of our students and the concrete efforts we make to continue to perpetuate the spirit and principles of Aikido. My sincere thanks also to the phenomenal instructors I’ve had who instilled this sense of community awareness and service to others and who continue to mentor us. Thank you.
Lastly, I’m excited to announce that we are commencing a canned-food and non-perishable food collection drive this spring. All of our food collections will again go to Hoosier Hills Food Bank.
Stay tuned for more news regarding our ongoing community service endeavors. The interesting aspect of studying Wadokai Aikido is that we learn to live life larger than ourselves. If you’re interested in taking part, just show up!
In Aiki,
Sensei Paul
