Showing posts with label New Dojo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label New Dojo. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Friday, January 19, 2007
What's this about "Shinjin Karate"?
As we were exploring different new locations for our dojo, it struck us that having "Five Cities" as part of our name was somewhat limiting. Also, the name sometimes led to confusion when potential students couldn't figure out what sort of art Keichu-Do is. So we felt that a new name was in order.
At the same time, we are not ready to give up the name "Five Cities Keichu-Do". After all, it is the name we have taught and trained under; it's the name on our dojo banner and patch; it's the name under which we compete.
So our new dojo will be known as Shinjin Karate, the home of Five Cities Keichu-Do. If that seems confusing, think of Shinjin Karate as the place, and Five Cities Keichu-Do as the people and the program that we teach.
The word "Shinjin", which refers to devotion, belief, and faith, captures so well the essence of Keichu-Do. We were glad to find such an appropriate new name for a dojo that teaches an art that can mean either "the way of total dedication" or "totally devoted to the Way".
UPDATE: A number of changes have made this post slightly out of date. We are no longer "Home of Five Cities Keichu-D0", but "Shinjin Karate School of Keichu Ryu". We believe the name change better reflects our dedication to the true meaning and style of Keichu.
Saturday, January 06, 2007
The dojo is ready for classes!
The front door of the dojo
View from the doorway
Waiting area
View from waiting area
View from workout area
First kata in the new dojo
Yesterday, as the sun was setting, Sempai Miriam performed the first kata in our new dojo: Keri Zuki Waza. She may not have been dressed for training, but she did a good kata anyway.
Thursday, January 04, 2007
We're almost done
The workout area is pretty much ready, awaiting our students.
There is still the pile of tools and stuff in our "waiting area", but that should be ready by next Monday at the latest.
There is still the pile of tools and stuff in our "waiting area", but that should be ready by next Monday at the latest.
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Our new dojo is shaping up!
Yesterday the mats arrived at the dojo, via a huge truck driven by a small, but cheerful and helpful man. He was almost buried in an avalanche of mat boxes when he opened the back of his truck, but we managed to get the boxes stacked more or less neatly.
Thankfully, the Steens had come to help. They not only helped move a lot of stuff from Bethel to the new dojo, but Caroline and Elizabeth cleaned floors and carried in mats. Tony Burd also came to help and, with Sempai Miriam's assistance, moved almost all of our big stuff (judo mats, storage cabinets, punching bags, etc.)
By evening, I'd started putting down the mats.
Sempai Benjamin helps his father cut molding for the front wall of the dojo.
Today we finished installing the mats. Josh and Matt Hickman helped move the hanging bag stand. Here Isaac is seen putting it back together.
Isaac and Sempai Benjamin cut the mats to fit the workout area.
And here is the workout area, almost finished!
Thankfully, the Steens had come to help. They not only helped move a lot of stuff from Bethel to the new dojo, but Caroline and Elizabeth cleaned floors and carried in mats. Tony Burd also came to help and, with Sempai Miriam's assistance, moved almost all of our big stuff (judo mats, storage cabinets, punching bags, etc.)
By evening, I'd started putting down the mats.
Sempai Benjamin helps his father cut molding for the front wall of the dojo.
Today we finished installing the mats. Josh and Matt Hickman helped move the hanging bag stand. Here Isaac is seen putting it back together.
Isaac and Sempai Benjamin cut the mats to fit the workout area.
And here is the workout area, almost finished!
Monday, January 01, 2007
Happy New Year!
After watching the Rose Parade on TV, we headed to the dojo to do some painting and a bit more cleaning.
Wishing everyone the best year ever in 2007!
Wishing everyone the best year ever in 2007!
Sunday, December 31, 2006
New dojo update
We have been able to put in some work on the new dojo. Yesterday, along with cleaning, we took care of sound-proofing and drywalling. Things should be ready for painting on Tuesday.
The picture below is the "lobby area". Flooring has presented quite a challenge. It was no easy task to put linoleum down on the uneven floor. Our best efforts at prepping the surface accomplished quite a bit, but didn't fix every flaw. Installing the mats in the workout area should be a lot easier!
The picture below is the "lobby area". Flooring has presented quite a challenge. It was no easy task to put linoleum down on the uneven floor. Our best efforts at prepping the surface accomplished quite a bit, but didn't fix every flaw. Installing the mats in the workout area should be a lot easier!
Friday, December 22, 2006
End of an era; beginning of a great new adventure
For almost five years, Five Cities Keichu-Do has operated as an outreach ministry of Bethel Baptist Church. Our faith-based martial arts program has not only produced champions on the tournament circuit, but has been involved in a number of projects and events such as charity fundraisers, community outreach events, Vacation Bible Schools, community projects, church ministry efforts and more.
The Prewett family has considered it our privilege to teach our students and run this ministry on behalf of our church. It has also been our desire to be able to impact the community even more effectively. We believe strongly in the numerous benefits of our martial arts program, and we have always wanted to make Keichu-Do more visible and more available to our community.
During these past five years, all of our involvement in Keichu-Do has been a labor of love. As our students know, their tuition payments have gone to the church. Our family has been reimbursed for class expenses, but we have not benefited financially from teaching, and we have always had to cover our own personal expenses (e.g., gas, tournament registration fees, travel expenses, and the costs of our own training, continued education, memberships in martial arts organizations, journal subscriptions, and more). We have been more than happy to do so, because we believe so strongly in not only offering our students the best that we can, but improving our "best".
It is because of this commitment to our students that we have been so excited about the opportunities that we will be able to offer everyone at our new location. This is a big step for all of us. While we look back with nostalgia and gratitude for the years we spent at Bethel, we are also looking forward with anticipation to being able to offer a lot more to our students. To be honest, this is somewhat of a scary step for our family, especially from a financial standpoint. We are leaving the security of the nonprofit, church world and entering out into the "real world". Suddenly we have to deal with tenant improvements, rent, utilities, insurance, etc. --- on top of all our personal expenses. However, we believe that the benefits outweigh the risks. We also believe that now is the time for us to offer our valuable martial arts program to more members of the community. We are excited to see Five Cities Keichu-Do grow, in excellence as well as in numbers.
Here are some pictures of our last classes on Thursday, attended by the dedicated bunch who didn't let the upcoming holidays keep them away from training:
And now for some pictures of our new dojo!
The Prewett family has considered it our privilege to teach our students and run this ministry on behalf of our church. It has also been our desire to be able to impact the community even more effectively. We believe strongly in the numerous benefits of our martial arts program, and we have always wanted to make Keichu-Do more visible and more available to our community.
During these past five years, all of our involvement in Keichu-Do has been a labor of love. As our students know, their tuition payments have gone to the church. Our family has been reimbursed for class expenses, but we have not benefited financially from teaching, and we have always had to cover our own personal expenses (e.g., gas, tournament registration fees, travel expenses, and the costs of our own training, continued education, memberships in martial arts organizations, journal subscriptions, and more). We have been more than happy to do so, because we believe so strongly in not only offering our students the best that we can, but improving our "best".
It is because of this commitment to our students that we have been so excited about the opportunities that we will be able to offer everyone at our new location. This is a big step for all of us. While we look back with nostalgia and gratitude for the years we spent at Bethel, we are also looking forward with anticipation to being able to offer a lot more to our students. To be honest, this is somewhat of a scary step for our family, especially from a financial standpoint. We are leaving the security of the nonprofit, church world and entering out into the "real world". Suddenly we have to deal with tenant improvements, rent, utilities, insurance, etc. --- on top of all our personal expenses. However, we believe that the benefits outweigh the risks. We also believe that now is the time for us to offer our valuable martial arts program to more members of the community. We are excited to see Five Cities Keichu-Do grow, in excellence as well as in numbers.
Here are some pictures of our last classes on Thursday, attended by the dedicated bunch who didn't let the upcoming holidays keep them away from training:
And now for some pictures of our new dojo!
Sempai Miriam looks at the outside of the new dojo, located "upstairs" in the Oak Park Plaza (K-Mart shopping center) in Arroyo Grande.
The inside obviously needs some work!
We are excited about how bright and inviting our new place is. Can't wait to start training!
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