March 22nd 2012
Site meeting with Homma Kancho
There is a new AHAN Learning Center project is on the horizon in Thailand. The site is located at Huaye Park in Suan Phueng, about an hour drive north of Bilay House. Homma Kancho and Lukai, who did the architectural plans for Bilay House, went to the site to check on the plans. There are many Karen refugees in this area who have escaped from civil war in Myanmar over the border into Thailand.
Homma Kancho has built AHAN Learning Centers in different countries, all for people of different cultures and backgrounds. AHAN’s first focus is always on the care of children and has built learning centers to shelter, feed and educate children of many faiths; Christian, Muslim and Buddhist. This new Huaye Park facility will serve as a church for the Karen people who have long been Christian by faith.
When planning a new AHAN Learning Center, Homma Kancho’s first criteria are what is most necessary, and what is best for the children. If AHAN’s support is given to a new facility, whether supported by a mosque or a temple or a church, Homma Kancho thinks first about the need for support and integrity of the role these organizations play in their own communities. AHAN does not choose one religion over another and AHAN’s support is not religiously based.
In a recent speech, Homma Kancho talked about the dojo, and how a dojo’s place traditionally is a place for people in a community to gather, learn, share and care for each other. AHAN Learning Centers have the same goal; to serve their communities in the best way for their people; as a place to gather, learn, share and care for each other.
Homma Kancho said “To build a facility that provides a place to sleep, food and education for children in need serves its community better than a dojo that is built only to house practice. How many instructors speak of “Aikido as Love and the Way of Peace” yet do nothing more outside of their dojo practice to create these ideals. Without applying the concepts inherent in our Aikido practice out into the community we are turning away from reality and not living the true principles of Budo. A dojo is not a dojo without “motion and sweat”.
Homma Kancho goes over building plan to locals
The local construction team leaders and Homma Kancho agreed that ground breaking should wait until June when the ground will be more stable after the rains. In the meantime Lukai in Bangkok and uchideshi alumni Luca in Italy will work on 3-D drawings for the building and Sunai will work on construction material and labor budgets for the upcoming project. This facility is projected to be completed before Christmas of this year.
Video on the Construction of the AHAN Thailand Huaye Park Learning Center
Written by
Yuji Kosakowski
AHAN Nippon Kan Staff