10th Anniversary Weapons Seminar
Gaku Homma Sensei and Nippon Kan receives 2nd Congratulatory Resolution from the Denver City Council. Resolution sponsored by City Council Woman Deborah Ortega District #9.
10th Anniversary Homeless Meal Service
Project Fundraising Seminar
April 29th, 2001
This year marked the 10th anniversary of Nippon Kan’s meal service to the homeless. On April 29th, for the 10th consecutive year, Nippon Kan held it’s annual fundraising weapons seminar to raise the funds to support the project for the upcoming year. About 100 students gathered for a day of intensive training concentrating on bokken and jo techniques and their relation to open hand techniques. These weapon relations and multidimensional kata were developed by Gaku Homma Sensei and form the foundation of Nippon Kan style Aikido practice.
The seminar was preceded by an opening ceremony that began with a memorial
chant for the Founder Morihei Ueshiba performed by Reverend Kanya Okamoto.
This performance was followed by a plaque presentation by Mr. Paul Anderson
of the Denver Rescue Mission. The plaque was awarded to Homma Sensei and
Nippon Kan in honor of 10 years of dedicated volunteer service and 25,000
meals served. Council Woman Deborah Ortega was also in attendance to announce
a resolution by the Denver City Council to honor this milestone event.
Nippon Kan’s first resolution from the Denver City Council was awarded
in May 2000 for a cross-cultural exchange tour to Japan sponsored by Nippon
Kan which featured musical and dance performances by Native American Indian
dancers, and local Japanese Taiko drumming groups in Northern Japan. Translations
of letters of congratulations and support were read by Nippon Kan Vice
President Emily Busch from Aikikai Shihan Iwama Dojo Morihiro Saito Sensei
9th Dan, and Aikikai All Japan Aikido Federation
Chairman, Akita Aiki Shuren Dojo, Shigeru Kawabe Sensei.
The Denver Post also took note of this event with a half page article
written on April 24th by Cate Twilliger.
The seminar was coordinated by Emily Busch Sensei, and expertly instructed
by Andrew Blevins Sensei, Jeremy Olive Sensei and Instructor Tracy Olive
assisted by Instructor Rudy Landry. Nippon Kan students were treated by
guest instructor, Sadaharu Kurobane Sensei from Wado Style Karate who
worked on basic tsuki delivery and defense.
Instructor, registration, refreshment, set-up and transport crews all
deserve a hearty thank you for a job well done. Congratulations on a very
successful seminar!
Kancho Gaku Homma
Sensei delivered the following message concerning his philosophy on the
meaning of this homeless service project:
Dear Nippon Kan Members,
This year marks the 10th anniversary of our Homeless Meal Service at the
Denver Rescue Mission. The funds raised at this seminar have been the
foundation for the service of over 24,500 meals over the last ten years.
Establishing a tradition, every third Sunday of each month, students have
gathered after morning practice to peel and prepare vegetables. These
vegetables have gone into meals for both the resident dinner at 5:00 p.m.
and the dinner for outside guests at 8:00 p.m. at the Denver Rescue Mission.
During periods of warmer weather, the average meal service has ranged
close to 250 meals. As the weather has turned colder, the service has
been closer to 350 meals.
Over the years, these meals have been served by a volunteer staff of students and friends who have taken a few hours out of their day to come down to the Mission and help without fanfare or notoriety. For this 10th anniversary, I salute all of you who have helped by donating your time and energy.
In Japanese, a place for martial art training is called a dojo. The derivations of this word comes from the teachings of Buddhism. Originally, the place where Buddha achieved enlightenment while meditating under a linden tree was called dojo. The dojo of the Buddha had no walls or ceiling and was a place of unlimited freedom. The term dojo was later applied to the place of training for monks in Buddhist temples. Eventually the term was extended to include the places of training for the martial arts.
Nippon Kan is a dojo for the practice of the martial art of Aikido. Originally, a dojo was not a place that was shut off from the world. Like the dojo of the Buddha, if you take off the walls and the ceiling there are infinite possibilities for assimilating oneself. At Nippon Kan our dojo is not just a gym space for physical training; it is a place to practice a higher level of reflection. One of Nippon Kan’s most unique aspects is in its open involvement in the surrounding community; it is not limited to the practice of Aikido technique only.
Human beings have created and developed the art of Aikido. The art of Aikido does not create human beings. To truly understand the art, you need to first truly understand your good qualities as human beings as a whole. To truly understand Aikido, it cannot be isolated from the rest of our world. Our goal is to extend our practice into the larger society around us. This seminar and the Homeless Service Project are a step toward achieving this goal. Your attendance at this seminar is a valuable contribution. Please come join us for this special event.
Gaku Homma
Nippon Kan Kancho
Below is a translation of a letter received from Aikikai All Japan Aikido Federation Chairman, Akita Aiki Shuren Dojo, Shigeru Kawabe Sensei.
April 29, 2001
Nippon Kan
Gaku Homma Sensei
I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely congratulate you for
the award you are receiving from the city of Denver, Colorado in recognition
of your ten long-hard years of volunteer work and support for the homeless
in your surrounding community.
I believe you were able to achieve this great milestone because of your
love for others through the martial art of Aikido, and your constant actions
for a peaceful environment, which have been instilled upon all the people
involved with Nippon Kan.
Please take good care of your health as I extend my warmest wishes to
you and Nippon Kan for continuous prosperity and success.
All Japan Aikido Federation Chairman
Akita Aiki Shuren Dojo Chief Instructor
Shigeru Kawabe Sensei