Kyoshi
“At first I taught because it was interesting to pass on my knowledge to others. Over time I came to understand that the value of martial arts comes from the life skills it can give to people. Courage, respect and determination are things you need to succeed in martial arts however once you adopt them into lifestyle you can use them to accomplish any goal you set your mind to. That is the power of teaching and it is extremely satisfying to me to see people grow with my help. It allows me through my teaching to feel that I make a contribution to my students lives and the community at large.”
Arashi-Do Martial Arts has its roots in traditional Shotokan Karate with an emphasis in Western Kickboxing and Muay Thai Kickboxing. I got involved at the beginning of a style evolution. In 1988, my partner and I, along with some students took over from our instructor on a full time basis as he was going to school and could not teach as much as he had in the past. In 1992, we changed the name from “The Martial Arts Center” to Arashi-Do Martial Arts, and introduced several new styles we had been cross training in. We started with one school and expanded slowly over the years to the 20 locations in Western Canada that we have now. My role aside from teaching classes is to help the new school owners and instructors through some of the harder aspects of trying to mix a successful business with the traditions and values of a respect based martial art.
Over my 25 years of experience, I have changed my opinions about style and system of martial arts but I can honestly say that the values the martial arts embodies are what kept me involved; Respect, Loyalty, Discipline and Integrity to name of few. The relationships I have built over the years with students, instructors and parents of kids in karate and kickboxing have stood the test of time. Some of the best people I have ever met came to me through martial arts and I still count them as close friends today.