About Organizations

So over the years I have jumped through many hoops of Martial Arts schools over the years. I have practiced at places where fighting was the emphasis and where cult like behavior took over and another place where I was the youngest by 30 years. A set of experiences that really lead me down many paths and wasted a lot of time and effort.

This has lead me to the decision that what I teach will all fall under the umbrella of my own family art. I am not creating a new style! I am not mixing styles! I am using what works for me and staying away from the cult of personality or the religious figure head that is involved in many traditions.

So my first real adult martial art was Aikido and I still love much of what I learned while I was involved with it. This story is also from my perspective and may have information that is not accurate due to others clouded judgment of the death of their master. The late Bill Soza passed away in 2002 and he had basically had been grooming an heir to his school who would take over after his death. Lynn Fabia was the heir as she would come to every event to make sure Bill was taken care of and helped in the way a Uchi-deshi would in the modern world. Everything pointed to her taking over.

The sudden pancreatic cancer took his life in 3 months after diagnosis and soon after his death his family took over the school pushing out many in line. His wife and son were now running the school and many bad things happened while wrestling for control of where the organizations loyalties were. Many long time students just simply left and new groups sprang up. Over 6 years being a part of the organization I had never seen or heard, other than a small mention, that Soza had a son. The fall out for all the clubs was that with his son now as the head of the school there were massive changes in curriculum and massive dues owed if you wanted to stay a part of the group.

This behavior lead me to feeling that:

1. Firm lines of passing on to the next generation must be built into everything a school wants to be.

2. Minimization of drama is essential around those who control money, practices, and curriculum.

3. A way to hear complaints and respond must be open and not hidden behind closed doors. (Other than for legal, or personal moral obligations. E.G. rape, abuse, child endangerment etc.)

4. That an organization should not be in control in the minutia of how someone teaches every technique to the point of restricting someone from teaching. (I will give an example in a future blog post.)

5. Teachers should be paid, staff  should be paid, bills should be paid, board members that take on responsibilities as volunteer should be first in line at a pot luck but not be paid.

6. The amount a organization charges should always be reasonable to allow students to learn. Exclusivity of wealth rarely breeds good martial practices and rather is based on greed.

The outcome of the Aikido school was a lot of hurt feelings and a general disgust of everything to do with organization.