Aikido Eastside

Contributed by George Ledyard*

The Aikido Eastside dojo was opened early in 1989. The Chief Instructor is George Ledyard with Kevin Lam as the Assistant Chief Instructor. The original students had trained at the Seattle School of Aikido either under Mary Heiny Sensei or under George Ledyard after Mary Heiny Sensei had moved to Canada.

The school never would have gotten off to such a smooth start without the assistance of Lee Crawford Sensei (now Chief Instructor of Aikido Northshore and Martha Levenson Sensei (now Chief Instructor of One World Aikido. We owe them a tremendous debt.

The early years were spent developing the training regimen that is in place to this day. As offered in 2001 this includes monthly One Day Intensive training sessions for both Beginners and Advanced students on specialized topics such as Ukemi, Sword, Jo, Kaeshiwaza, Two Sword, and Randori, plus two full Four Day Advanced Intensives focusing on Weapons and Randori, and one Beginner Two Day Intensive focusing on Ukemi and basic weapons skills.

Additionally, we host three weekend seminars each year featuring guest instructors. Over the years we have hosted such Aikido luminaries as Mitsugi Saotome Sensei, Hiroshi Ikeda Sensei, Frank Doran Sensei, Frank Hreha Sensei, Tom Read Sensei, Mary Heiny Sensei, William Gleason Sensei, Patty Saotome Sensei, John Messores Sensei, and John Stevens Sensei. In 2001 we will be happy to add Pete Trimmer Sensei to the list.

Aikido Eastside also has a full Children's Aikido program with classes for kids from 6 - 15 years old. In addition to daily classes we offer a selection of Aikido Summer Camps for kids that have been very successful.

As we move forward in our second decade we will continue to focus on a balanced presentation of Aikido as a martial and spiritual pursuit. The school will continue to be a resource that supports up-and-coming teachers by giving them wider exposure. We invite visitors to feel free and train anytime.

*To visit the Aikido Eastside website and learn more about the programs offered, click on http://www.aikieast.com/aikieast.html