The BUSHI Group, Inc.

My Fellow BUSHI Students,
As the warm weather approaches and the days get longer, we at BUSHI wanted to take this opportunity to inform the students of a few events coming in the next few months. First of all, we would like to welcome the following new students into the BUSHI family: Cayla Liebel, Ken and Madie Leopold, Elizabeth and John Shelford, and Jennifer, Konnor, and Krieg Pierce. We would also like to welcome back an old student: Dr. Richard Byrnes. If you have not had the opportunity to meet these new students, please take the time to introduce yourself and make them feel welcome.

As many of you already know, we are having a belt testing on Friday May 25 at 6pm. The sign-up sheet has been available for over a week, and will remain out until the week before testing. Anyone interested in testing for their next rank should put their name on the list so that the Sensei will know to evaluate them for approval. We encourage those students who are not testing to come to the event to watch and support their fellow dojo mates.  Following the test we will be going out for dinner as a group to a local restaurant. This dinner is open to anyone who would like to join us, and enjoy some social time with the fellow students outside of the dojo environment.

With the summer months quickly approaching, we have decided to bring back the Summer Membership Special for 2012. Anyone wishing to pay for June, July, and August will be able to do so for only $200. Any additional family members will receive the traditional 50% discount for his special and cost only $100. This special will be available to any student who pays in full by June 7. For those students who have already paid for June, you can apply this special to July, August, and September

One of the reasons that BUSHI has always been at the forefront of the martial arts community is the continuing education of our instructors. In this spirit, two of our senior instructors will be travelling internationally with the opportunity to learn and bring back new ideas and training techniques. First, from May 28 to June 6, Sensei Adam Older will be traveling to Managua, Nicaragua for the 2012 Pan American Championships. Sensei Older qualified for this tournament by winning first place in the -84kg kumite division at the 2011 National Championships. This tournament is second only to the WKF World Championships in terms of importance and prestige. Later in the summer, Sensei Older will be travelling to Ft. Lauderdale, FL for the 2012 USA-NKF National Championships where he will compete for a spot on the USA team for the 2012 WKF World Championships to be held this November in Paris, France.

Throughout the summer, Sensei Andrew Stankus will be spending significant time in Tokyo, Japan where he will have the opportunity to train at the dojo of Kancho Hirokazu Kanazawa. Kanazawa Sensei is one of the last remaining students of Gichin Funakoshi, founder of Shotokan Karate, and is one of the most revered instructors in the world. During his previous travels to Tokyo, Sensei Stankus has cultivated a relationship with Kanazawa Sensei's dojo, and so he will be able to train very regularly at the foot of one of the highest ranking Shotokan instructors that ever lived.

As always, we at BUSHI are very proud of the hard work and dedication that our students display in their training. It is through constant vigilance that we developed our skills and knowledge, and we hope that the current BUSHI students will be able to have the same success that we enjoyed. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to speak to one of the Sensei.