Greetings from the board of Shintaido of America!
July 1 begins a new fiscal year for us and that marks the beginning of our membership drive! Membership dues are the primary source of income for Shintaido of America.
Please consider renewing or becoming a member. Your support helps our community of practitioners by providing:
- Shintaido of America Website (www.shintaido.org)
- Body Dialogue articles; now in real time as postings on the website
- Liability Insurance for instructors and students – so you and your students are covered wherever you practice
- Curriculum development for Shintaido Kenjutsu Curriculum
- Support to our instructors and the National Technical Council
- Communication with International Shintaido Project (ISP) and national Shintaido groups
- SOA examinations and SOA Diplomas
Membership fees are $60 for all supporters. The SOA Board of Directors and I hope you will take this moment to join SOA. Last year we were able to increase membership by 120%. This year, we would like to add a further 10%, in the hopes that we can provide support for new groups, ongoing development of Shintaido curriculum, and support to SOA teachers.
For ALL of the benefits listed above, your annual membership works out to only $5 a month, or 16 cents a day! We hope you’ll consider supporting the future of our beautiful art form.
Electronic payment can easily be made at http://www.shintaido.org/membership/
Alternately, a check for $60 payable to SOA can be mailed to:
Shintaido of America
18 Washington St, #115
Canton, MA 02021
Sincerely,
Connie Borden, Chair SOA Board of Directors
Shin Aoki, Chair SOA National Technical Council
Brad Larson, Treasurer
Nancy Billias
David Franklin
Michael Thompson
H. F. Ito
“As Shintaido continues to evolve, the support of SOA membership has been extremely important. The membership dues underwrite my work as a consultant in the development of the new Shintaido Kenjutsu curriculum.”
Haruyoshi Ito, Master Instructor
“One of the benefits of Shintaido of America membership is our $2 million-dollar general liability insurance policy. This is a benefit for our instructors, because many places require proof of insurance in order for instructors to rent space for classes or workshops. It’s also a benefit to members who have to sign the waiver just once in a lifetime, to be covered whenever they practice Shintaido, anywhere in the United States.”
Stephen Billias, insurance liaison for SOA
“The opportunity to attend PacShin Kangeiko this year, made possible by an SOA scholarship, allowed me to keep current with the developments in kenjutsu and our ever-evolving approach to making keiko increasingly accessible to all learners. This now helps me share more broadly what I know with some older students in Washington, D.C., who are now coalescing into a nascent keiko circle informally called « the blue zone. »”
Lee Ordeman, SOA Instructor
« SOA’s grant helped me attend PacShin’s Kangeiko, an extraordinary event incorporating new kenjutsu movements. This will help me connect what’s happening both in Europe and California with what we’re doing in New England and encourages me to offer workshops in my hometown this summer. »
Brad Larson, SOA Graduate
