SHOTOKAN KARATE DO
QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER
OCTOBER - DECEMBER 2011

FSKA ANNUAL TOURNAMENT On Saturday, September 24, 2011, Shihan Funakoshi hosted his 23rd Annual Tournament at Homestead High School in Cupertino. Vacaville Dojo had a small but spirited group participating - both in competition and in support! Following are the results from Vacaville FSKA Dojo. KATA RESULTS Sempai Jerome Thweatt 1st Place; Men's Black Belt Kumite Sempai Aaron Quach 1st Place; Youth (Boy's 14-15 yr) Black Belt Kata Sempai Timothy Holt 3rd Place; Youth (Boy's 14-15 yr) Black Belt Kata Sean Barnett; 1st Place; Cadet (Boy's 18-19 yr) Brown Belt Kata Robert Ogata; 1st Place; Youth (Boy's 8-9 yr) Brown Belt Kata Shealin Garcia; 2nd Place; Youth (Girls 8-9 yr) Brown Belt Kata KUMITE RESULTS Sempai Aaron Quach; 1st Place; Youth (Boy's 14-15 yr) Black Belt Kumite Sempai Timothy Holt 2nd Place; Youth (Boy's 14-15 yr) Black Belt Kumite Sean Barnett; 3rd Place; Cadet (Boy's 18-19 yr) Brown/Black Belt Kumite Robert Ogata; 1st Place; Youth (Boy's 8-9 yr) Brown Belt Kumite Shealin Garcia; 2nd Place; Youth (Girls 8-9 yr) Brown Belt Kumite Congratulations to ALL who participated in this Annual Tournament. Thanks also to those who helped with the officiating, timekeeping/scorekeeping, judging and staging; You helped make the tournament run smoothly and fairly!

Message from Sensei

As you can see from this newsletter, we have a LOT of activities between now and the end of the year - AND, there are several HOLIDAYS!! So - try to use EFFECTIVE TIME MANAGEMENT - and train as often as possible! The more you train, the better your mind and body will remember what you are trying to teach it!

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Let's show GOOD karate spirit and welcome our new members into our Dojo: ADULTS: Aliyah Kleckley, Sarah Cartwright YOUTH: Carson Haven; Matthew Untal; WELCOME BACK Roop Minhas, Aaron Minhas

FSKA DAN (BLACK BELT) EXAM

The annual Headquarters FSKA Dan Exam is scheduled for Saturday, November 19, 2011. It will be held at the World Headquarters in Milpitas. This is the FIRST year that the YOUTH and ADULT exams will be held SEPARATELY. The YOUTH test starts at 12pm, and the ADULT test starts at 2:30PM SHARP - It does get quite crowded, so please try to be there early so you and your family can get a place to sit! The following Vacaville members are scheduled to take their dan exam this year: SANDAN (3rd degree): Sempai Aaron Quach SHODAN (1st degree): Sean Barnett, Alan Garcia, Joshua Calilan, and Robert Ogata

2012 FSKA ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP CARDS It's almost time for the 2012 Annual FSKA Membership Cards. This is for ALL students - youth and adult. The card costs $10, and with it, you will save $5 for each kyu/pre-dan exam and each FSKA seminar (both here in Vacaville as well as at HQ FSKA). We will post a notice as soon as the card is available - see Sempai Jan if you have any questions.

2011 FSKA ANNUAL AWARDS BANQUET The Annual FSKA Awards Banquet is scheduled for SUNDAY, Dec 11, 2011. It is held at the "Drying Shed" in San Jose - and a very nice buffet brunch is served. The highlight is the presentation of the Dan Certificates by Shihan to those Dan Candidates who passed their dan exam! It is also an opportunity to recognize outstanding members from the FSKA affiliate dojos! This is a special time for all the local FSKA affiliates to get together to enjoy everyone's company! The sign-up sheet is on the counter and I hope that you will be able to attend this once-a-year event!

FSKA 13th WORLD TOURNAMENT The FSKA 13th WORLD TOURNAMENT is being held in Turin, Italy this month. This is an opportunity for karate students from around the world to compete in individual and team kata and kumite events. This is always an exciting event for competitors and spectators. The 2013 tournament is tentatively scheduled to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We will keep you posted on this exciting event!

"Karate begins with courtesy and ends with courtesy" Gichin Funakoshi

FSKA DVDs & VIDEOS

Christmas is coming soon and if you are looking for a special gift for someone interested in karate, don't forget the FSKA DVDs and videos. We have both kata application videos and the Brown Belt & Shodan Exam requirement DVDs.

KYU/PRE-DAN EXAM

The final Kyu and Pre-Dan Exam for 2011 is scheduled for MONDAY, November 14, 2011 (This is a SPECIAL date due to the Dan Exam). Exams are held every two months, but, just like school, your daily class participation, spirit and attitude are part of the exam. That means that you should do your very best EVERY time you come to class. Remember, examinations and rank are not just simply an evaluation of physical techniques. It is also a cultivation of the human values of conduct, discipline, respect and etiquette. START TRAINING NOW! With increasing rank,Your humility should increase, NOT your ego!

DATES TO REMEMBER

Oct 10 Monday COLUMBUS DAY - Dojo Closed Oct 31 Monday HALLOWEEN - Dojo Closed. Nov 11 Friday VETERANS DAY - Dojo Closed. Nov 14 MONDAY Kyu & Pre-Dan Exam. Youth: 5:45pm; Adults: 7pm Nov 19 Saturday Dan Exam - FSKA World Headquarters; YOUTH: 12pm SHARP; ADULTS: 2:30pm SHARP. Nov 24/25 Thursday / Friday THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY - Dojo Closed Dec 11 Sunday Annual Awards Banquet; Drying Shed, San Jose; 10AM Dec 23 & Dec 26 Friday & Monday CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY - Dojo Closed. Dec 30 & Jan 2 Friday & Monday NEW YEARS HOLIDAY - Dojo Closed

"Always think and devise ways to live the precepts every day." Gichin Funakoshi