Dear Buyu, Wow! I am exhausted, and my voice is shot. It was worth it. It is Sunday night August 4, 2013 and I am in a St. Louis hotel room tasked with writing a thank you letter for Pat and I now that the venue has cleared out, everyone has headed home and the dust has settled. In 2013 was the pleasure of the Bujinkan Kajo Waraku and Ichi Nen Dojos to host this premiere Bujinkan event In a continuing effort to honor Soke Masaaki Hatsumi’s vision of building and strengthening the Bujinkan community in both the United States and worldwide. We hope we succeeded. The task was daunting and it is important for Pat and I to say Thank you to several people. I am going to do my best to include as many as possible but I am afraid I might forget someone. If I do forget someone, please know it is an unintentional oversight, and accept my apologies. So here we go: Most importantly Pat and I must thank our amazing wives, Jackie and Mandy. Without their support and understanding this event never could have taken place. As we came closer to the event, there were many nights that Pat and I were wound pretty tight and needed to be talked off the ceiling. These two amazing ladies were sounding board, staff member, therapist, co-coordinator, handy person, accountant, and consultant. Then there were the visionaries, the people who came before and made this all possible. Jeff Ochester and Marty Dunsky began this event six years ago, and watched it grow ever since. Mike Russell was instrumental in helping us secure the venue for the event and provided valuable advice when we were confirming plans. These budoka along with Ethan Capers, and Jay Zimmerman helped us shape the event. They provided us with suggestions, ideas, and encouragement throughout the entire process. The teaching staff was fantastic: Amy Miyajima, Pam Dunsky, Mike McGuirk, Joe Bunales, Dustin Mowery, Larry Turner, Jason Kratz, Tony Brooks, Rick Spangler, Rob Hartung, Gabe Logan, Scott Russell, Jack Mann, Ethan Capers, Bill Johnson, Markk Bush, Thomas Warfield, Vic Siedeleski, Gayle Nielsen, Mark Wakefield, and Charles Gelm, all brought their “A games” and the energy in the room was amazing because of that. We had high energy instruction, and thoughtful reflection throughout the weekend. It is fair to say that everyone in the room walked away with new ideas and deeper understandings of Soke’s art. The MWTK 2013 Staff was amazing. These guys worked harder than a piece of steel wrapped granite. Rob “The Squire” Hartman, Tyler “Potter” Klypchak, Phil Nam, Nate Hoyle, Mark Blankenburg, Ben Pitts, and Ms. Alex Ziton. These guys did it all. They manned the registration table, helped with check in, took pictures and video, then ran more errands in a weekend than anyone should run in their lives. These guys were on a first name basis with the hotel staff before the end of day one. We need to also give a “Bonus Staff” shout out to Rob Hartung and Joe Bunales for helping with the photography at the event. Also, Phil Williams stepped up and taught a section. He represented his Kentucky Dojo admirably. Special thanks to the St. Louis Bon Odori and Okinawan Kenjin Kai. Both groups went far above and beyond to make sure we had a special time and added a new cultural element to the event. These guys gave us some “bonus” performances, involved the crowd, and generally rocked the house. At the hotel, Tina, Jeff, and Danielle at the Crowne Plaza were rock stars. They took care of everything. No one saw these guys, but they booked the rooms, served the food, made sure our special requests were all taken care of, and even helped me personally, when they loaned me the microphone when my voice was kaput. Last, but not least, thank you to all those who attended. Without you the event could not happen. In 2014 we will be in Michigan. We hope to see you there. Gambate, Jess Attilli and Pat Lee.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Aug 2013 04:41:39 +0000
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