Hi everyone,
I hope you and your family are staying safe, healthy, and as well as can be during this very difficult time.
It saddens me greatly to make this announcement, but we are closing the dojo until further notice. Originally we had closed only for the two weeks of spring break and hoped we could resume classes on March 30th. However, things have unfortunately not improved and we have to keep the dojo closed at this time.
Regarding memberships and tuition, we can’t in good conscience continue to cash tuition during this time. Therefore all memberships have been frozen as of March 15th. For students paying tuition with post-dated monthly cheques, all cheques will NOT be cashed for each month the dojo is closed. Cheques for the time we are closed will be destroyed. Memberships that were paid in full (on one single cheque for the year) will be extended for the duration of the dojo closure (ie. if the dojo is closed for 2 months, the membership will be extended to cover 2 extra months). Once we are past this pandemic and return to normalcy, the dojo will re-open and we will be in touch as soon as that’s decided.
We are in tough times and everyone is affected by this, but I encourage my students to try and stay positive… spend time with family, develop a new skill, practice karate, learn a language… there are many things we can be doing right now while at home.
Lastly, I have made several videos for our dojo members to view and use as resources to support practicing karate at home over the next little while. Videos are divided into teaching basic techniques, kata and kumite, and also some follow-along lessons and conditioning videos. For the time being, these videos will be available only for our members and I will send out a private link to view them on Youtube by Monday of next week. I strongly encourage my students to make use of these. If you would like, feel free to record a short video of your child training and send me the clip (parents are encouraged to join in as well!). I will be more than happy to reply back with some feedback. If there is interest in private or small group trainings online via Zoom video chat, please let me know and we can arrange that. I would also appreciate even just a picture of my students training – it would certainly bring a smile to my face.
We are very grateful for such a supportive community within our dojo. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this unprecedented time in our school’s history.
Missing you all very much, and looking forward to training in person again with you all soon. For the time being, keep training at home, stay healthy take care!
Sincerely,
Sensei Matt