Our Members
The core of the Chicago Aikido Club is its members.
Some of faces you may encounter while training are…
Dwight Sora began studying Aikido in 1993 at Waseda University in Tokyo under Hiroshi Tada Shihan, continuing under Don Levine Sensei at the University of Chicago and Kevin Choate Sensei at the Chicago Aikikai. He serves as CAC’s manager. When not doing Aikido, Dwight works as a freelance Japanese translator and actor.
Sol started training in Aikido at Aikido De Guadalajara in Mexico. Off that mat, she spends her days happily chasing after baby Mika and working as a part-time student. For Sol, there is no secret between training partners when they touch and for a moment both communicate through their movement. Or, in her words, “the Art is similar to a very, very kind version of chess.”
Phil Marmet sees Aikido as a path for personal development and improvement, as well as a source of friendship and learning. Phil is an accomplished actor, composer, musician and cyclist. Some of his compositions can be heard on his MySpace page. Phil manages Copenhagen Cyclery a bike shop that specializes in beautiful handmade bikes from Denmark.
Amy Androff has been training for more than a decade. She started her training at Aikido Schule in Dresden Germany. Outside Aikido Amy is a full-time mother, and enjoys biking, climbing and the outdoors. When she lived in Colorado she learned that she was a natural at barrel racing and rounding-up cattle. For her Aikido brings balance and meaning to her life and reminds her of the person she should be. That, and she is quite fond of ukemi.
Keiki Hinami has been struggling to understand what Aikido is since 1993 and appreciates CAC for the opportunity to continue exploring and experimenting. In other parts of his life, Keiki happily spends time with his family and work as a physician researcher.
Fernando Ortiz describes Aikido as a truly remarkable way to grow as a person while experiencing a state of flow. A self-described internet activist, Fernando has been training for more than 10 years, though he considers himself always a beginner. He looks forward to seeing you all on the mat.
Ian has been training in Aikido since 2005. Aikido stood out among other martial arts because of it's naturalistic flowing movements and connective, collaborative learning. Ian works as a designer for the Joffrey Ballet and is a professional filmmaker who has done work for Amesty International and the Chicago Foundation For Women. He is also a member of The Plagiarists theatre company.
Stephanie Folk started studying Aikido in 1995 in Kumamoto, Japan under Sunadomari Kanshu, founder of the Manseikan Aikido. In the States she trained at Aikido of Madison and Chicago Aikikai. She can also be found chasing a plastic disc around the ultimate frisbee field, playing music at the Old Town School of Folk Music, or making a living working for an environmental nonprofit organization.