The Foundation of Empowerment

Here are the results for the 2008 Redmond Kick-a-thon.   Thank you so much for your support and participation in this fund raising event for the Foundation of Empowerment.   The funds we raised will be put to good use developing our vision of an online children’s safety curriculum.
 
We had 30 kickers this year, and as a group we did 56,222 kicks!    That makes the average number of kicks per person 1,874!   That’s amazing!    We raised about $1,500 this year, down from last year’s donations, but still a very strong accomplishment.    We are still accepting donations if you haven’t had a chance to make yours yet! (please make your check out the Foundation of Empowerment.)
 
I’m so proud of everyone who participated – they made some exceptional efforts!   The students get inspired by each other and together, we accomplish so much more than we could if we each tried to kick alone!   The expressions of determination on the faces of the kids were delightful!    The children learned so much about themselves and their capabilities, and they went home very proud of their accomplishments.   They were AWESOME!
 
In the second group, I had some fun with the parents, and challenged them to kick for 5 minutes when we had 10 minutes to go.   I could tell by the looks on their faces that they could not believe how hard it was to do even five minutes – we did about 200 kicks – and I loved seeing the way they looked at their children with increased respect and pride as we finished the last five minutes!  

Thanks again for your support!

Our vision is to create a simple self-defense and life-skills curriculum for children that can be easily taught by educators everywhere.

Why? Because not every child can attend martial arts classes, and because most parents could use some help in answering their children’s questions about “what do I do if…” and because learning should be fun!

The name of the foundation is a play onwords – we’re presenting “foundation” skills to the children so that they have the ability to handle the interpersonal challenges that they face everyday. We have applied for non-profit status with the IRS, so your donations will be tax-deductible.

Our current goal is to raise $5000 to create a video about children’s self defense for kids. We currently accept checks made out to “The Foundation of Empowerment” at 7810 Brown Street, Suite 102, Redmond WA 98052 (c/o Aikido Kids!). Thanks for any support you can provide!