Doshu Kisshomaru Ueshiba's Visit to the Aikido Club of Atlanta on April 19, 1974

By Lamar Sanders, Columbia Aikikai, Columbia, SC
lamarsanders823@sc.rr.com

I was a hydroologist for the U. S. Geological Survey for 43 years, and have been a hydraulic engineer for the South Carolina Department of Transportation for 4 years. I began Aikido in Atlanta in 1972. I studied with Rodney Grantham from 1972-79, Clyde Takeguchi and Gordon Sakamoto in Washington, DC, 1979-84, and have been sensei of Columbia Aikikai in Columbia, SC since 1984.

Sensei Rodney Grantham founded the Aikido Center of Atlanta in Atlanta, Georgia, around 1966. As far as I know, this was the first Aikido school in Georgia. Other pioneers of Aikido were Sensei Tom Walker of Titusville, Florida and Sensei Ed Baker of Orlando, Florida. Sensei Clyde Takeguchi founded a school in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina only a few years later.

Sensei Rodney Grantham began studying and competing in Judo while in the Navy in Japan, more than 20 years before beginning his study of Aikido in Atlanta. He was introduced to Aikido by being uke for Sensei Koichi Tohei in a demonstration. Rodney was the ranking Judoka in Atlanta and was therefore selected to be Sensei Tohei's uke. Rodney was initially taught by an Aikidoist in the Air Force who would visit Atlanta from his base in South Georgia, and Rodney would regularly attend seminars taught by Sensei Yamada.

Sensei Grantham was a water quality expert and I was a hydraulic engineer with the US Geological Survey in Atlanta, in 1972. I was 31 years old then, and interested in learning a martial art for self defense. I found out that Rodney did some kind of martial art, so I walked into his office and asked him what he taught. He said, "Oh, this". And I was up on my toes from sankyo, and then down on my knees from nikyo in a second! He invited me to watch a class, and he and Lynn Garland were doing break falls out of shihonage. Lynn Garland was an army officer and charter member and founder of the school. I at once decided to learn Aikido, no matter how long it took. That was how I came to be there when Doshu Kisshomaru Ueshiba came to Atlanta in 1974.

Sensei Yamada was the first Japanese I ever saw in my life (around 1972 or 1973). Around April 19, 1974, he brought Doshu Kisshomaru Ueshiba, Suganuma Sensei(Doshu's uke for the trip), Sensei Kanai, and Sensei Harvey Konigsberg. Sensei Ed Baker from Orlando, Florida and Sensei Tom Walker of Titusville, Florida, who were Aikido pioneers in Florida, also attended. Sensei George Jensen also attended, all the way from Little Rock, Arkansas.

As can be seen by the photographs, we all formally welcomed and honored Doshu Kisshomaru at the airport, and presented gifts.

My memory of Doshu Kisshomaru is of a small man, utterly at peace with himself, graceful and effective on the mat, and having very thick, strong wrists and forearms. At one time he performed hanmi-handachi katatetori shihonage on me. It was the version where nage traps uke's wrist against nageÕs wrist in semi-nikyo lock, and I remember having to smartly move backwards away up on my tiptoes behind Doshu for the fall.

The black and white pictures presented here were all taken with my camera. Below, I have provided a description of the people in the photographs.

Left to right, Sensei Ed Baker, Sensei Yamada, Doshu Kisshomaru Ueshiba,