from the December, 2010 issue of Kiai!

Welcome New TW Board Members!

This fall we elected four new members to the Thousand Waves board of directors for the 2011-2013 term.  We are so grateful to Michele Curley, Carolyn Master, Sophie Michals, and Lauren Schwendimann for stepping into this vital volunteer role!

Michele will serve as co-chair along with Katie Speth and Denise Coleman for the 2011 Spirit Challenge, while continuing her volunteer work with Jim Winfrey to coordinate our two annual dojo clean-ups and her teaching in the Adapted Seido Karate program. Carolyn will work with Jean Petersen on Member Relations and Volunteer Coordination.  She has some great ideas on special events to draw new members into the community which we look forward to exploring.

Sophie and Lauren will serve on the Marketing Committee, helping our ongoing quest to boost adult membership.  Lauren will also work with us on a lobby redesign to better accommodate parents and children in the busy afternoon hours. While Michele, Carolyn, Sophie and Lauren are new to the board, they are not new to Thousand Waves, and chances are you know them. Besides actively training, they also have generously and repeatedly volunteered their time in recent years.

To those board members stepping down – we cannot thank you enough for your dedicated service: Kristen Klecker, Diane Miller, Scott Rapacz, and Margarita Saona. 

Michele Curley
Michele kept getting injured during marathon training and her doctor suggested she strengthen her core. In October of 2008 she started taking Thousand Waves’ fitness class faithfully twice a week. After successfully training for and completing the Boston Marathon in 2009, she decided to add Seido Karate to her life. She accepted a position on the Board of Directors in November 2010 to give back to what she considers an extremely unique martial arts community.  The few hours that Michele is not at Thousand Waves, she's teaching Italian at Leyden High School.

Carolyn Master
Carolyn's martial journey began with a self-defense course at Brooklyn Women's Martial Arts (as it was known in 1993).  From her first board break, she was hooked. Carolyn has now been training at Thousand Waves for ten years and hopes to continue training for at least another 25! Carolyn joined the Board of Directors in November 2010 in an effort to give back as much to Thousand Waves as she has received. When not training or volunteering at Thousand Waves, Carolyn works as massage therapist and as a musician.

Sophie Michals
Sophie started training in Seido Karate in early 2006. Throughout her years of training, she has volunteered for Spirit Challenge, Punch & Kick-a-Thon, and the Marketing Committee. Joining the board seemed the next natural step. Sophie has worked as an editor in advertising and educational publishing since the mid-1990s. She spends her free time making up baked-goods recipes, employing friends and family as test subjects for her creations.

Lauren Schwendimann
Lauren came to Thousand Waves through its popular 12-hour self-defense class. Once she enrolled in the course she immediately felt welcomed into the Thousand Waves community. In April 2009 she began training in Seido Karate. Lauren first saw the practice as a new athletic challenge, but it quickly became more as her practice added new richness and meaning to her life. With hopes of deepening connections to fellow members and serving the organization, Lauren joined Thousand Waves’ Board of Directors in November of 2010. When not kicking and punching, Lauren designs mobile applications for Motorola’s Android smart phones and enjoys playing dodgeball. 

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