Community Programs

Adapted Seido Karate (ASK)

By combining the strengths and resources of Thousand Waves and the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab, we’ve been able to create a highly successful Adapted Seido Karate (ASK) Program within the Caring for Kids sport and recreation program. The program is coordinated by a dynamic team led by Senpai Sam Boyer. Classes meet Sunday afternoons from 1-2:30 at the Drucker Center, 1535 N. Dayton in Chicago, and are open to children with a physical disability between the ages of 5 and 17. Enrollment is handled by the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab – for more information, please contact Ashley Gruenwald at agruenwald@sralab.org. Thousand Waves members interested in volunteering with the program should contact Senpai Sam Boyer.

Thousand Waves Peacemaker Award

In 2009, we initiated the Peacemaker Award to acknowledge and publicly honor the courage, commitment and hard work it takes to prevent, stop or reduce violence. Thousand Waves peacemakers are people who challenge the prevailing culture and get involved in stopping violence. They decide to be allies to others who are in conflict. In the spirit of one wave setting thousands in motion, the Thousand Waves Peacemaker Award honors the individual in order to expand our understanding and commitment to violence prevention. Past awardees’ work has been far-ranging, including children intervening to stop harassment of their friends and academics working on issues of violence. To nominate an individual for a Thousand Waves Peacemaker Award send an email to info@thousandwaves.org.

Scholarship Program

Thousand Waves is committed to expanding access to all of our programs and to serving diverse communities. In support of this goal, a scholarship fund financed by individual donations as well as fundraising events has been in place since 1990. Since that time, the fund has distributed close to $400,000 in direct tuition assistance, both to individuals seeking to train at our Center and to non-profit community organizations, allowing them to sponsor trainings for staff or clients.

Violence Prevention Public Resources

To further our mission of educating the public on violence prevention, self-defense, and wellness, Thousand Waves offers a series of free and downloadable public resources. From our popular “Five Fingers of Self-Defense” overview, to guidance on dealing with harassment, to stress management techniques, you will find a variety of resources which we invite you to use and share with others.

Self-Defense

Thousand Waves has been designing and implementing practical and effective self-defense programs since 1985. Our self-defense programming is designed to teach concrete mental, physical, and social skills that will help participants move through the world with less fear and more confidence. We use the Five Fingers of Self-Defense (Think, Yell, Run, Fight, and Tell) to teach people how to accurately assess their risk and respond to violence before it escalates, while also teaching physical techniques to defend against direct physical and sexual assault. Classes are a mix of group discussion, role plays, and physical drills and activities. Our goal is to reduce both the prevalence and the harm of violence.

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If your preferred day and time is not available, please call 773.472.7663.

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       ◊ Little Kicks are 4-5 years old. Little Kick classes are 30 minutes in length;
       ◊ Juniors are 6 years old thru 2nd grade; classes are 45 minutes in length;
       ◊ Youth are entering kids 3rd grade in Fall 2021 thru 11 years old;
       ◊ Teens 12-14 may train in Youth classes and Teen & Adult classes (while paying child rates);
       ◊ Teens 15-17 train in the Teen & Adult white belt classes and Adult color belt classes (while paying child rates);
       ◊ Youth and Teen classes are one hour (in person) and 45 min (virtual).




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        Self-Defense