Our Instructors
Linda Holiday
Nanadan (7th degree black belt) began training in Aikido in 1970
Linda Holiday, 7th dan, is the chief instructor of Aikido of Santa Cruz. For over 40 years, she has devoted herself to teaching and developing Aikido in Santa Cruz. She is a senior teacher of Aikido in the West, and the author of the book Journey to the Heart of Aikido: The Teachings of Motomichi Anno Sensei.
In 1970, in the early years of Aikido in America, Linda began her study of Aikido as a first-year student at the University of California, Santa Cruz. In 1973, she moved to Japan to receive instruction from the generation of Japanese Aikido teachers who had studied directly with the founder of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei. She was one of the first Westerners to live in the remote Kumano area of Japan, the birthplace of O-Sensei, and undertake rigorous physical and spiritual practice there. She trained in Japan for several years, studying Aikido and Japanese language, culture, and traditional practices. Those early years of shugyo (intensive training) in Japan inspired Linda Sensei to dedicate her life to the martial art, spiritual discipline, and profound path of peace that is Aikido.
Glen Kimoto Sensei
Rokudan (6th degree black belt) began training in Aikido in 1969
“I started Aikido in 1969 with Robert Frager Sensei and Frank Doran Sensei in Santa Cruz. Delightfully, they have continued to be my teachers and my source of inspiration. Along the way I have been very fortunate to receive instruction from Stan Pranin Sensei, Jack Wada Sensei, Mary Heiny Sensei and Motomichi Anno Sensei. Anno Sensei has made many visits to the Santa Cruz Summer Retreat and has been a major influence on my aikido and my personal growth.
At the beginning of my Aikido journey, I was motivated solely by a desire to become proficient in the physical art. That attitude was an outgrowth of previous training as well as my personal mindset. Fortunately, after a few years of Aikido, it became very clear that ‘true victory’ was not physical. My journey along the Path continues.”