2025 Mt. Kisco Dojo Toy Drive & Holiday Party

December 13, 2025

The Mt. Kisco Dojo celebrated the start of the 2025 Holiday Season with our traditional pot luck get together where everyone brings a special dish to share with the rest of the group. It was an amazing collection of delicious appetizers, main dishes & desserts.

Keeping with tradition, the Dojo was nicely decorated with colorful garlands and lights, along with Holiday music playing in the background along with Holiday scenery using the TV monitor. The Dojo was full of animated & fun conversations, good energy, and a strong Dojo Spirit.

While the adults enjoyed the food and each other’s company, Lisa organized a variety of games and activities for the kids, including the whacking of the Pinata, and a fun version of musical chairs using the punching bags on the floor. Amelie helped out with the music, and did a great job. Amazing how much the kids love this activity year after year.

Rafael Algarin, our Dojo Captain, took a moment to review some of the exceptional highlights and project activities for the Mt. Kisco Dojo in 2025, along with a very special thank you Holiday card to Sensei Takahashi for keeping our amazing training going, and our Dojo spirit strong. Solange Valentin, our Dojo Co-Captain, presented our 2025 Dojo Picture (masterfully created by Naoto Kihara). This was followed by a uplifting speech by Sensei Takahashi, who shared his appreciation of those who help with the Dojo, and that we should continue to focus on maintaining our dedication, and keep on training together.

This was another great year for our traditional Holiday Toy Drive, taking a moment to do something for those who are less fortunate. We collected four very full bags of toys and gifts. The donations were made to a local charity, the Open Door Foundation (https://opendoormedical.org/). The Mt. Kisco Dojo is appreciative of our student’s donations, and their thoughtfulness & generosity. This marks the 31th anniversary of the Mt. Kisco Dojo Toy Drive, which represents our continued Dojo spirit of giving during the Holidays.

It was an exceptional day, and everyone had a good time, and it was a great start to the beginning of the Holiday Season. Enclosed below are some additional pictures from Rick… Enjoy the nice memories!