As many of you know, Paul, our third longest standing member, died on 8th October.
Since joining MADA in 1976 he has been a constant in the club, everyone knew Paul and everyone will have particular memories of him. Current members have described him as a lovely man, a great guy, kind, and a character. He was all of these things. Paul had his own style of practise and some interesting attacks as well. Anyone who practised with him had to be on the alert. As Rick said "I will always remember him on the mat with that glint in his eye saying "I don't do it like that"."
The club owes Paul a debt of gratitude for introducing us to Alan Ruddock. Paul used to do a lot of business on the Isle of Man, and eventually had a house there. He then found Alan's club and started practising there. It was there that he gained the nickname 'The Gripper' of which he was rather fond. In 2000 Paul arranged for Alan to come and give us a course. He and Elaine generously had him, and some other aikidoka from the Isle of Man, to stay with them. Not only that but they invited club members to meet Alan at their house. They did this every year from then on until Alan's death.
Despite being diagnosed with Alzheimer's, Paul continued to practise aikido. Thanks to Neil, he was able to get Monday practise even when he had stopped driving. He only ceased to practise when we went into lockdown in March 2020. Many of us felt that aikido kept Paul going.
There are many photos of Paul in this news section. Do look back at them and remember a special club member.
