Congratulations to Sensei Shane Baker (TSMA Cherry Hill) on his recent promotion to 3rd degree black belt!
Opening Thoughts From Sensei Marchand
Any promotion ceremony at Tiger Schulmann’s is an honorable one. Whether a student is receiving their first stripe or an instructor who is being presented with a higher belt – the prestige is all the same. There are two integral parts to any ceremony; the presenter and the recipient – if you’ve been on either side of this tradition, you know what a distinct privilege it is to participate.
For Sensei Marchand, the promotion of Sensei Baker provided a challenge. Considering the two instructors didn’t come from the same school, or share the instructor-student relationship that is most common in belt ceremonies, Sensei Marchand had to do his homework to REALLY get to know Sensei Baker.
“Your past to me is very important, because your past is what defines who you are today.” – Sensei Mike Marchand
Shane’s Journey
After graduating, he began to train part-time at the Feasterville school, which eventually led to helping out at the school and he soon realized that martial arts instructing was his calling. He continued at Feasterville until he joined Sensei Alexander and took over the Cherry Hill location, within a year’s time he was owner and head instructor. Shane continues to train, teach and fight too! He continues to keep at grappling events (NAGA) and has a record of 4-0 in kickboxing.
