Mission

The purpose of Lokahi Ki and Aikido Organization is to serve people.

To give people an opportunity to experience the innate power they naturally have through the principles of coordination of mind and body;

To support people in putting that power into action and experience an expansion of joy, love, harmony, peace and prosperity in their lives; and

To give people an opportunity to create a better world and to contribute to the lives of others.

Head Instructor of Lokahi Ki Aikido

Current Head Instructor Vernon Loo

My Aikido journey began in 1976, when I attended my first class at Leeward Community College under Seichi Tabata Sensei.
In 1977, I traveled to Japan and visited the Ki Society Headquarters in Tokyo, where I met Yamanaka Sensei, one of the head instructors from Honolulu. With his encouragement and support, he later assisted me in preparing for my Shodan and Nidan examinations after my return from Japan.
I first met Koichi Tohei Sensei in August 1978, and again in August 1980, during seminars held in Honolulu. These encounters profoundly shaped my understanding of Ki and the deeper principles of Aikido.
In 1980, I briefly traveled to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to attend aviation school from January to July. Later, I enlisted in the United States Air Force in January 1983, serving until May 1988. During this time, I spent five months in Denver, Colorado, and often traveled to Boulder to train with Kashiwaya Sensei, whose instruction was both welcoming and inspiring.
From June 1983 to September 1986, I was stationed in Hahn, Germany, and later spent time in Las Vegas and Los Angeles before returning to Honolulu in May 1988. Upon returning, I resumed training at Tabata Sensei’s dojo for less than a year. Around that time, Sato Sensei established his own dojo, and I joined him in 1991, practicing with my children for about five years.
Eventually, I felt something missing in that training and began shifting my focus toward my career and continued service in the Air Force Reserves. During this period, my Aikido study became more personal and reflective, guided by Koichi Tohei Sensei’s book ‘Ki in Daily Life’̶a text I first read in 1976 that continues to influence me deeply.
In 2003, I trained with Morimoto Sensei (Aikikai) for about a year. Later, in 2015, I saw an ad in Marukai and joined Aikido Yuishinkai under Maruyama Sensei. After about a year, Chief Instructor James Peters Sensei encouraged me to explore other directions in my Aikido journey.
Returning to practice with Peters Sensei and Maruyama Sensei was refreshing, yet I still felt there was more to discover. Peters Sensei then recommended I visit Naluai Sensei’s dojo. I met Naluai Sensei at the Lokahi Dojo in May 2016, where I trained with Charles Boyer Sensei until his departure in August 2024, after which I became the Head Instructor for Lokahi Ki Society.
Since joining Lokahi Ki Society, my experiences with the Hawaii Ki Federation and training in Japan with Koichi Tohei Sensei’s son, Shinichi Tohei Sensei, have helped me continue to grow, refine my understanding of Ki, and integrate its principles into daily life. In 2024 I was recommended for the rank of Yondan (4th Dan) and Chuden in 2022.

2007-2024 Charles Boyer Former Head Instructor.

Charles Boyer has been the Head Instructor of Lokahi Ki Society since 2007. He spent the first half of his childhood on the East Coast of the US. He spent the rest of his childhood and teenage years living in Mexico City. It was during those years in Mexico that Boyer first became aware that human beings have incredible potential and we can access it through meditation, breathing and other techniques. He began training Ki Aikido in the 1990s in South Carolina with David Shaner Sensei (who at one time was a student at Lokahi) and has been teaching Aikido for nearly twenty years. He holds the rank of 6th Dan Black Belt in Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido Kai. Boyer moved to Oahu and joined Lokahi in 2003. He has traveled extensively throughout the Hawaiian islands and to the US mainland, Japan and Europe to train and assist in Ki Aikido seminars. He currently serves as the Board President for the Hawaii Ki Federation.

Senior Advisor of Lokahi Ki Aikido

Clayton Naluai (February 27, 1937 – January 6, 2021)

For over fifty years now I have been a student of Master Koichi Tohei, Founder of Ki Society International. In the early 1970’s, I was one of the Founders of Lokahi Ki Society, and served as its Head Instructor for many years. I now serve as Senior Advisor and currently hold the rank of 7th Dan Black Belt in Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido. For over five decades, throughout the USA, I have dedicated myself to creating programs for people to experience the spiritual power they naturally have through the unification of Mind and Body. On a personal note, I am married, and I’ve been blessed with 5 children, 14 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren. The eldest of six children, our parents raised us with the values of faith, love , service, and discipline. These characteristics were ingrained in us all throughout our upbringing. I’ve also been blessed with a successful business career. For 23 of those years I sang and entertained with the famous musical group, “The Surfers.” We learned our skills from the best of the entertainment world and were fortunate enough to work with some of the greats like Elvis Presley, Red Skelton, Jimmy Durante, Jerry Lewis, Don Ho and many more. I hope to support you in putting the power you naturally posses into action so you may experience an expansion of harmony, joy, and Love in your daily life, to give you an opportunity to create a better world and contribute to the lives of others.

Chief Instructor of the Hawaii Ki Federation

Christopher Curtis (June 23, 1944  –  June 9, 2023)

Curtis Sensei was born in 1944 in Upland, California, and grew up on a ranch in Northern California. After graduating from Carnegie Mellon University with a degree in Theatre Arts, he worked as an actor for several years in New York City. It was here that he had his first encounter with Aikido. In 1969 he received personal instruction from Yoshimitsu Yamada Sensei, a student of Koichi Tohei Sensei, while preparing for a role with the Open Theatre. This first exposure to Koichi Tohei Sensei’s teaching left a deep impression upon him. Even though he was experiencing a successful career in the New York theatre, he was very dissatisfied with the lack of depth in his personal life. At the age of 25, he “retired” from acting and play writing, and moved to the hills of California, where he lived alone and concentrated on meditation and self-development for several years.

In 1972, Curtis moved to Maui, Hawaii and there encountered Aikido once again. He began training in 1974, with his teacher, the late Shinichi Suzuki Sensei. As Suzuki Sensei’s otomo, Curtis accompanied Suzuki Sensei as he traveled to teach seminars in Japan, throughout the United States, South America, and Europe. Through the years he has trained with Koichi Tohei Sensei in Japan on many occasions, attending World Camp annually, as well as special training sessions.

In January, 2000 Curtis Sensei was appointed as Chief Instructor of the State of Hawaii by Tohei Sensei. Then in the fall of 2001, he was awarded the rank of “Okuden” by Tohei Sensei in Japan. Tohei Sensei has also recognized Curtis Sensei as an official Ki Lecturer.

Curtis Sensei is the author of three books, Ki-Aikido on Maui (2001), Letting Go – Talks on Aikido (2008), and Otomo which were both published by MAKS Publishing. Letting Go is featured in monthly “Ki Talks” and podcasts at the Shunshinkan dojo. The podcasts can be downloaded at Curtis Sensei’s blog.