Thank you everyone for your continued support of our school and GoFundMe campaign. Everyone’s contributions have continued to make a difference in our ability to weather this challenging time.
We are working our hardest to bring programs back to life and get Academie Duello back to a place of full health. We still need to hit our fundraising goal to be able to make it through this year. So far we have made it more than halfway! We only need to raise another $35,000 to secure our health to the end of 2020.
This month government programs are coming to an end and we have only been able to return to 30% revenue so far. Your contributions to our campaign, attendance in our programs, and help spreading the word about our school are what is making it possible for us to keep moving forward in spite of significant financial challenges.
What We’re Doing
Over the past few weeks we have continued to make progress in offering new services and gradually re-opening some of our programs.
Novice to Advanced Classes by Donation
For the past several months we have been offering a special Duello Online service to our members that has included online classes, community spaces, weekly lectures, and guest workshops. We are now offering access to this service as a monthly subscription or to individual classes by donation to our GoFundMe campaign.
You can learn all about our classes and our new Duello Online service on our website.
Knight Camp
Our award winning summer camp started up again this week with a reduced capacity and a new set of policies and procedures in place to allow for social distancing while still running a great camp for youth ages 8-14. This year we’re doing a lot of special new things like expanding our archery activities for all levels, adding new arts and crafts, expanding swordplay, and bringing in guests for special presentations on warriors from cultures around the world.
We still have spaces available in August as well as a waitlist for camps in July. Please help spread the word so we can keep Knight Camp alive and thriving.
Learn more about Knight Camp and reserve your space!
Helping Others
Academie Duello is not the only group of people who have been affected by COVID-19 and other challenges in the world. Over the past month we have begun offering special fundraising workshops to help raise money for Academie Duello and other causes that we and our instructors hold dear.
In June I taught an online Two-Sword workshop that raised over $1200 for Academie Duello and The Emergent Fund: People’s Bailout, a charity that directly supports communities of colour, minorities, and indigineous people who have been impacted by the pandemic.
In July, Jennifer Landels the head of Academie Cavallo, taught an online mounted grappling workshop that raised funds for Academie Duello and WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre, a charity that supports cis, trans, Two Spirit and non-binary survivors of sexualized and domestic violence.
Thank you to everyone who supported these events, our school, and these causes.
Outdoor Classes
We are proud to announce that we are now offering outdoor classes on a weekly basis for tuition paying members.
Mondays in East Vancouver at Grandview and Woodland
6pm to 7pm - Rapier for Green & Blue cords, taught by Aaron Lamontagne.
7:30pm to 8:30pm - Longsword for Green & Blue cords, taught by Aaron Lamonagne.
Wednesdays under the Burrard Bridge by the Vancouver Aquatic Centre
6pm to 7pm - Longsword for Blue & Red Cords, taught by Matheus Alfred-Olmedo.
7:30pm to 8:30pm - Rapier for Green & Blue Cords, taught by Ben Davis.
Sundays Open Sparring under the Burrard Bridge by the Vancouver Aquatic Centre
Sundays from 3pm to 6pm - All Disciplines.
Please read our health and safety policy for these classes.
If you are a tuition paying member, register now to join us!
If you are not currently on tuition and would like to return, you can contact our front desk by phone, email, or in person.
Beginners programs are currently available online only but we’re working on plans to return soon!
Archery, Axe Throwing, and Beginner Fundamentals
We are currently working on policies and protocols to allow us to begin offering Archery, Axe Throwing, and Beginner Fundamental Swordplay classes at our downtown location. Our primary goal is to provide these activities in a way that is safe for attendees and staff while providing a great service. We are currently doing the work to create activity specific policies for these offerings. We hope to be able to share new information in the coming weeks. We’re close!
Let’s Get to $75,000
We’re gradually coming back, but it’s not enough. Meeting our fundraising target is going to allow us to pay our rent and our staff for the coming months. Until there is a vaccine we will be running limited numbers of programs and at reduced capacity. We are confident that with your help and through our efforts we can make it into 2021 and on our way to another 15 years in Vancouver.
Thank you for your generosity and support,
Devon Boorman and the Academie Duello Team
Devon Boorman is the Co-Founder and Director of Academie Duello Centre for Swordplay, which has been active in Vancouver, Canada since 2004. Devon’s expertise centres on the Italian swordplay tradition including the arts of the Renaissance Italian rapier, sidesword, and longsword, as well as knife and unarmed techniques. Read more from Devon Boorman.