Shawn Murphy
Shawn Murphy Sensei ⋙ Yondan (4th degree black belt)
Shawn Murphy was first introduced to Aikido during a PE class at UC Davis in 1983. After graduating, he trained at Aikido of Mountain View for four years, before taking an 18-year break to travel, get married and have a family. Shawn returned to training in 2006 at Aikido of Santa Cruz and received his Shodan in 2009 and his Sandan in 2017. He is inspired by his teachers Linda Holliday Sensei and Glem Kimoto Sensei, as well as other teachers and sempei at Aikido of Santa Cruz.
Two of Shawn’s favorite Aikido memories are attending the East African friendship seminar in Ethiopia in 2017 and traveling to Shingu Japan with Linda Sensei and fellow students in 2023.
Shawn is a retired solar engineer and enjoys mountain biking, playing the piano, swimming and taking his dog to the beach. He and his wife also travel extensively.