Shihan Tony Butler, 5th Dan, lives by and teaches to the hundreds of children in his program "Faith, Focus and Follow Through." The power of these words has created one of the largest youth programs within the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU). Not to mention the National and World Champion athletes Shihan Butler has produced!

Shihan, began his 38 – year affiliation with the martial arts in 1967 as a student of the World Seido Karate Organization headed by Tadashi Nakamura. His commitment to the art is without question. Shihan's pioneering efforts to bring the martial arts to youngsters has drawn hundreds of children into the study of karate.

Shihan Butler and the AIJK organization have been members of the AAU since 1993. The AAU honored Shihan Butler in both 1999 and 2000 and he has received various community awards for his outstanding service and achievements. Shihan was honored as an Educator of the week thru WNYT in 2006 and featured in the Metroland in November 2006 and recognized as a local hero in the Metroland in December 2006.

The Albany Council of the Traditional Karate-Do Organization Inc., Inc (AC-TKO) is a non-profit organization that was established to enable the youth of our community to develop self-esteem, discipline, and the self-knowledge, which allows each and every one of us to prosper and achieve personal goals.

Shihan Tony Butler Jr. founded AIJK in 1990. In 2005, Shihan Butler along with Mr. Joseph Sorce expanded the program by creating AC-TKO to instill integrity, discipline and a sense of self-worth in the youth they are mentoring. Their vision is to form a positive community based organization, which reaches out to the youth in the Capital Region community. Six days a week and on any given Sunday, you will find Shihan training, teaching and working hard with his students, giving personal attention to all.

This non-profit club, is a labor of love and consists of over 300 students. Together, Shihan Butler and Mr. Sorce stress the importance of education as an integral factor of the learning and growing process.

Each year students from the dojo attend competitions from the Regional and National level, as well as World Competitions. Shihan Butler has two students who are currently World Champions, Brandon Abdullah and Kristen Dawson. In the 2006, Amateur Athletic Union Karate National Championships in Miami, Florida, our team of 38 athletes took 60 Gold, Silver and Bronze medals as well as three (3) Grand Champion trophies. At the AAU Karate Nationals our school was recognized as #5 in the country! It is the hope of Shihan Butler and Mr. Sorce to bring the AAU Karate National Championships to the Capital Region in 2008, which would encompass anywhere from 1,500 to 2,500 athletes.