Joseph Bowen wrote:

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Given these assumptions, I can point to two prime examples of organizations surviving without their chief instructors. First and perhaps best so far is the American Aikido Association. After, Toyota Sensei's unfortunate death (God rest his soul), the technical direction has fallen onto the shoulders of Andrew Sato Sensei (6th Dan) who I might add seems to be doing an excellent job. True, Toyota Sensei's widow is still involved in the administration of the AAA, and Toyota Sensei's son is training to eventually fulfill the top spot of the organization. Will this cause trouble for the AAA? Perhaps. I've only met Sato Sensei, and the Toyota Family on a limited number of occasions, and I am not a member of the AAA, but based on my limited impression of all three of them, I think they'll be alright. They all seem to be level-headed, well-grounded people. ...