Category Archives: Events

Events, Scenes

Videos from Meridian Challenge of Arms 2017

Videos courtesy Lady Raven Helmsplitter

Don Lazarus Gauge vs Maestro David Twynham

 

Don Lazarus Gauge vs Nikoslav Mikaelovich

 

Don Lazarus Gauge vs Master Wistric Oftun

 

Captain Marquette Hildebrand vs Captain Davio de la Rouge

 

Master Wistric Oftun vs Don Lazarus Gauge (finals)

Announcements, Society ANNOUNCEMENTS

Call for Contributions for Baronial Newsletter “The Read Tower”

Unto the populace of the Barony of South Downs does Lady Raven Helmsplitter, Baronial Chronicler, send greetings!

Are you a writer? an artist? a fighter? Do you have knowledge to share with your Barony? You are invited to share your skills and talent with your Barony by contributing to our NEW quarterly newsletter (working title: The Read Tower)…

I’d like to use this newsletter to focus on the talents of South Downs and use reprinted articles or stock images or clip art sparingly if at all. All work will be properly credited and be accompanied by appropriate Society release forms, which can be found in the Files section on the Facebook Barony of South Downs group, or here: http://kingdom.meridies.org/index.php/offices/chronicler

What sort of content am I looking for?

  • Visual artists:
    • Cover illustrations (scalable to 8.5 x 11”)
    • Banners or page borders;
    • Illustrations or photographs to contribute to articles, etc.;
    • marginalia or a set of initial letters to add to an article…
  • Writers:
    • Baronial officers and guilds – there is space available for a column of your choosing; potential topics could include:
      • Highlight a project your group is working on
      • Discuss news the Barony will find useful
      • Share some history of the barony or your guild.
    • General populace – potential topics could include:
      • Articles on improving your garb, or camping or fighting kits;
      • Research you may be working on for a particular A+S topic;
      • Writeup (and illustrations) of a class you may have taught – we can include links to handouts;
      • Recipes (is the South Downs Supper Club still active?);
      • Recent baronial events, from an attendee’s point of view
      • An interview with a member of the Barony – “Ten Questions with…?” (currently working on compiling a list of questions)
    • Article length should be approx. 250-500 words to keep everything accessible. If you have something that is longer, we can work something out – perhaps split up the article into chapters to be published over multiple issues?

I’d like to develop a library of artwork and non-event-specific articles to draw from for future issues, and perhaps even form the base for specific theme issues.

Please don’t hesitate to ask questions – I’m looking forward to working with all of you to get this newsletter going! Please send your contributions to me at mawrtyr88@gmail.com

First deadline for contributions: Friday, March 10, 2017 (before everyone leaves for Gulf Wars), for the First Quarter 2017 issue.

Thanks!
Raven

Meeting Minutes, Society ANNOUNCEMENTS

January Baronial Business Meeting Minutes

South Downs Baronial Business Meeting

4 January 2017, 7:30pm

Atlanta Friends Meeting House

Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter (mka Helena Bretherton Hay), South Downs Chronicler.

Lord Lucien d’Artois – our new Herald – called the meeting to order.

Officer Reports

  • Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
    • Mentioned plans for newsletter
      • Plans to publish it quarterly, first issue (hopefully) end of March
      • Seeking artists, writers, photographers for content – would like to show what we are doing as a barony, and offer as much original content as possible
      • Baronial officers and marshals are welcome to contribute content – A+S Salon, Marshals’ Column, etc.
      • Other content ideas: articles from guilds; event summaries (with photos); recipes (does the South Downs Supper Club still exist?); How To Improve Your Fighting or Camping Kit; etc.
      • Articles should be ~250 words (about one page)
      • More information (including links to release forms) forthcoming, both on South Dows website (here) and Facebook group
      • Oh, and we need a title for the newsletter – ideas welcome!
  • Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
    • Practices are going well! We continue to have practices Tuesday evenings and Sunday afternoons (weather and event schedule permitting).
    • We have a new winter practice location for Tuesday evenings, at Gerrick’s house in Peachtree Corners, with a backup at Brendan’s office warehouse.
    • For the latest info on practice status, check Atlanta SCA Fighting group on Facebook.
    • THL Mathias took care of the insurance paperwork so we can have our practices where we need to have them.
  • Webminister (Master Wistric Oftun)
    • We have a website! Midwinter A+S has a website! Yay!
  • Herald (Lord Lucien d’Artois)
    • Submissions – Devices
      • Bram Halfdannarson – passed Kingdom
  • Chatelaine (Lady Stella di Silvestri)
    • We have had some new people show up and they’re coming back, yay!
  • Arts & Sciences (Lady Veronica da Lucca)
    • December was a great month! THL Mathias taught a great class on singing.
    • A+S competition season has started. Mistresses Allesandra and Sunneva will again offer their class on the basics of entering an A+S competition, including feedback, how do judges review work, what the judging sheets are all about, etc., just in time for Stella Nova at Midwinter A+S.
  • Reeve (THL Maire Dhocair Inghean Chairain)
    • We have money! What shall we do with some of it? (See below!)
  • Their Excellencies
    • Scribal nights continue to be held on the first Monday of the month at Their Excellencies’ home.
    • Her Excellency Adela is planning on attending Black Gryphon (17-19 February) – if you are interested in carpooling or caravaning, please contact her
    • This year’s Meridian Knowne Worlde social is on Saturday night (edit: rumors abound that it may been moved earlier in the week, but I currently can’t find confirmation); Lady Ysmay and Sir Tim are running it and seek volunteers
    • More Gulf Wars: there is an open call for advertisements – events, non-merchanting announcements, etc., are sought out
    • There will again be a volunteer raffle at Gulf Wars! Volunteers can earn points for their local group (South Downs!) and raffle tickets to score lovely prizes!
    • Opening day procession is likely Tuesday morning of War Week. We would like to have banners made for procession, should have 8 total (6 new?) in time
  • Seneschal (THL Mathias Blackett)
    • Midwinter A+S is coming! Now is the time to write recommendations for deserving gentles, as Crown will be attending! Mathias reminded everyone that if you are not 100% sure that a person has a particular award check the Meridian Order of Precedence – you would be surprised at the awards people deserve but DONT HAVE.
    • War College will be held in Alabama the same weekend as Midwinter A+S
  • Armored Marshal (Lord Robert Throckmorton)
    • Fighting classees at Midwinter? Check with Lord Robert if you need support for your class

 

Upcoming Events

  • Bryn Madoc Twelfth Night (7 January 2017)
    • There will be fighting! Classes! Feasting! (Twelfth Night feast is potluck – check FB event page or website (below) for details)
    • Event website
  • Midwinter Arts + Sciences (3-5 February 2017)
    • We should start looking for closer-in event sites where we can hold MWA+S and we can spread out; weekend event with A+S on Saturday and fighting on Sunday at the same site, for example
    • Entry deadline for Stella Nova @ is coming up
    • We have a whopping 2 reservations (!!!) please pre-reg!
    • We have 11 teachers, looking for more – talk to Lady Veronica if you are interested
    • We need volunteers for troll, people to put up and take down directional signs. Master Ximon has volunteered to take care of the street signs
    • We need volunteers for setup, who can be on site early Saturday morning early. Because the site is not secure, it is recommended we set up Saturday morning (6:30-7:00am) instead of Friday night. Several people volunteered.
    • There is no official floor plan, but we’d love to have one set up for reference (chronicler’s note: there is now a simple one on the event program)
    • The Meridian Order of the Blade will sponsor a fundraiser lunch – stew, drink, cookies for $5. There was discussion about where can lunch be set up, especially if weather is bad?
    • We have two merchants already requesting space, we could possibly fit as many as 4 on the first floor merchants area, with maybe a couple more on a different floor
    • Please contact Zeliha if you would like to pre-register
    • Anyone interested in volunteering, please contact Lord Pietro
    • Will there be a regional practice on Sunday, since War College will be the same weekend? Unlikely, but we will still have our regular practice that Sunday
  • Kingdom-Level Events for 2017
    • Bids for Red Tower and Castle Wars are due in April to encourage newer autocrats to step up – it’s never too early to put a bid together for these events!
    • Iazzie has offered to co-autocrat to help teach/supervise a newer autocrat
    • Red Tower (7 October 2017) – potential site is Booker T Washington Park in Chattanooga (where Crown Lyst was held).
      • We would need to put reservation in with 50% deposit. It’s a relatively expensive site with weird pricing structure, but we have the resources to give it a shot. Payoff could be HUGE
      • Bacon Bash is not a conflict in 2017
      • Duke John expressed concern that we have to go out of state for an event. Where else can we get a large cabin site for such events? We are always looking for closer-in sites, but there aren’t many that could handle an event this size.

 

Other SCA Business

  • THL Andreva and Mistress Jadi will host an A+S project night on the 2nd Thursday of the month (a week from tomorrow)
  • Margavati asked if anyone was planning on/interested in going to Trimaris’ A+S event this weekend?
  • Maire has completed taking over the baronial storage unit, and will have sign in/out sheets for all supplies to help keep track of everything
  • This year’s Streets Alive! is gearing up – Abel is coordinating, so stay tuned! Last year was a ton of fun, try to plan for it this year!

 

Non-SCA Business

  • Lord Bram will be taking part in Battle of the Nations as part of a 21 person team. The event will be in Barcelona – immediately, several people offered to serve as translator, crew, managers, etc. Because Barcelona 🙂
  • Secret Santa gifts were then exchanged among the populace

 

All the business issues having been addressed, the business meeting was closed.

Next South Downs business meeting will be held Wednesday, 4 January 2017, at the Atlanta Friends Meeting House.

Happy holidays!

–Raven

Castle Wars, Events, Meeting Minutes, Midwinter A&S

December Baronial Business Meeting Minutes

South Downs Baronial Business Meeting

7 December 2016, 7:30pm

Atlanta Friends Meeting House

Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter (mka Helena Bretherton Hay), South Downs Chronicler.

THL Bjorn called the meeting to order.

Officer Reports

  • Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
    • Nothing to report
  • Herald (THL Bjorn Gullharr)
    • Submissions – Devices
      • Iastreb Desislavich – passed Kingdom
      • Stella di Silvestri – returned from Kingdom
    • Court Reports
      • Castle Wars – Royal Court
        • Pietro di Conti – AoA
      • Castle Wars – Baronial Court
        • Wistric Oftun – Tower Or
        • Veronica de Lucca – Tower Or
        • Alisandre Ysabeau de la Chapelle – Baronial Arts Champion
    • Bjorn announced that he will be stepping down as South Downs herald, and Lucien d’Artois will step up as the new Baronial Herald. Bjorn got a big round of applause in gratitude for all his work.
  • Arts & Sciences (Lady Veronica da Lucca)
    • Mistress Allesandra taught a very well-received class last week on A+S submissions. There is a lot of interest in offering it again before Midwinter A+S, with more time before the event so everyone would have time to make adjustments to their A+S entries.
    • Allesandra is interested in teaching a class in January (topic TBD)
    • THL Mattias would like to teach a class on performing arts (discussion with Veronica will ensue)
    • Will there be an open A+S competition at MW, or just Stella Nova? As of now, there isn’t other A+S planned, but perhaps there should be to encourage non-beginners?
  • Webminister (Master Wistric Oftun)
    • We have a website!
  • Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
    • We continue to have practices Tuesday evenings and Sunday afternoons (weather and event schedule permitting).
    • We have a new winter practice location for Tuesday evenings, at Gerrick’s house in Peachtree Corners, with a backup at Brendan’s office warehouse.
    • For the latest info on practice status, check Atlanta SCA Fighting group on Facebook!
    • Wistric was named QRC at Magna Faire; everyone laughed that he will have to stand up in court again
  • Reeve (THL Maire Dhocair Inghean Chairain)
    • Final numbers from Castle Wars – $5739.60 profit (more to follow in post-mortem)
    • Numbers are also available from Gulf Wars (need to get info from Maire)
    • We really need to look at where we should spend money for the Barony – conversation and plans are ongoing. Ximon suggested that we devote some time at next month’s meeting for proposals, etc.
    • We need to look at reducing/not increasing charges for events next year; we were quite fortunate in how we were charged for site rentals, etc. will discuss this further at January’s meeting.
    • Shower trailers for events at the Castle Wars site were suggested
    • Iastreb bought one of the pavilions we discussed previously and brought it to Crown. Was quite pleased with it, we could easily use 5 more.
  • Their Excellencies
    • Scribal nights that have been held on first Thursdays will now be on the first Monday of the month at Their Excellencies’ home.
    • The populace is encourage to write recommendation letters for those who they find inspiring – Midwinter is coming! Matthias reminded everyone that if you are not 100% sure that a person has a particular award check the Meridian Order of Precedence – you would be surprised at the awards people deserve but DONT HAVE.
  • Chatelaine (Lady Stella di Silvestri)
    • We have had some new people show up at 5th Wednesday social and/or went to magna faire, yay!
  • Armored Marshal (Lord Robert Throckmorton)
    • We had two injuries at Castle Wars
    • War Practice to be held Saturday, 10 December, in the shire of Depedale; likely SD practice Sunday as usual.

 

Recent Events

  • Castle Wars (17-20 November 2016) Post Mortem
    • Note: There is a more detailed analysis of the event compiled by CW staff. Please check with Wistric if you’d like to see it (Google Docs)
    • Pros
      • Live weapons field adjacent to rapier/armored was a big hit!
      • We had approximately an extra 100 people likely from Richard RaeFen’s memorial; would like to get the attendance numbers without the sad circumstances that increase attendance this year.
      • Having feast hall/tent available all weekend to hang out in was a great gathering spot
      • Excellent merchant turnout
      • Wistric has supply suggestions/needs for future
      • Feast was amazing, we should do it again! First Castle Wars feast in many years
      • Revel was excellent, but Justina stressed about the timing between court/memorial/feast/revel
  • Cons
    • Bulk of problems occurred during load-in
    • FIRE ANTS! Thorough fire ant treatment would cost $300 (suggested schedule: month before, 2 weeks before, and day before)
    • We need to address needing help to set up/staff/strike
      • Discussion about where to get more volunteers – within barony? encourage other groups? we should look at models of other large kingdom/interkingdom events
      • We go to other events to have a good time, we should make sure things are taken care of so others can have a good time. more service at our own events
      • Autocrats need to be more aggressive in recruiting volunteers
      • We need to develop culture where everyone is expected to help out in some way
      • We should work on how to get information out about what is needed
      • How to build rapport with other groups to coordinate service?
    • Traveler’s fare – there was confusion about whether it was being offered Thursday night (it wasn’t, but communication can be clearer about it)? Friday night kitchen tech failed. REMINDER – these were all experimental, hadn’t done at previous CW events. Overall, it was much appreciated.
    • With the drought and the high winds during the weekend, there was confusion about the burn ban.
    • Information point needs to be out on the field, not (just) at Troll

 

Upcoming Events

  • Bryn Madoc Twelfth Night (7 January 2017)
  • Midwinter Arts + Sciences (3-5 February 2017)
    • Need teachers for classes! Matthias will teach heraldry 101; Mariana has offered to teach a course as well
    • War college on same weekend – should contact HRM to suggest it perhaps there’s a better weekend to assign it into kingdom law than the same weekend as MW
  • Kingdom-Level Events for 2017
    • Bids for Red Tower and Castle Wars are due in April to encourage newer autocrats to step up – it’s never too early to put a bid together for these events!
    • Iazzie has offered to co-autocrat to help teach/supervise a newer autocrat
    • Red Tower (7 October 2017) – potential site is Booker T Washington Park in Chattanooga (where Crown Lyst was held).
      • We would need to put reservation in with 50% deposit. It’s a relatively expensive site with weird pricing structure, but we have the resources to give it a shot. Payoff could be HUGE
      • Bacon Bash is not a conflict in 2017
      • Duke John expressed concern that we have to go out of state for an event. Where else can we get a large cabin site for such events? We are always looking for closer-in sites, but there aren’t many that could handle an event this size.

 

Other SCA Business

  • Secret Santa! gift exchange will be at January business meeting

 

Non-SCA Business

  • Mattias and Mistress Mara just bought a house – housewarming party on 12/23!

 

All the business issues having been addressed, the business meeting was closed.

Next South Downs business meeting will be held Wednesday, 4 January 2017, at the Atlanta Friends Meeting House.

Happy holidays!

–Raven

Events, Red Tower

Red Tower Schedule

From Mathias Blackett, the Event Steward:

Friday September 30th

5pm – Site opens

7pm – Traveler’s fare available

Sunset – Bardic circle, Cock & Feather tavern

 

Saturday October 1st

7:30am – Breakfast

9:30am – armor inspection

10am-12:30pm – A&S classes

10:30am – Red Tower heavy tournament begins

10:30am – Red Tower rapier tournament begins

10:30am-Noon – Archery/Thrown weapons range opens for open practice

Noon – Fundraiser lunch provided

During lunch – Court at Their Majesties’ discretion

1pm-5pm – A&S Classes continue

1pm – Baron’s Prize tournament (Rapier)

1pm – Baroness’s Prize tournament (Heavy)

1pm-2:30 – Royal Round (Archery)

2:30pm – Heavy/Rapier crossover tournament

2:30pm-4:30pm – Bridesmaid tourney & Weapons Master Qualifications (Archery and Thrown)

5:30pm – Court at Their Excellencies’ discretion

7pm – Feast

Following feast – revel, bardic circle, gaming tavern

 

Sunday October 2nd

7:30am – Breakfast

11:00am – site closes

Announcements, Events, Red Tower

Red Tower update

Alisandre, the camp mistress for South Downs, asks that people planning to camp with South Downs at Red Tower report in on the barony Facebook page.

Mathias, the event steward, has announced the feast menu for Red Tower:

The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi (1570) Master Cook

Prepared by Grand Chef Mariana Cristina Tirado de Aragon

Course I
Italian Cheeses
Beef Croquettes-vinegar, pepper, salt, fennel, beef, eggs, cinnamon, parsley, garlic
Fruits- pears, grapes, and plums
Bread-flour, salt, butter, rosewater, eggs

Course II
Mushroom Soup-mushrooms, olive oil, onions, pepper, raisins, verjuice, cinnamon, saffron, herbs (parsley, thyme, sage) almonds
Parsnips- parsnips, butter, garlic, walnuts, almonds, parsley, garlic, ginger
Lamb- pork fat, onions, verjuice, common spices (galingale, ginger, cardamom), prunes, cherries
Flaky Pastry-flour, almond milk, sugar, rosewater, salt, olive oil, cinnamon, wine cooked raisins, pine nuts

Course III
Roasted Chicken-chicken, pork fat, orange juice
Broccoli- broccoli, slat, orange juice, pepper, garlic
Herb Tortellini- spinach, butter, herbs (parsley, thyme, rosemary), parmesan cheese, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, saffron, raisins, eggs
Apple Crostata-apples, butter, sugar, white wine, cinnamon, provatura cheese, raisins

Society ANNOUNCEMENTS

A Letter From the Baron and Baroness

In this week’s letter, we will be talking about the Royal University, populace badges, and ways you can get more involved in the Barony.

Greetings from your Baron and Baroness!

It has been a busy time lately in the South Downs, as we prepared to host the Royal University of Meridies. The event ran very smoothly, and it made us very proud to see so many of our fellow South Downers working hard to make it a great success. Even though there was a lot of work to do, we saw smiling faces all around.

We saw our fearless event stewards, Lady Veronica and THL Maire, constantly circling around the event, solving problems as they arose and never losing steam. It was inspirational to watch them, and we thank them and their team for putting on a great event.

A couple of people stood out over the course of the day, both by their work and their demeanor. Veronica’s husband David seemed to be everywhere, doing what needed to be done and always with a grin that lifted our spirits. We were excited for the many-talented Zofia to attend her first event, and expected her to be ensconced in classrooms all day to soak up knowledge. What we did not expect was to find her working the registration table, setting up court, and always eager to find other ways to help out. These are the examples of service that we strive to emulate, and we are deeply grateful.

We love to see all of our populace at events, and for others to be able to know and recognize them as South Downers. To that end, we have been discussing recently coming up with a new populace badge so that all can show their Baronial pride. We have a couple ideas already, and encourage anyone interested to send us your thoughts. We will be presenting these at the August 3 business meeting for discussion.

If you would like to get more involved in the Barony but aren’t sure how, there are a variety of options available to you. We have a couple of events coming up in the fall, and the event stewards, THL Mathias (Red Tower) and Master Wistric (Castle Wars) have a number of opportunities for volunteering. If you have free time at any event that we are attending, we would love to have you join our retainers and be part of the Baronial presence. If you’re interested, you can talk to either of us or Lady Justina. We also plan to up some group projects at the second Wednesday meetings, so keep an eye out for more information on those.

We value the opinions of our populace; if you could fill out this short survey it would be most appreciated. Also, if there is someone in the Barony that you feel needs to be recognized for their contributions, we have a handy award recommendation form.

In Service,
Lorenzo and Adela

Society ANNOUNCEMENTS

February Business Meeting Minutes

South Downs Baronial Business Meeting

3 February 2016, 7:30pm

Decatur Recreation Center

Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter (mka Helena Bretherton Hay), South Downs Chronicler

 

Officer Reports

  • Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
    • Nothing to report
    • Would like to gauge interest in developing a baronial publication of some sort:
      • Newsletter? Could include things like reports (and recipes?) from the Supper Club, for example
      • Baronial Directory? as not everyone is on Facebook
      • Open to ideas, suggestions
  • Herald (Lord Bjorn Gullhar)
    • Nothing to report
  • Webminister (Master Wistric Oftun)
    • We still have a website!
    • Working on getting updates to Midwinter A+S up on the site
  • Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
    • We have practices!
    • We will be holding our traditional regional fighters’ practice on the Sunday following Midwinter A+S – come on out!
    • We will hold the tournament to determine the new Baronial Rapier champion at the Midwinter regional practice (14 February 2016)
  • Arts + Sciences (Lady Tryggva Ingvarsdóttir)
    • Midwinter Arts + Sciences is coming up SOON (see below)! There will be tons of classes offered.
    • Lady Tryggva will be stepping down as A+S Minister in March; the new A+S Minister is Lady Veronica de Lucca. Their Excellencies and the populace thanked Lady Tryggva for all her work as Minister.
  • Reeve (Lady Maire Dhocair Inghean Chiarain)
    • We have money – a little over $12,000 in the baronial coffers
    • Red Tower and Castle Wars both did well financially
    • We do still have some bills to take care of, but we’re in good shape
    • Domesday report is going out tonight (3 February 2016)
    • Lady Zeliha Bint Sayyid will be the new Reeve; she’ll start working with Lady Maire after Midwinter, and step up in the 4th quarter
  • Chatelaine (vacant)
    • But no more! Our new Chatelaine is Lady Stella di Silvestri! (And the populace rejoices!)
    • The local Dagohir group is interested in doing a demo with us at the library, date TBD
    • Need more loaner garb! If you are interested in helping sew or have anything to donate, please touch base with Lady Stella

 

SCA Business – South Downs Events in the Works

  • Midwinter Arts + Sciences (13 February 2016, Lady Mara Palmer reports)
    • We’re in good shape with the budget. The feastcrats suggested buying disposable feastgear for the lunch feast, so we won’t have to deal bring the baronial serving pieces (easier to clean up).
    • We need tablecloths to cover the tables in the lecture hall where Court will be held. Master Ximon offered to bring the several he has.
    • We have banners to cover the lecture hall whiteboards, but could use extra banners or tapestries to make sure the boards stay hidden.
    • Lady Stella requested that we bring our own toilet paper and paper towel supplies to the site, as maintenance will not be available to keep the bathrooms stocked with supplies.
    • Lunch feast is offered by pre-registration only. Tokens will be provided to keep track of who has purchased lunch. Registration for the event (if you want the lunch feast) ends Saturday, 6 February
    • The lecture hall (where Court will be held) only seats 150, which we’re not sure is enough to seat everyone for Court. There may be space to set up your own chairs, but space will need to be preserved for processionals and for Lady Mara’s vigil
    • We will have a regional practice on Sunday, 14 February (yes, that’s Valentine’s Day – make your plans now! 🙂 ). Her Excellency will be coordinating the practice and festivities.
    • We can’t get into the site until Saturday morning 7:30? 8:00?. Volunteers to help set up are needed, and if your Chronicler recalls correctly, Master Ximon had suggested that there might be donuts for those who volunteer to set up.
    • Lady Mara will be on vigil beginning at 9:00am, so Her Excellency will handle some of the onsite autocrat responsibilities once the vigil has begun.
  • RUM (Royal University of Meridies; 15-16 July 2016, Lady Veronica de Lucca and Lady Maire reporting)
    • Lady Veronica and Lady Maire will be co-autocratting, and will request approval of the Barony tonight to submit the finalized bid to Kingdom
      • There is no dorm space available, but there are many hotels nearby. We are trying to get a group rate at one (or more) hotel(s). Leslie has offered to help with this effort
      • Looking at offering a fundraiser lunch, possibly a crockpot buffet like what was done at Midwinter A+S 2015
      • The site does not allow pets (service animals are OK by law)
      • There will not be any equestrian activities, as there is no place to hold them
      • Discreet alcohol ONLY – no original containers, etc.
      • No onsite revel or dinner feast
        • There was discussion about the possibility of having a post-event revel in a meeting room of one of the hotels, especially if we can get a group rate there. Those investigating hotel options are adding this to their list of questions
        • It was pointed out that we would have the site until midnight, so we could do a revel there, but no dinner feast. We could provide snacks, however 🙂
      • RUM handles all the planning of the event, in terms of classes, administration, etc.; we handle site issues: setup, cleaning, lunch, etc.
      • Financial issues:
        • $2 fee per person goes to RUM
        • Remaining profits from event are split between the sponsoring Barony (us) and the Kingdom.
      • We should start thinking about teacher bags – what can we offer? who can make what things to be included? If you’re interested in contributing, please contact Lady Veronica or Lady Maire
      • Need staff:
        • Already have autocrats and reservationist
        • Need (partial list):
          • Marshals (armored and rapier)
          • Royal coordinator
          • Crash space coordinator
          • More positions will open up as planning continues. If you’re interested in volunteering for RUM staff and you don’t see a position listed that you’d like to help with, the autocrats will be more than happy to help you help them!
    • Motion offered to send bid to Kingdom, and motion passed unanimously! (and still more rejoicing from the populace!)

 

SCA Business – Upcoming Events

  • Gulf Wars (12-20 March, 2016)
    • South Downs has been asked specifically to volunteer with waterbearing on the Wednesday of War Week. This is a great opportunity to help the Kingdom, and help the Barony; not only can you earn volunteer points for waterbearing, but the Barony can earn money – the more volunteers, the more money! Make your Reeve happy! Go to Volunteer Point, say that you’ll volunteer, and make sure to list The Barony of South Downs as your local group.
    • Does Al-Mahala need anything for Gulf Wars? Everyone was concerned about the damage/vandalism done to their storage space. Turned out it wasn’t their storage space, and their things are OK.
  • Knowne World Dance Symposium (June 2017? Master Wistric reporting)
    • Master Wistric is developing a bid to have the Barony host the 2017 Knowne World Dance Symposium
    • Possible site: GA State. Not sure which campus, but discounts are available to employees, and there are several members of the Barony who work at GA State.

 

Other SCA Business

  • South Downs Supper Club (25 February 2016)
    • This month’s theme: Scandinavia
    • Hosted by Lady Maren (Decatur area)
    • Watch for the event announcement and other updates on Facebook
  • Request for spare armor (armored fighting)
    • Lord Bram is looking for spare armor to purchase, from the Barony or from individuals:
      • His current armor is now too big for him
      • (He may also be looking for any available youth armor?)
      • It was suggested that he contact the Reeve, the Knight Marshal, and/or the Financial Committee to determine what can be sold and at what price.
  • Glaedenfeld Baronial Investiture
    • Background: Glaedenfeld was once a barony, and a few years ago its status was changed to a shire. It is now about to become a barony again.
    • Unsure if the investiture will take place at Dreamstone or Iris Faire?
    • Does the Barony wish to contribute to a largesse gift to the new Baron and Baroness Glaedenfeld? Please get in touch with Master Lorenzo or Mistress Adela if you are interested.

 

Non-SCA Business

  • None.

 

Next South Downs business meeting will be held Wednesday, 2 March 2016.

–Raven