Practices are going well – Sunday practice continues at the incipient Viking Alchemist Meadery site (3080 Jonquil Dr., Smyrna, GA 30080) starting 13 October 2019. Everyone is very happy with the site!
Real Life™ is really getting in the way of my SCA time” (why he’s not here tonight)
Martial activities at Castle Wars seem to have been a success. Duke Bryce’s joint Heavy and Rapier scenarios worked pretty well. There was lots of fighting, and even some time for pickups. Other than some minor complaints about some of the scenarios running shorter than expected, it felt good.
Practices at the Meadery are awesome. Huge thanks to those making this happen.
Levetan Park may be getting too dark for Tuesday evening practices. So far, so good, but suggestions for alternate locations are welcome.
Thanks, as always, to our collection of rapier marshals who make it possible for practice to happen without me. Efforts to get a couple more people warranted are under way.
We had a lot of new people at Castle Wars – we were glad to be able to loan Gold Key garb to so many new people! YAY! and they had fun! yay!
We do have a lot of good Gold Key, so we’re not concerned about the timing for having loaned garb returned (but all the garb will be returned no worries!)
Demo Deputy (Lady Bú Feiyan)
We had a great turnout and reception at ConjurationCON
No new demos for us on the schedule, but we’ve been asked to participate in a homeschoolers demo which is in the works for this Friday (6 December) in Marietta – see Bú for more info
Thank you for everyone that taught at CW. Midwinter A&S class signup form will be posted once the event Facebook page goes up – think about teaching at Midwinter please!
No class in Dec due to the holidays.
Speaking of A&S classes in the new year… are you interested in teaching a Baronial Arts & Sciences class in 2020? Submit your class idea on this form, or contact Alisandre directly.
Mark has dibs on the January A&S class, but the rest of the year is up for grabs.
Submitted quarterly report to the Kingdom Webminister
Lady Zhelana agreed to serve as point person on creating the Midwinter A&S event page. An initial page has been created as a placeholder, which will be updated as content becomes available.
Updated profile pages:
Lady Agnes Halydaye – apprentice to Master Lorenzo
Lady Anneliese Wulf – apprentice to Her Excellency South Downs, Mistress Sunneva di Cleia
We had 33 kids at Castle Wars! Yay! (only 11 were The Scriveners’ :-))
The Ministry of Children has been working on having activities for all age ranges
The Peasant archery battle at Castle Wars was a huge hit with the kids; the adults, not quite as much lol
During the Peasant archery battle, Mark got to see HRH’s son Theo nail Sir Caius right in the face with an “arrow” (tennis ball), and then immediately also nail HRH in the face!
Her Excellency regrets her absence, but His Tininess had to come home from daycare early.
Thank you to everyone who worked on Castle Wars, especially those on entourage and who volunteered with feast. Feast (and the feast hall decorations) turned out fantastic and was recognized across the Knowne World, as some of our social media photos were shared by the Society Facebook group.
We will host our Baronial holiday party on 14 December – stay tuned for a post on our Baronial Facebook group for organizing the potluck dinner. There will also be a Dirty Santa gift exchange for all who wish to participate.
Their Excellencies encouraged everyone to send in award recommendations – a lot of people worked really hard at Castle Wars, and writing award recommendations is a great way to recognize their work. Hit them up or fill out the award form on the seneschal page. They keep all the recommendations they receive.
Nikon pointed out that before you write a recommendation for someone, look them up on the Order of Precedence or better yet, our populace page
The populace was reminded that since New Year’s Day will be on the first Wednesday, the January business meeting will take place on the 2nd Wednesday (8 January)
Castle Wars Post-Mortem
We had an event! Yay!
WE had to file an accident report – Drogo cut his hand in the kitchen slicing potatoes
We had very few complaints – there were several suggestions for more parking and directional signs
The kitchen staff reported that there were some incidents of rudeness towards them. No details at the current time.
There was one incident of harassment at Castle Wars that is being investigated at the Society level. It was reported immediately to the autocrat and seneschal to get the timestamp on the event. Mark has been named the lady’s advocate as the situation plays itself out.
One vehicle was lost at the event – the car was inadvertently driven over a tree stump and lost its transmission.
All receipts have been received – several people/departments did not use their budget, so expenses were less than expected.
Lord Jürgen asked for clarification about who gets the till from Troll at the end of the night. He could not find any official info about handling funds from troll – this is important to clarify for anyone who works Troll at events. Updates will be provided at the next business meeting.
Anyone who is looking for a reimbursement check should see Lord Farouk.
Juliane mentioned that at both last year’s Castle Wars and again at this year’s Castle Wars, we revamped the way we market events and both years, had a great response. How can we revisit how to market next year’s Castle Wars?
Baroness Angharat asked who is South Downs’ meme/social media person? She would like to hire them for Blood and Roses in April.
Nikon mentioned how much he loved his teacher gift.
Master Ximon said that he had great support as the parking person; he spent the event driving the loop around the site as shuttle driver. We really need to have a shuttle driver at events at Benjamin Hawkins, since the site is so spread out and parking is mostly in specific areas.
Would it be possible to get a golf cart rental in the budget for next year?
Mistress Alessandra asked if someone could make a map of all the walking paths and interior driving areas – it would be really helpful, since they’re not marked clearly. Ximon added, regarding parking that no matter how much you mark up a site, you’ll have people trying to ignore the signage.
Jürgen suggested that we could make modular signposts with attachable arrows, etc. that could be illuminated (as the site at night is particularly difficult to travel through)
Sandwich board might be a better option since they are more flexible – they don’t need to be staked in and could still be customizable with arrows
Juliane added that this is a relatively new site, and as with most sites, the more we use it the more comfortable we’ll be with the layout.
Ximon suggested that we table this discussion for next year and is willing to lead up a parking committee/team for the site.
Ximon also thanked everyone who camped with South Downs, especially THL Stella who organized the camp. Everyone had a great time! Further thanks to Isabella for her great meal, and to everyone who helped break down camp on Sunday.
Drunk History went really well! Ximon repeated his challenge to the Barony – he is offering a prize for the winner of Drunk History, South Downs Edition.
Juliane will be submitting a bid for next year’s Castle Wars – stay tuned! It will be epic.
Bú asked if anyone had ended up with a (her) large soup pot; it’s gone on walkabout, and since it’s her mother’s, she’d really like it back.
Master Lorenzo followed “speaking of large soup pots…” Stella would love to have some help with the food side of being Camp Mom for future events. Please contact her if you are interested.
Angharat brought a tote with lost & found from the event and invited anyone who lost something at Castle Wars to check the tote. She also brought several scroll cases to return to the Barony/scribes.
Upcoming Events
Midwinter Arts & Sciences (1 February 2020), Lady Raven Helmsplitter and Master Ximon Martillo de Córdoba reporting
Submitted bid to Financial Committee; bid was approved by Financial Committee and was presented to the populace
Event to be held at Holy Trinity Parish Episcopal Church in downtown Decatur – new site, 3 blocks to Decatur MARTA station, 5 blocks to Avondale MARTA station, so it’s intown and easily accessible.
No feast, but there will be a fundraiser lunch – possibly by the Order of the Blade?
Initial staff includes:
Master Ximon Martillo de Córdoba – co-Autocrat
THL Lucien d’Artois – Reservationcrat
THL Alisandre Isabeau de la Chapelle – A&S Class Coordinator
After discussion by the populace, motion to vote on bid was made, seconded, and approved.
Other SCA Business
Juliane explained the process of submitting a bid
Bid goes to Seneschal for initial review. Seneschal has the right to accept or refuse the bid.
If the Seneschal accepts the bid, they forward it on to the finance committee who then approves or refuses it.
If the finance committee approves the bid, it is then presented to the populace for consideration and a vote.
Baron Piers is currently working on a bid for Coronation – as TRHs’ local group (Tir Briste) is already hosting Fools War the week following Spring Coronation, the event is being opened up to other groups. Piers mentioned he needed a co-autocrat, and ürgen volunteered.
Master Nikoslav offered a lyst fence to the Barony, free to a good home. Lucien confirmed that we have room for it in the storage unit, so arrangements were made to get it after it is used at Magna Faire.
Justina mentioned Jour d’Amour in January. The Courtesans Guild is being provided with a heated cabin and a lot of time to provide classes along the event theme (courtly love).
Ximon asked if we/the MoB hosts the fundraiser lunch at Midwinter, can he borrow a couple of crockpots.
Non-SCA Business
Mark mentioned that last Wednesday, two dogs showed up at their house. The dogs’ owner is newly disabled and can no longer care for the dogs, so Mark is trying to find a home for them. The dogs are dog- and cat- (and people!) friendly.
Business meeting is closed.
Next business meeting will be held Wednesday, 8 January 2020, at the Doraville Civic Center.
Mara needs specs for the live weapons field for Coronation
Mara will be asking Bryn Madoc for help with setting up the field again (and will remind them to save their receipts this time)
Members of the Barony of South Downs received 5 tassels at Midwinter A&S; four-year-old Liam is the youngest to earn a white tassel (yay!)
She also has requested for volunteers to help make tassels for the archers. Instructions are available on the Facebook Live Weapons group; if interested in helping, please contact her directly.
Arts & Sciences (Lady Alisandre de la Chapelle)
We have A&S in the Barony, and it is good! Yay!
Lady Alisandre thanked everyone who taught classes at Midwinter A&S
This month’s class, “Who Was King Arthur, Anyway?”, will be taught by Cellach Ingen Oengusa, followed by THL Madelena da Firenze’s class on making bysockets in April.
Thanks to the response from the populace, Baronial Arts & Sciences classes are nearly completely scheduled for 2019, but there’s still opportunities to share you knowledge! If you are interested in teaching a class, please fill out the form or contact Alisandre directly.
Herald (THL Lucien d’Artois)
Awards at Gulf Wars:
Isabetta de San Marco – Sovereign’s Pleasure
Quintus Valerius Gracchus – Legion of the Bear
Bram Halfdannarson – Meridian Majesty
Maire Dhocair Inghean Chiarain – Meridian Majesty
Piers Simmons – Court Barony
Reeve (THL Andreva Rigaldi)
We have money! yay!
We made a profit of $XXX at Midwinter A&S
Current balance in the baronial bank account is approximately $9,700
February report will be submitted to Kingdom after tonight’s meeting
The names for the new signatories (see February meeting minutes) have been submitted
Chatelaine (Lady Justina di Silvestri)
Lady Justina thanked everyone who came out to help at Anachrocon
We had 10 people sign up to receive emails
Had several conversations with attendees who were somewhat familiar with the SCA
Justina announced that the shire of Owls Nest will be hosting monthly newcomers’ picnics
Owls Nest will be hosting a demo at Kennesaw State on 15 March. His Excellency has asked the Gold Key Deputy to help out.
Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
We are still holding practices when the weather allows.
Quartermaster (THL Lucien d’Artois)
We have stuff!
We are continuing the hunt for a new storage site – stay tuned!
Webminister (Lord Pietro di Conti)
We have a website!
Zhelana has volunteered to serve as deputy webminister; she has been set up with a deputy-webminister login and webminister documentation
Announced the investiture of Their Excellencies, Wistric and Sunneva
Midwinter A&S web page:
Added directions
Spring Coronation web page:
Updated event text
Updated the Baron & Baroness officer page and email forwarder (Wistric and Sunneva)
Updated the Seneschal officer page and email forwarder (Mark and Juliane)
Updated A&S officer page and email forwarder (Alisandre)
Updated Webminister officer page and email forwarder (new deputy: Zhelana)
Changed equestrian email forwarder from Lorenzo to Pietro (please let Pietro know if there’s someone more appropriate)
Updated awards for:
Mistress Adela Scrijver van Brugge
Lady Alisandre Ysabeau de la Chapelle
Lord Bram Halfdannarson
Master Lorenzo Petrucci
Mistress Sunneva di Cleia
THL Veronica de Luna
Master Wistric Oftun
Zhelana added new pages for:
Lady Agnes Halydaye
Cellach Ingen Oengusa
Lady Annelise Wulf
Added link to “An Unofficial Guide for Newcomers to the SCA” by Avelyn Dale
Added “Baronial Likes and Dislikes” page
Added link to “RUM Class: Basic Heraldry” YouTube video to Wenyeva’s page
Updated live weapons practice dates on fighter practice page.
Minister of Children (Lady Myndee of South Downs, THL Mark de Wytteney reporting)
Lady Myndee won’t be able to make meetings in March, due to real-life responsibilities
Myndee will be running children’s activities at Fools’ War
Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
Nothing to report
Seneschal (THL Mark de Wytteney)
Got seneschal’s warrant turned in
Thanks Juliane for filling in over the past month
We are still meeting here in Doraville, but we’re still looking for a new site to better fit our budget
If we can keep this space for a flat $220/month, we can stay here – it’s close enough to being on budget
Their Excellencies
Sunneva apologizes for missing the mtg
Midwinter A&S and their Investiture were awesome and they were humbled by the awesomeness of the populace
Lots of banner making – down to a science! Their Excellencies encourage everyone to consider making personal banners
Upcoming Events
Gulf Wars (9-17 March 2019)
Their Excellencies wont be able to attend, but they encourage everyone who goes to wear lots of black and white garb
A reminder to the populace: if you volunteer at Gulf Wars, make sure you fill out a form identifying you as a member of South Downs so our Barony get credit/money for your work as a member of South Downs. There is a great form on Kingdom website that you can fill out in advance.
There’s all sorts of volunteer positions available, some you didn’t even think were volunteer opportunities (dog walking! calligraphy!)
Sir Iastreb (Iazzie) commented it is also important that Meridies maintains our level of volunteering to make sure we get income as a Kingdom from Gulf Wars
Ca’ d’ Oro will be hosting a fashion show; there will be a social after the fashion show and they need volunteers
Courtesan/newcomers ball on Tuesday
Courtesans’ Meridian charter will be signed at Gulf Wars and they will be an official Kingdom Guild
Spring Coronation for TRH Sebastiannos and Morgan (5-7 April, 2019, co-Autocrat THL Juliane de Vivonne reporting)
It’s going to happen!
Site deposit and insurance have been done
3 elevations – Nikoslav Mikolaevich, Mykael Halfdan, and Kerstyn Gartenerin
Baron Cormac Mor, OP, Wreath Sovereign of Arms, will be attending Coronation and holding classes all day as well as a roundtable lunch. He needs a whiteboard. Iazzie has three he can loan, but will need a reminder to bring them.
Clark and Fynlo walked the site to map everything out. They’ll get it done tonight, and the event site will be updated.
We need signage for site! Project night? How many signs? Put a list together and we can address it at project night
Feast – have to pre-register for feast!
Needs volunteers
Merchant liaison!
Pottycrat
Saturday breakfast
Sunday GTFO breakfast
Friday travelers fare
Scribal point
Rapier and armored MiC
Mariana is SafeServ certified
New SCA Business
There are rumors of a conflict in the making with our cousins to the north, the Barony of Nottinghill Coill of the Kingdom of Atlantia. Hmmm…
Iazzie mentioned that our baronial financial policy states that an event Marshal in Charge (MiC) is comped, and asked if this is still the case? If so, does this extend to all the MiC for each martial discipline (armored, rapier, live weapons)? Is this something we want to extend to kingdom-level events?
It was decided this issue will be tabled until the next business or financial committee meeting
Next business meeting will be held Wednesday, 3 April 2019, at the Doraville Civic Center.
Doraville Civic Center – 3744 Central Ave., Doraville GA
Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter, South Downs Chronicler.
THL Lucien d’Artois called the meeting to order. Our new Seneschal, THL Mark de Wytteney, sez “Welcome! If you did not sign in, please sign in!”
Officer Reports
Herald (THL Lucien d’Artois)
Awards – Menhir
Mistress Mara Palmer – Split Arrow
THL Piers Simmons – Order of the Bough
THL Marianna Cristina Tirado de Aragón – Order of the Laurel
Armored and Youth Marshal (Lady Mairghread)
Armored
Lots of discussion lately about warranted marshals; essentially, the kingdom’s marshallate has not been functioning consistent with Society’s rules about establishing marshals. In response, the kingdom Earl Marshal has asked all local groups to provide him with a list of their armored, rapier, and live weapons marshals.
Lady Mairghread, as our local Knight Marshal, is collecting all the information for South Downs – if you are a marshal, please give her your contact info as soon as possible.
Only warranted marshals can run an event, with the clarification that *any* warranted marshal can run an event, they don’t have to be the local group marshal.
Further clarification, per THL Juliane’s question: the person running the tournaments does not have to be a warranted marshal, but the marshal with the responsibility for the event has to be warranted.
Rules for the Society and kingdom marshallate and potential changes were discussed – there will be changes coming down the pike, so stay tuned!
Youth
Nothing to report
Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
We are still holding practices when the weather allows.
There will be a regional fighter practice at Brook Run/Levetan Park this Sunday, following Midwinter A&S (weather permitting) – come on out!
Four white tassels and one black tassel have been awarded; if you are owed a tassel and don’t have it, please let Mara know
She also has requested for volunteers to help make tassels for the archers. Instructions are available on the Facebook Live Weapons group; if interested in helping, please contact her directly.
Chatelaine (Lady Justina di Silvestri)
We’ve had some awesome new people who have recently joined the Barony – welcome!
After Midwinter A&S and the Gold Key streamlining/purge, Justina will update the Gold Key spreadsheet
Countess Ysmay is requesting write-ups about the SCA for newcomers
Will host a salon and newcomers’ Q&A
Anachrocon will take place over Presidents’ Day weekend!
There’s a Facebook group for Anachrocon, for the latest info
Rapier fighters have volunteered to host a demo – will there be any armored fighters going?
Signup sheets for volunteering are online
Anachrocon is coming in February! Please stay tuned for updates, but in the meantime, teachers are needed to teach at Anachrocon, if interested, please contact Justina.
Upcoming demo
OwlCon at Kennesaw University on 16 March. His Excellency has asked the Gold Key Deputy to help out.
Arts & Sciences (Lady Alisandre de la Chapelle)
We have A&S in the Barony, and it is good! Yay! Now that Mistress Sunneva has stepped up as Baroness South Downs, her deputy Lady Alisandre has stepped up as Minister of Arts & Sciences
Thanks to the response from the populace, Baronial Arts & Sciences classes are nearly completely scheduled for 2019, only three class slots still available “because y’all are amazing!” But there’s still opportunities to share you knowledge! If you are interested in teaching a class, please fill out the form or contact Alisandre directly.
Midwinter will rock – we will be offering lots of great classes!
Our next A&S class will take place on 27 February, when Lady Justina will teach “Taking a Bite Out of History: Your Ancestors Were Cannibals!”
In March, Cellach Ingen Oengusa will teach a class “Who Was King Arthur, Anyway?”, followed by THL Madalena’s class on making bysockets in April.
Reeve (THL Andreva Rigaldi)
We’ve had some unexpected expenses come in (exploding coffee pots!), which is why it’s important we are careful with our expenses
There was a vote on having the following officers removed from the baronial bank account, since they are no longer relevant officers for the bank:
Laura Thomason
Owen Townes
Joseph Coffee
There was then a vote to confirm the following offers to be added to the baronial bank account, as they are now relevant officers for the bank:
Erin Garrard
Christee Cartee
Mark Baron
Meghan Vaughan
Andreva is also head troll and reservationist for Coronation; please get your reservations in, and please consider volunteering for troll.
Quartermaster (THL Lucien d’Artois)
We have stuff!
We’ve begun looking at alternate storage spaces nearby; we are currently paying +$300 per month for our storage space. Some things that may make a difference in costs:
Do we need the space to be climate-controlled?
Textiles? We have three bins
Paper goods – we discussed options to help keep textiles and paper goods dry (silica packets, baking soda)
Finding a non-climate-controlled site could save us significant money. At our current storage site, the non-climate-controlled spaces are $150 per month, less than half of what we are paying now. Other sites have larger (non-climate-controlled) spaces for just a little bit more, that would allow us to store the castle walls at the storage site as well
20’x20′ at Extra Space: $207 per month
20’x20′ at Public Storage: $170 per month
Do these facilities offer 24×7 access?
If we move, when would we move? We are paid through the end of February at the current storage facility. It would be great if we could move out before Fools War, to simplify moving the castle walls.
We could perhaps move on 24 February, after MCA?
Would we get a discount at the new site if we pay for a full year in advance?
What are the insurance requirements at new storage facilities? We are currently required to have it.
A supplies list will be needed for Midwinter; Alisandre and Justina will provide a list
Webminister (Lord Pietro di Conti)
We have a website!
Updated the Officers page to bring Quartermaster and Minister of Children listings current
Updated awards for:
Wistric Oftun
Sunneva de Cleia
Andreva Rigaldi
Stella di Silvestri
Rhiannon verch Madyn
Marianna Cristina Tirado de Aragón
Updated devices for:
Margavati Bai
Marianna Cristina Tirado de Aragón
Updated pages for:
“History of Chess” class notes to Iastreb’s profile page
Submitted Y2019 Q1 report to Kingdom Webminister
Updated legal disclaimer for Y2019
Posted polling results
WordPress user adjustments:
Renamed admin user form from “sd-admin” to “webminister”
Created a deputy webminister userid (Pietro took a moment to mention that is is looking for a deputy, so if anyone is interested, please contact him directly)
Added “lorenzo” login (“baron” login is still Lorenzo for now)
Downgraded “artsci” user from administrator privileges to author
Midwinter A&S web page updates:
Posted event schedule
Posted class schedule
Link to the regional fighter practice
Link to Sari Safari
Link to sign up Midwinter A&S Faire
Added Baroness Sibella’s note about no live weapons on the University of West Georgia site
Added Alisandre’s notes about not being able to have merchants on site, and about the research library
Updated staff list
Added admission cost
Created event page for “Coronation of Morgan and Sebastiannos” 5-7 April, 2019
Posted Pop Chivalry flyer
Updated 2019 class schedule on main A& page
Minister of Children (Lady Myndee of South Downs, THL Mark de Wytteney reporting)
HRM Gwenwhyfar has been working on getting deputies approved for background checks – YAY!
Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
Nothing to report
Their Excellencies
Master Lorenzo sez “I QUIT!” Motion seconded, voted on, and approved 😀
HRM thanked Lorenzo for everything he’s done in the Society, beyond being Baron South Downs
Other SCA Business
Midwinter Arts & Sciences (9 February 2019)
We’re having an event this weekend!
Need setup crew for 7:00am; site opens at 8:00am, classes start at 9:00am
Also need cleanup crew; it was suggested that someone should go and take photos of each room before setup begins, so we know how each room needs to be restored at the end of the day
Need a social media person to respond to Facebook comments (especially thoes comments about having problems finding the site)
Evening court will be held in the ballroom but we have zero chance of getting in there before 3:00pm, and we will need someone to help direct attendees to the ballroom
Margavati mentioned Sari Safari will take place on Sunday, for anyone who won’t be going to the regional practice. Please join the FB group for the event (or contact Margavati) for details
There will be a garage sale at Sunday’s regional practice – BYOT (Bring Your Own Table)
Spring Coronation for TRH Sebastiannos and Morgan (5-7 April, 2019)
We have a site (Camp Benjamin Hawkins), we have insurance in process, we have the flyer posted in Pop Chivalry!
The event is being branded as “TRH are throwing a party!”
Juliane will be doing memes of TRH and TRM
We need staff/volunteers, especially someone to work on parking logistics
Sebastiannos has volunteers from the Order of the Bear lined up
Feast will be held during court
Marianna has plans for feast
The muses will make an appearance
Site tokens are being taken care of by Sebastiannos
Feast tokens will be place cards – as above-the-salt feast will be pre-registration only, place cards will work.
Feast will be all finger foods and open bar; when you come into feast, food will already be on the table
Kebab marshal! Everyone sign a release! 😀
Queen’s yeoman tourney is definite for coronation
Pre-reg is open!
Gulf Wars (9-17 March, 2019)
Justina invited everyone to come visit the Ca’ d’Oro at Gulf Wars, and they’ll be hosting both a salon and a ball
Artsy Crown (24-27 May, 2019)
The seneschal for Owl’s Nest is looking for volunteers for Artsy Crown – if interested, please contact THL Charles de Joscelynne
Non-SCA Business
Margavati brought fabric that needs a new home
Next business meeting will be held Wednesday, 6 March 2019, at the Doraville Civic Center.
South Downs Baronial Business Mini-Meeting, updates to upcoming events
16 January 2019, 7:30pm
Doraville Civic Center – 3744 Central Ave., Doraville GA
Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter, South Downs Chronicler.
THL Lucien d’Artois called the meeting to order. Master Wistric sez “Welcome! If you did not sign in, please sign in!”
Midwinter Arts & Sciences Update – 9 February 2019
Lady Alisandre needs a set up crew at 7:00 the morning of the event
She is also still looking for someone to sponsor the fundraiser lunch
HRM (Her Royal Majesty Gwenwhyfar) mentioned that there is a group at Gulf Wars who is looking to raise funds – could be a good cause/sponsor for the fundraiser lunch
HRM also mentioned that she is looking for children to serve as entourage for TRMs
Troll signup sheets will be available soon – six volunteers are needed
Lady Raven will be doing the site booklets
Classes are coming along, but Mistress Sunneva mentioned that it’s not too late to submit course proposals
Supporting events on Sunday (10 February)
Regional fighter practice: the pavilion at Brook Run Park is not available due to costs, but we received confirmation from the park manager that we can set up a grill on the concrete pad at the practice site, so a cookout is still possible
A Sari Safari is in the works – stay tuned! For more information, please contact Mistress Margavati
Coronation – 5-7 April
At TRHs’ (Their Royal Highnesses Sebastiannos and Morgan) request, the Barony has put together an event bid, with THL Juliane as autocrat
The bid is set up differently than most bids, due to the site – the site cost is per head, so we can’t really calculate a break-even the way we usually would Rough estimate to break even is 40 weekend attendees and 150 daytrip attendees
Site fees:
Adult non-members weekend: $22 (with $5 discount for SCA members)
Adult non-members daytrip: $17 (with $5 discount for SCA members)
Feast (pre-registration only): $8
Proposed site is Camp Benjamin Hawkins in Byron, GA (just south of Macon); this will be the same site as Fools’ War, but two weeks prior
If we meet the projected numbers of attendees, we will gross $4,000
Bonus: most of the usual site costs such as port-a-potties, treating the site for fire ants, etc., are already included in the site fee
We are hoping that there will be children’s activities at Coronation – stay tuned!
HRM mentioned that the mundane laws require 1 adult with a current background check per 10 kids, which is very different than we had previously been told by Kingdom. HRM is looking into the process and is encouraging having more people get background checks processed, as it will make children’s activities easier to manage at events.
Motion to vote on bid, seconded and approved. Juliane will move forward with submitting the bid
Next business meeting will be held Wednesday, 6 February 2019, at the Doraville Civic Center.
Doraville Civic Center – 3744 Central Ave., Doraville GA
Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter, South Downs Chronicler.
THL Lucien d’Artois called the meeting to order. Master Wistric sez “Welcome! If you did not sign in, please sign in!”
Baronial Polling Results
HRM Gwenhwyfar announced that after a great turnout with votes and comments from the populace, the new Baron and Baroness South Downs will be Master Wistric Oftun and Mistress Sunneva de Cleia! Huzzah!
Officer Reports
Herald (THL Lucien d’Artois)
Awards – Magna Faire
Lady Stella di Silvestri – Order of the Velvet Owl
Submissions
THL Andreva Rigaldi – device and name change registered Margot de Saint Denis
Armored and Youth Marshal (Lady Mairghread)
Armored
Lord Bram has offered to step up as deputy armored marshal
Lady Mairghread will discuss with their new Excellencies how they would like to handle choosing their new rapier and armored Baronial champions
Youth
Completed reports for the youth program
Is working on rewriting the rules for youth rapier
Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
We are still holding practices when the weather allows.
We are looking for a new site for Tuesday evening practices, given the ongoing problems with lighting at both Blackburn and Brook Run parks.
Mistress Mara needs to get in touch with anyone who’s earned a tassel, so she can arrange to have the tassels presented in court
She also has requested for volunteers to help make tassels for the archers. Instructions are available on the Facebook Live Weapons group; if interested in helping, please contact her directly.
Chatelaine (Lady Justina di Silvestri)
We’ve had some awesome new people who have recently joined the Barony – welcome!
Anachrocon is coming in February! Please stay tuned for updates, but in the meantime, teachers are needed to teach at Anachrocon, if interested, please contact Justina.
Arts & Sciences (Mistress Sunneva de Cleia)
We have A+S in the Barony, and it is good! Yay!
Thanks to the response from the populace, Baronial Arts + Sciences classes have been scheduled through July 2019 “because y’all are amazing!” But there’s still opportunities to share you knowledge! If you are interested in teaching a class, please fill out the form or contact Mistress Sunneva directly.
Our next A+S class will take place on January 23, when Sir Iastreb will teach the History of Chess; Iazzie described it as more of a survey of the evolution of chess from its earliest historical versions to modern chess as we know it today.
Lady Justina will teach February’s class, “Taking a Bite Out of History: Your Ancestors Were Cannibals!” followed by Cellach Ingen Oengusa’s class “Who Was King Arthur, Anyway?” in March, and THL Madalena’s class on making bysockets in April.
Reeve (THL Andreva Rigaldi)
We have some money! Huzzah! We don’t have specifics yet, as the report just arrived today, so she hasn’t yet had a chance to analyze it.
Andreva pointed out that the profits the Barony makes on our big events goes toward paying for the storage unit and meeting site rental fees, and not much more than that. So please consider hosting fundraiser lunches at events, as those profits go towards any other needs and requests for Baronial supplies
Gulf Wars is coming! Make sure you designate the Barony of South Downs as your local group when you volunteer – local groups will receive funds based on the number of volunteer hours logged by their members.
Quartermaster (THL Lucien d’Artois)
We have stuff!
Lucien thanked everyone who came out on project night to help mark new baronial kitchen supplies, etc.
Inventory weekend coming to a weekend near you! Please stay tuned and come and help out!
Webminister (Lord Pietro di Conti)
We have a website!
Worked on disk cleanup
Midwinter A+S site updates:
Class signup link
Fighter practice page – updated live weapons schedule for early 2019
Live Weapons marshal page – added links to Meridies archery scores and How to Make Tassels instructions
Minister of Children (Lady Myndee of South Downs, THL Mark de Wytteney reporting)
Not much has happened in the past month, but Myndee and her deputy have volunteered to run children’s activities at Fools’ War
Seneschal (Master Wistric Oftun)
Wistric thanked everyone who helped with the Baronial polling
We need to find a new meeting site, as the rental rate has been raised from $50/week to $70/week beginning in March 2019. Perhaps we can go to St. Philip’s in Buckhead? But we’re definitely open to new site options.
Their Excellencies
His Excellency also thanked everyone who helped with the Baronial polling, and is looking forward to the new Baron and Baroness South Downs
He then asked if anyone was going to Magna Faire, and what activities they were planning on taking part in – A+S? Fencing? Anything else?
Other SCA Business
Midwinter Arts + Sciences (9 February 2019)
We’re having an event next month!
Classes are coming along
Many volunteer positions have been filled, but volunteers are still needed – please contact Lady Alisandre if interested
Still looking for a group to host the fundraiser lunch
Evening court will be held in the ballroom but we have zero chance of getting in there before 3:00pm, so morning court will take place in the lecture hall
We are going to try to have evening court start at 4:30pm because there is a lot that will happen at court and we have a hard out of the site at 6:30pm
Now that we know who is being invested as Baron and Baroness South Downs, we can move forward full force with planning the investiture
Please pre-register for Midwinter A+S, it will make troll go a lot easier and more quickly
Speaking of troll, volunteers are still needed for troll shifts, especially first thing in the morning
Regional Fighter Practice – it’s happening (weather permitting)! Will be held Sunday, 10 February 2019, at Brook Run Park (usual practice location and time) We will have signage advertising the Regional at the Midwinter site
Inquiries have been made about crash space for Midwinter – Mara will be coordinating, so if you can offer crash space (or know someone who needs it), please contact her directly
There is interest in holding a Baronial yard sale, since the Barony has a good amount of stuff we no longer need, and there’s also people who want to donate. We’ll hold it perhaps at Midwinter, the Regional practice, or Fool’s War. There were a lot of ideas offered for the yard sale, and a volunteer to serve as point person was requested. Since Owl’s Nets has expressed interest in helping (as they have stuff to donate as well), it was suggested that Adaire be contacted to organize the yard sale.
The Courtesan’s track is still seeking volunteers to teach any of the Courtly Arts, social aspects of court, etc. Family-friendly classes are welcome.
Spring Coronation for TRH Sebastiannos and Morgan (5-7 April, 2019)
Juliane is going to look at the site this week. The new site, which is also where Fools’ War will be held, sounds really promising. HRH Sebastiannos is really excited about the site.
Discreet cigarette smoking is allowed – please religiously police your cigarette butts
Dogs are welcome on site (with all required paperwork) – if you bring your dog, please religiously police their butts 😉
A lot has already been negotiated with the site, thanks to Fynlo and the Fools’ War team, and the Boy Scouts (who own the site) are really excited about having us (the SCA) use their site in the future
Juliane has put a bid together already, and is working through requests from Sebastiannos for feast arrangements. She will discuss these requests with the finance committee to get them implemented.
Stunt Bards! (for feast?)
Red Tower (4-6 October, 2019)
Lady Veronica has volunteered to put together a bid
Castle Wars (21-24 November, 2019)
THL Piers is interested in autocratting, but has concerns about some issues with the site, including pricing and SERV-Safe certification for kitchen workers.
The event site will be the same Boy Scout camp site as Coronation and Fools’ War
Anachrocon (15-18 February, 2019)
Takes place over Presidents’ Weekend; it does conflict with several events, but we’re looking for volunteers
These are our people we just have to draw them in
We are seeking teachers for classes – please contact Lady Justina if interested
JordanCon (26-28 April, 2019)
Fantasy literature convention, in honor of author Robert Jordan
Will be held at the Crowne Plaza Atlanta Perimeter at Ravinia
Tiff Frankin is point person for Meridies
Questions from HRM Gwynhwyfar
She wanted, first of all, to let everyone know that HRM Adhemar would have liked to have been at the meeting for the Baronial announcement and thank everyone personally
After the meeting, representatives for Meridies will need to come to a final decision about kingdom-wide fundraising for the Knowne Worlde party at Gulf Wars
Party theme – Hogwarts! HRM will be Fleur Delacour
There will be a fundraiser raffle, and items are being requested for the raffle
HRM wants to have an army of dementors, and mentioned something about thousands of glowsticks?
Other SCA Business
Mistress Allesandra mentioned that while Midwinter A+S is going on, the populace is welcome to enter the A+S competitions, and “we have like 400 laurels who would love to help you!”
Lady Stella is still looking for someone to take over organizing the baronial activity at DragonCon, as she won’t be able to be there for registering our group. Justina reminded us that we’ve been invited by the alternate history track to provide some classes
Non-SCA Business
His Excellency, Master Lorenzo, said that a couple of lovely chairs had been left behind at the baronial holiday party. If you left one, please come get it!
Dinner – Shaking Crawfish!
Next business meeting will be held Wednesday, 6 February 2019, at the Doraville Civic Center. Happy holidays and a happy new year!
Doraville Civic Center – 3744 Central Ave., Doraville GA
Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter, South Downs Chronicler.
THL Lucien d’Artois called the meeting to order. Master Wistric sez “Welcome! If you did not sign in, please sign in!”
Officer Reports
Herald (THL Lucien d’Artois)
Awards – Castle Wars
TBD
TBD
Submissions
TBD
Baronial Polling (THL Mark de Wytteney)
Polling begins at tonight’s meeting for non-residents
Polling will continue at next Sunday’s fighter practice and next week’s baronial meeting
He explained the polling process:
Voting will be a ranked system for the three sets of candidates; everyone will vote their order of preference for the sets of candidates
Ballots are being mailed for residents of the Barony today
Armored and Youth Marshal (Lady Mairghread)
Armored
Has been out of the loop for a little bit, due to real-life responsibilities
Youth
Completed reports for the youth program
Is working on rewriting the rules for youth rapier
Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
Nothing to report
Live Weapons Marshal (Mistress Mara Palmer)
Mistress Mara was counseled by the populace to walk, not run, to the lectern as she approached to give her report
Practices have been going well, although they are starting to slow down as the weather has grown colder
Reports that Live Weapons will need more equipment – in particular, bows, arrows, and longer arrows
Castle Wars
went really well – great turnout, and many new participants. A total of 70 participants signed in at the archery range.
W did have a few safety incidents at Castle Wars, especially with people walking behind the targets. Mistress Mara emphasized that even if out of range, people walking behind the targets make the archers really nervous.
Thanks to the Barony of Bryn Madoc, who marshaled the throwing side of the Live Weapons activities at Castle Wars
It seems that there were many people who didn’t realize that they could come to our practices, even if not part of our Barony. Our practices are open to all, not just the members of the Barony!
We had a lot of new people attend Castle Wars – it was awesome!
Lady Justina mentioned that there is a new Newcomers group on Facebook, and encouraged everyone – new and established members – to join, to ask and help answer questions and see what new people want to know about Meridies and the SCA in general.
Upcoming demos:
Anachrocon in February
Master Mathias mentioned that Anachrocon has asked for a commedia presentation. Anyone interested in helping, please contact Mathias directly.
DragonCon
Justina reminded us that we’ve been invited by the alternate history track to provide a couple of classes
Kennesaw State University (KSW)/OwlCon
Master Wistric mentioned that last March, KSW sponsored OwlCon; they have planned to hold it annually, but he’s not seen anything about this year’s event yet. Jaden and Lauren are looking into its status for this year
Possible demo at a library in Milton? More information to follow
Arts & Sciences (Mistress Sunneva de Cleia)
We have A+S in the Barony, and it is good! Yay!
We had 19 classes at Castle Wars, most well-attended
Courtesans’ track and the Newcomer’s track were both really encouraging
The period firearms demo was really exciting
Mistress Sunneva thanked everyone who took and taught classes
Next year’s classes for South Downs A+S nights are already scheduled through July 2019; if you are interested in teaching a class, please fill out the form or contact Mistress Sunneva directly.
Our next A+S class will take place on January 23, when Sir Iastreb will teach the History of Chess
Reeve (THL Andreva Rigaldi)
Castle Wars’ report has not yet been completed, pending final PayPal report
we made approximately $3,700 in profit
If you have receipts for Castle Wars, please send them to Andreva THIS WEEK
We have money in the bank, no outstanding checks
We have purchases we have made for the Barony that we need to approve:
$151 for tiki torches (HE South Downs)
$64.58 for 2 coffee pots and (?) air presses, which are so much easier to manage than industrial coffee urns (Justina)
$82 for dollies for transport (Lucien)
Quartermaster (THL Lucien d’Artois)
Nothing to report
Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
Nothing to report
Webminister (Lord Pietro di Conti)
We have a website!
Sent Warrant for Appointment to the Office of Group Webminister to Kingdom Webminister at the Request of Rhiannon Mulholland
Updated Castle Wars website
Posted in-person polling announcement
New profile pages for:
Lord Guido of Axbridge
Lord Lucis Wicanius Cicero
Lord Jacob Mór
Captain Nikoslav Mikolaevich
Safa
Updated profile pages for:
Lord Nikon Dawidowicz (device, awards, and spelling)
Captain Brendan de Hay (awards)
Lady Myndee of South Downs (awards)
Lord Quintus Valerius Gracchus (awards)
THL Mark de Wytteney (awards)
Lord Jarec Markov (awards)
THL Juliane de Vivonne (awards)
Master Davio de la Rouge (awards)
Minister of Children (Lady Myndee of South Downs, THL Mark de Wytteney reporting)
Much of the Minister of Children’s report is regarding Castle Wars
One of the things thats important about the office is the issue of background checks. However, the MiC of a local group is the only one who is allowed to be sponsored/paid for by the Kingdom to get a background check – not even her deputy can be allowed to have a background check through the Kingdom. This restriction is causing problems with events with good turnouts for kids, such as Castle Wars. We’re not allowed to leave any children unsupervised, or supervised by a non-cleared volunteer – if one kid needs to go to the bathroom, they all need to go to the bathroom
We would love to have enough authorized support (without having to depend on the occiasional MiC from another group) to be able to split the group into younger and older kids so everyone can do cool things
Mock court was a huge success
We want to be able to get the kids active in what they are interested in doing in the society – not just passively doing arts and crafts “kids’ activities”
Mairghread mentioned her experiences with youth marshaling, comparing and contrasting her requirements with background checks with what the MiC has to go through
It was clarified that the Kingdom will only pay for one background check for an MiC per group, and that outside background checks are not applicable in the SCA. It was asked if it’s possible for the Barony to pay for an additional background check through the Kingdom, and if we knew how much the background check would cost, if finances are part of the problem? Can the group sponsor additional background checks?
Seneschal (Master Wistric Oftun)
If you haven’t signed in, please sign in
The 4th Wednesday this month is Boxing Day, there will be no meeting
Their Excellencies
His Excellency greeted the populace “Hi! I’m your lame duck baron!”
He then asked if anyone was going to Magna Faire, and what activities they were planning on taking part in – A+S? Fencing? Anything else?
Other SCA Business
Castle Wars Post-Mortem
THL Juliane stated that the #1 lesson learned was that we have the most awesome kingdom in the world
HRH Sebastiannos commented that his #1 lesson learned whas “Don’t give a kid a big tin of candy and let him go off with it!”
Other lessons:
When we got on site, we realized we didn’t have all the things we need for the lyst field – marking tape, flags, etc.
We should have a check off list for the field in advance
As a barony, we delineate in advance what each staff position involves, so there’s no confusion and less stress (esp for new people wanting to volunteer)
3 hr courts are long
His Excellency really liked the idea of morning court to take care of a lot of the smaller awards done
HRM mentioned they had roving court which helped, but His Excellency pointed out the only people who would see court would be those who happened to be there
Having a co-autocrat would also be a great mentoring opportunity
Everyone needs a Nikon! But seriously, having a general assistant is a great idea
Iazzie mentioned that at MGT the autocrat has the co-autocrat take up the next year’s event. This would also help educate the autocrat – they have a year to find out all the details while co-ing
Issues that couldn’t be anticipated – at the Shrine, the radios didn’t work between the hall and the field. need to figure out how to work around it.
Lucien mentioned that Tir Briste has 3 co-autocrats (for Fools War?), each with a specific area of the event, so one person doesn’t have to run back and forth – makes communication around the event site much easier
Duke Thomas pointed out that CW is one of the biggest events of the kingdom, so we really should have a team of (co) autocrats just to manage
Landcrat
We need to address parking issues
Parking was really problematic, site manager was grumpy
We should have a parking team to manage where cars go as people arrive, especially with events this size. PARKING CZAR!
(Ximon) Cleanup
The people who were there until the end did an amazing job
We might consider working with a smaller group (for $$$) to help with set up and break down
Iazzie suggested that we contact Gulf Wars people to see how they handle volunteers for setup and breakdown
Andreva pointed out that yes, we make a decent profit with Castle Wars, but we also have had events over the year that have lost a lot of money
Volunteer raffle on Sunday didn’t get a great turnout because it was on Sunday
Lucien mentioned that we spent a lot of time on Sunday doing trash runs. Perhaps the pottycrat team could also do trash runs throughout the weekend.
Wistric mentioned that (Ben) had an idea – his Amtgard group has each camping group assigned a camp master, and each camp submits a deposit at registration. When their group is cleared to go, they get their deposit back.
Make it a competition? Whoever leaves their camp the quickest and cleanest gets an attaboy and kudos. hmm…
Better advertising in general for calling for volunteers
Rain was also an issue because the portapotties couldn’t be set where they needed to be – portapotty groups were supposed to be where the trash cans were set.
Andreva pointed out that it wasn’t that the site was trashed – it was that piles of trash bags were left at the portapotties, and it took forever for Ximon and Farouq to load up the trash and haul it to the dumpsters.
Could the parking people also inform groups about the trash situation – where the dumpsters are and that everyone is expected to dispose of their trash before they leave?
Perhaps the pottycrat could also have a trash detail throughout the weekend, going along camps collecting trash bags?
Dumpster locations? We can place them anywhere, since we have it brought in ourselves
Problem – the portapotty truck could not get on the swamped field, which is why so many cars were left on the field
Ximon, Lucien, Lorenzo, Wistric, and Ben did an awesome job
Truck was totally worth it, but it cost a lot more than was budgeted. Need to revisit budget for the truck
HRH mentioned that it would save the Barony a lot of money in repairing the castle wars by getting a trailer that is dedicated to storing the walls
Storing walls in storage unit, good short term solution but trailer is good long-term solution
RV fees were more than we expected/were told. need to clear that up
Midwinter Arts + Sciences
Please check with Lady Alisandre if you are interested in volunteering. We already have several volunteers for troll
Justina mentioned that we are looking for teachers for the Courtesans’ track – classes on any of the courtly arts, not just “R-rated,” are welcome
We are opening bids for Spring Coronation (HRH Sebastiannos and Morgan!), which will be held at the Fools War site
We need an autocrat for Red Tower 2019
Other SCA Business
Andreva announced that if you aren’t going to Magna Faire, she will be performing that same evening with her new vocal chamber group and invites everyone to come to the concert. It’s their first concert and “we have no idea what is going to happen.”
Mathias and Mara are planning a fuzzy PJs and dinner party (when?)
Next business meeting will be held Wednesday, 2 January 2019, at the Doraville Civic Center. Happy holidays and a happy new year!
Celebrity Guest Meeting Space – Cathedral of St. Philip
Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter, South Downs Chronicler.
Herald (THL Lucien d’Artois) called the meeting to order. Master Wistric sez “Welcome! If you did not sign in, please sign in!”
Red Tower Post-Mortem
Lady Veronica da Lucca and Lord Mark de Wytteney, co-autocrats thanked everyone who worked on Red Tower – the event was awesome!
Veronica especially thanked all the staff and volunteers who rocked even in the brutal heat
We’ve already booked the site for next year
Comments and Observations
The people who had said they were going to do Friday night traveler’s fare couldn’t make it at the last minute, and it didn’t get covered in time. We will come up with alternate plans for future events, to make sure such offerings are covered
Several people mentioned that we could use more signs for that site (Camp Rutledge at Hard Labor Creek State Park), as they thought they had gotten lost (especially once they got to the unpaved section). “Is that a banjo? No, a hurdy-gurdy. Burma shave.”
Having trash cans on the field would be great, but everyone took great care of the lyst field – it was left crazy clean! The park rangers complimented us on how clean we left the site
The bathroom staff should be on site as early as possible to double-check the bathrooms and showers, to make sure they are suitably clean and stocked (especially with hand soap and paper towels)
Wistric asked if the two portapotties on the lyst field were sufficient – everyone seemed to think they were; perhaps add a hand wash station on the field?
Having a checklist for baronial supplies for each bin would make packing up a lot easier. Lucien said he’s already working on it, and the checklists should be ready by Castle Wars
It was suggested that Pietro should post the inventory on the baronial website so everyone knows what we have
We should make sure we have plenty of propane included
Sunday morning – the site closes at 10:00am, so we should have more voice heralds to nudge attendees; we should also announce the closing time more frequently throughout the day and at court
An additional checklist should be created for closing up cabins – perhaps posted in each cabin at the beginning of the event
Landcrat/crittercrat
Wasp spray would be helpful
The site should be checked for fire ants (again) before the site opens – there were some problems on the lyst field with them
Lots of praise for the live weapons set up – they felt part of the overall fighting, as opposed to isolated from the rest of the action
Lots of praise for lots of fighting – fighting all day long, even in the heat
Water on the field was handled pretty well, but others mentioned that we should have 3 water barrels per marshal space and one in the hall, as water started to run out on the field
Need to work the parking pass situation out – the site balked at the request for 100 parking pass Friday morning, and only gave 50 to the troll on Friday. Perhaps try to acquire them a few days in advance
Should we get golf carts for the site?
This had been investigated previously for Castle Wars, and the price they got was $1000 to rent a couple of golf carts
Ximon suggested that if we paid him $100, he’d happily shuttle people back and forth from the field to the hall
The idea of a shuttle person as one of the staff could be a really good idea/alternative to golf carts, actually
Bloody Ridge was really happy to have the opportunity to do the fundraiser lunch, but the logistics became difficult because the lunch area was back at the hall and therefore far from the field (where most of the people were). Suggestions were made to have a takeaway option or delivery option to the field? However, unless we run the fundraiser lunch ourselves, we can only make recommendations
The Gods Quest was a big success, especially for the kids
Her Excellency mentioned that she was also pleased with the set up of archery and live weapons, allowing them to feel much more a part of the overall fighting, and the Gods Quest – it would be great to do a similar quest for future events; having the Quest printed on the event flyers was a great idea
Her Excellency suggested that we might want to consider:
Having trash bags available at Troll for each cabin to pick up at check in
Making sure breakfast was provided to TRHs – their entourage is supposed to be in charge of that
Extending a special invitation to Master Evan to bring his book collection to a special scriptoria at a future event
Thinking about how to better use our baronial banners
Include in event staff dedicated people to help set up and take down baronial and kingdom pavilions
Encouraging an A+S class schedule for Red Tower – there were people who chose not to attend because there was a lack of classes
Veronica mentioned that there had been an executive decision to focus on fighting, but we also need volunteers to teach classes – please don’t wait for others to set up classes
Revel – Veronica thought it went really well, but there was some confusion about whether it was “official.” The alternate, family-friendly revel never really happened, but it was a good idea and should be planned earlier and advertised more to get a good turnout.
Minister of Children staff – if anyone is interested in volunteering, it would be a great help to the staff, as the kids groups could then be split up with the two credentialed leaders. Lady Melusine will investigate what (if any) background checks will be necessary for secondary volunteers, and how many credentialed people will be needed per number of volunteers.
Feastcrats need to make sure that they have their own supply of dish soap for this site, as it is not provided
The Barony has acquired a supply of new dishes and other kitchen supplies that need to be labeled. These will be brought to December’s project night so everything can be properly labeled and added to the inventory
Storage load out on Friday went really well. Lucien noted that moving forward, there will no longer be vehicle access to the storage facility, so we should look at cart options (perhaps at Costco?) to help get supplies into and out of the storage unit
The Barony is also considering moving to another storage facility, priorities being vehicle access and climate-controlled units
The event site has terrible coffee makers; we thought we had Baronial coffee makers, but apparently they died at a previous event. A voice vote was taken to replace the coffee makers (because coffee!)
In response to the issues surrounding the 10:00am site closing on Sunday, it was explained that this is because of the ranger schedule
Exchequer report:
Assuming all numbers are correct, our income was $4,217.98; with expenses totaling $3,166.63, our net profit was $1,051.35.
Castle Wars Business
Her Majesty has requested that the White Rose Ball be held at Castle Wars
There is some clarification needed about how this will be funded – from the Roses’ budget, or the Castle Wars event budget?
Lady Juliane still needs volunteers:
A hall steward
Someone to run the regular revel
Wistric talked to Duke Sinclair of Atlantia about bringing his tavern again to Castle Wars, and if so, we can do the revel there. We still ahve $355 from the Artsy Crown fundraiser lunch for a booze budget
For contributions to the volunteer raffle
How many war points will there be? Looking at five war points
Other SCA Business
Baronial nominations!
Piers Simmons nominated Sir Iastreb and THL Mariana
Lord Farouq nominated Master Wistric and Mistress Sunneva
Duke John nominated THL Lucien and Lady Juliane
Iazzie asked if the Barony had spoken to the Crown about the polling process. His Excellency mentioned that we are working under a compressed timeframe now, so we have talked to TRM to move the polling schedule more quickly than usual. It is important that anyone who wants to vote makes certain they have confirmed their ZIP code is within the Baronial boundaries or have otherwise followed the rules to be included in the voting
They are currently deciding whether ballots will be mailed or if polling will be at the meeting – it is important that as many people can be reached/included as possible
Current timeline includes having the investiture at Midwinter A+S
Polling should be mailed in early November, but it will be up to TRM when the decision will be made
TRM will ultimately choose whoever they want – this is a polling (where they take into consideration the views of the Baronial populace), not a vote in the usual sense
We will hold a Q+A for the candidates during the November business meeting (7 November)
With no other business, Lucien closed the meeting and dinner plans were discussed.
PLEASE NOTE: Next South Downs business meeting will be held Wednesday, 7 November 2018, at the Doraville Civic Center, 3770 Central Avenue, Doraville, GA. We will meet at the usual time, Wednesday 7-9pm.
Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter, South Downs Chronicler.
Herald (THL Lucien d’Artois) called the meeting to order. Master Wistric sez “Welcome! If you did not sign in, please sign in!”
Officer Reports
Herald (THL Lucien d’Artois)
Events – Legends
Lord Lucien D’Artois – Grant of Arms
Lady Mairghread Wilson – Argent Shield
Sable of South Downs – Award of Arms
Submissions registered at LOAR
Lady Juliane de Vivonne – badge
Master Mathias Blackett and Mistress Mara Palmer – joint badge; household name was returned
Ruqayah al-Zarqa – device change
Submissions in Society Commentary
Jurgen der Vielfrass – new name and device
Quintus Valerius Gracchus – new name and device
Lady Alisandre de la Chapelle – new device
Lady Myndee of of South Downs – new name and device
Nikon Davidowicz – new name and device
Lord Mark de Wyttenye – new alternate name and device
Lady Stella di Silvestri – new alternate name; badge was returned at Kingdom
Submissions in Kingdom Commentary
THL Andreva Rigaldi – new name
Margot de Saint Denis – device resubmission
Submitted to Kingdom
Tryggvi Tryggsson – new name
Armored and Youth Marshal (Lady Mairghread)
Armored
Sir Gelleys has offered up an armored practice for unit/melee training, to be held the second Sunday of the month, in order to make ready for fall events (including Foxes and Castle Wars)
Project night, focusing on armor workshops and repairing loaner gear, will take place next week at Baronial Project Night.
The Kingdom Marshallate will count the Tuesday evening armored practice held at Swift Cantrell as an Owl’s Nest practice, since the location is within the shire and many of the participants are members of the shire
Jaden Baron has agreed to be the new deputy armored marshal (yay!)
Owl’s Nest (Lady Mairghread is serving as their knight marshal until they have one established)
Received the rest of the loaner gear from Crispin
Owl’s Nest has finally got their own knight marshal again (yay!), so Mairghread no longer has to be responsible for that anymore. The joint Owl’s Nest/South Downs’ Tuesday evening armored practice at Swift Cantrell will continue as before.
Youth
Nothing to report
Live Weapons Marshal (Mistress Mara Palmer)
Our practices are averaging about 10 people per practice, with 5-8 people on a line at a time
We’ve also been getting a lot of kids attending practice (or wanting to), so we will be looking at acquiring more youth loaner gear; we still have funds available from our initial budget request, so we will just move forward with the purchases
This Sunday (15 July), their Excellencies will host the Live Weapons Baronial Championship, so come on out! We will have a celebrity guest marshal to marshal the event
Mara is looking for volunteers to become live weapons marshals-in-training; if interested, please contact her directly
Practices. We are still having them (even without Brendan) Sunday afternoons, concurrent with armored. Tuesday evening practices at 7pm, at Liane Levetan / Brook Run Park in Dunwoody. We’re averaging 2-12 people. For updates regarding rapier practices, go to the Atlanta SCA Fighting Facebook group.
Brendan thanked Master Ximon for his help in getting loaner gear to practices when he (Brendan) had work conflicts with practices.
We have plenty of rapier marshals-at-large, so even when Brendan can’t attend practice, there has been no problem with having marshal coverage at practices
Reminder: Lord Konrad will be hosting a regional rapier practice at his home in Jasper. Facebook link to the event is here.
Chatelaine (Lady Justina di Silvestri)
Justina has a carful of gold key that was donated by a former SCAdian that she will need help processing/repairing.
Justina would like to hold another Baronial swap meet before? after? DragonCon, since she may not have use for all the donated items.
If you have borrowed any Gold Key, please return to Justina as soon as possible. Thanks!
Lady Justina taught last month’s class on poisons and the macabre and was well received
Katerina will teach this month’s class, on the new PayPal system for reservations. If you are interested in volunteering with troll at an SCA event, please come out for this class. She will teach both parts, covering reservations, troll, etc. THL Andreva encouraged everyone to consider taking the class, because the more people who are approved to handle the new Paypal registration/payment system, the easier it will be for those running troll at events.
Reminder: Sunneva has made a schedule for all of 2018 as a Google Docs spreadsheet so you (yes, you!) can sign up to teach a class at one of our monthly A&S nights. She is pleased to report we have classes scheduled through most of the rest of the year; there is also a list in development for alternate/back up classes, so even if there are no specific dates available, please sign up!
Reeve (THL Andreva Rigaldi)
Quarterly report was due yesterday (10 July), and was submitted on time
Our current accounts show that we had $10,621 in the bank at the beginning of the quarter, and we are now at approximately $8,000. This is due to having just made payments such as the storage unit rental, site fees, etc., and is rather average for us at this time of the year. Our two big events in the fall will take care of our finances.
Mistress Allesandra will be the new deputy (yay!)
Quartermaster (THL Lucien d’Artois)
We have stuff! Yay!
Lucien planning to have another storage unit inventory update after Pennsic; he had planned to do this before Pennsic, but he has been asked by Sol Haven’s quartermaster to help them get set up.
Webminister (Lord Pietro di Conti)
We have a website!
Updates
Disk cleanup to get under the web site’s disk quota
Added Castle Wars 2018 banners and “Your Fate in the War of Roses” random image generator game – sharable to Facebook. Several members of the populace commented on how much fun the game is!
Updated Red Tower 2018 site with initial blurb, event site, link to Facebook page, link from toolbar
Updated website to WordPress 4.9.6
Added ability to share to social media from AtlantaSCA and tinkered with which images are used as thumbnails on facebook
Swapped Lucien and Ximon as Quartermaster and Deputy Quartermaster
Updated Alisandre to be Deputy A&S Minister
Updated honors and titles for Lucien, Sable, and Mairghread from Legends event
Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
Raven mentioned that recently, a couple of people had shown interest in becoming the deputy Chronicler, and asked if anyone is interested, please contact her directly.
Justina mentioned she is interested in serving as deputy, and has ideas about expanding social media opportunities, perhaps in conjunction with the Chatelaine?
Seneschal (Master Wistric Oftun)
After the recent “Find All The Sites” session, approximately 80 potential sites have been identified for further research. Anyone interested in helping research these potential sites, please contact Wistric.
A Future Farmers of America (FFA) site in Conyers was suggested by a member of the populace who had attended an event there recently. This has been added to the list.
It’s great that so many officers have gotten deputies lined up. All officers should consider finding a deputy for their position
September brings DragonCon!
Lady Stella is coordinating our presence at the parade. For those planning to attend, please check out the SCA at DragonCon page.
Owl’s Nest will be managing the table this year.
Ximon commented that he will again offer a six-pack (or equivalent) adult beverage of their choice to anyone who helps pull the chariot in the parade this year
Castle Wars!
Sir Iazzie is still waiting on getting the additional walls built – the funds are standing by.
Questions were raised about who owns the walls – Iazzie says we (South Downs) do, but things aren’t clear about the ownership of the towers
Things need to be determined about ownership and deputy ownership (in case the point person for the walls/towers is no longer available)
Do we still want to create a demo box? What would we want to include in it?
StreetsAlive will take place 30 September along Peachtree Street. Sawyer won’t be able to organize it, but Mistress Margavati can get info to Wistric to get things going. (note: this is the same weekend as MGT)
A high school teacher from Coweta County who attended the History Bee is interested in having us come do a demo at their school
Their Excellencies
Adela has re-authorized as an armored fighter! To celebrate, the baronial armored champion tournament will feature all combatants to fight her to sort out the fighters into brackets
Lorenzo is hoping to authorize in rapier by Red Tower
Their Excellencies reminded the populace that the baronial live weapons champion tournament will be held this Sunday during the live weapons practice, so come on out!
For those wanting to go to the live weapons practice and need arrows, they are available locally – just make sure you specify wood shaft, feather fletching, how much your bow draws (pounds) and the length of your draw
Upcoming events!
Royal University of Meridies (RUM) / Fighters’ Collegium (20-22 July)
Will be held in Murfreesboro – come on out!
Tournament of the Foxes (21-23 September)
We have sponsored Baronial teams for rapier and archery; we would love to also have an all-South Downs armored combat team as well! Represent!
Upcoming Events
Red Tower (5-7 October 2018), co-Autocrat Lady Veronica reporting
We have all volunteer positions covered; Veronica read through the list to confirm
Veronica will get together with Andreva and Mathias to work through herald logistics and duties
Mara requested donations of large pieces of cardboard for live weapons targets
Lorenzo asked about site tokens – Veronica has a bagful of tokens from past events that she will be using
Castle Wars (15-18 November 2018)
Juliane needs volunteers! We already have 378 (via the Facebook event page) planning on attending.
If we don’t offer a GTFO breakfast Sunday morning, we should at least make sure there’s coffee “so people don’t die”
There was discussion about offering a volunteer war point, perhaps a York vs Lancaster competition
Need donations for the volunteer raffle
Ximon asked about a truck rental to haul supplies from the storage unit (and walls?) – Juliane confirmed the truck rental is included in the approved budget
Andreva reminded everyone that per Kingdom law, any receipts submitted for reimbursement can not include any personal items on the receipt, regardless of how minor the cost.
Midwinter A+S (9 February 2019)
We have a theme! The Gutenburg Printing Press!
That’s pretty much all that’s ready to mention now
Other SCA Business
The Knowne Worlde Courtesans Guild podcast is live, baby! Justina is one of the podcast’s field reporters. She said they are looking for interviews, stories, poetry and other cultural aspects of SCA life. The podcast will be a digital salon hosted by the courtesans of the Knowne World Courtesans Guild and featuring artisans of historical arts from across the world. Tune in for intelligent discussion of history, re-enacting the pre-1600s world, and news of the Society. If you are interested in talking about your art, please contact Justina and she will be happy to chat with you!
In local courtesan news, the Courtesans of Meridies are sponsoring an adult-themed scribal challenge at Meridies Fall Coronation 2018! They want to see your naughty scribal side…
Prize: Replica Roman brothel coins (spintriae) and more!
Rules: Teams allowed, tracing allowed, incomplete allowed, documentation encouraged but not required.
Due to the nature of the subject, ONLY AGES 18+ may enter this challenge.
Justina is also sponsoring a category in the Meridies Scribal Challenge for Fall Coronation!
Best use of Poisonous Pigment in a Scroll
Prize: Historic poisonous plant seeds for the garden
Teams allowed, tracing allowed, documentation encouraged. Please include a description of materials used. Have fun!!!
Ca d’Oro has teamed up with the Sable and Gules Theater at Gulf Wars 2019. Lady Þýri’s fashion show was incredibly inspiring, so they are going to host a fashion show Monday of Gulf and will process to the Ca d’Oro department for a salon to discuss what each of them are wearing. They are looking for models – show off your garb of all eras and inspire newcomers! If you are interested, please contact Justina, or Sable and Gules directly
Iazzie mentioned that we need to start thinking about kingdom-level bids for 2019 – perhaps RUM/Fighters’ Collegium?
Non-SCA Business
None
Next South Downs business meeting will be held Wednesday, 1 August 2018, at Little Tree Art Studios.
