Baron & Baroness Letter - November 2020

Greetings and well met to those here present;

Most times I try to talk about the amazing things going on in our Barony - and those things are no less amazing today than any other - we have a wonderful Trident Tourney coming up next year with the investiture of our heirs, Toki and Thyri. We have amazing officers who work tirelessly to make sure our group keeps running and people who donate their time and effort to teach.

But we also have hard and difficult times afoot, and for the moment, we're going to face those head on.

There is no gainsaying that everyone's stress level is significantly higher in recent days due to mundane politics, SCA politics, and the general 'operational fatigue' of not getting to do our hobbies and things that relax us.

Her Excellency and I have noticed that everyone seems just slightly more on edge. Just slightly more tense. With just slightly less patience for themselves and others. To quote my good friend, Don Brian, this is neither good, nor bad. It simply 'is'.

I would like to invite the populace to our next populace meeting through zoom - during that meeting, I have asked our Seneschal Hextilda to allow Her Excellency and I to speak first where normally we have asked that the focus be on the officers. She has graciously allowed us to do so.

We need to talk about how we can come together, going forwards. We need to talk about how to not only have grace and compassion for others but for ourselves as well. And we need to talk about the road ahead as our time as your Coronet winds down into the history of our Barony.

Her Excellency and I took the Coronets with one singular purpose - to bring as many people together in our group as possible. And we're seeing all these tiny stress fractures across our group that drive people away, not together. And so we need to talk about how to work towards unity, not disparity. Towards communication, not disconnection. Towards the group, not the individual.

Together, we are the Barony. And it's hard - incredibly so - to remember that sometimes when we are physically far apart and when interest can lag because of these pressing times. I will only remind you, as I have done before, that this is but a passing shadow.

In closing, I would again like to invite as many who would wish attend to do so for our next populace meeting where we can discuss how to go forwards from shadow and into light.

Yours in love, and a sworn service to this Barony that will never end,
James and Milesenda
Baron and Baroness of Darkwater

Ring of Chivalry Ballot 2020

Baron & Baroness Letter - July 2020

Hail and well met!

As we move towards the end of summer, Her Excellency and I want to remind everyone to please be as safe as possible. Cases seem to be on the rise and I would not wish to see another name on Trimaris Lost for all the world.

On to happier news! Expect information forthcoming about a Digital Village Faire event where we will have a host of classes and will end the day with an 'Ethereal Court". We are basically only waiting on hearing who our heirs are to begin active planning for that event.

For those who may have been interested in our fighter community, there are loads of online classes being present - I believe there are some among the Armored Community that I am not aware of, but in the Rapier community there is this: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1867526233377714/

The Virtual Academy of the Rapier covers both fencing classes as well as generic fighting theory and technique classes. If you're interested, give them a look.

If you'll forgive the cliche, I feel it best to end on a quote - from someone with better words than I.

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”


Yours in service,
James and Milesenda
Baron and Baroness of Darkwater

Populace Meeting Minutes July 2020

July 2, 2020: Barony of Darkwater Populace Meeting - Zoom meeting online

Officers in Attendance:
Lady Ursula Blackpool - Chronicler
Lord Kylan Hundr - Constable
HL Hextilda Marshall - Seneschal
Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune- Deputy Seneschal - Social Media Liason
Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi - Archery Marshal
HL David Archer - Quartermaster
Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol - Exchequer
Lord Thomas von Wildtstein - Webmaster
Lady Margarita di Rossi - Chatelaine
Baron James Highgate - Baron
Baroness Milesenda de Bourges - Baroness
HL Hywel ap Wyn - Knight’s Marshal

Officers Not in Attendance:
HL Calpurnia Fortunata - Art Sci (Research and Projects)
HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara
Master Clothar Bructerus - Rapier Marshal
HL Gareth Dalyngrige - Librarian
HL Hadassah bat Josef - Chamberlain

1. Call to order - Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
2. Greeting by Seneschal - HL Hextilda Marshall
1. SCA local chapter description
3. Confirm Minutes Approved Offline
1. Motion to approve the minutes:
2. Seconded by:
3. Motion passed
4. Officers reports.
1. Seneschal (President) HL Hextilda Marshall
1. We do not have any word on the polling but we are awaiting word so we can plan for the future.
2. The officers decided to cancel the contract with Kiwanis for Village Faire
1. There will still be a Village Faire of some kind
1. We have received the refund check for both Clans and Village Faire
2. They are excited to have us back at a later date and understand why we are not returning at this time.
2. We would like to hear what your thoughts and ideas are about how this event should be held.
1. Options at this time:
1. Meet at a park
2. 2 day event with fighters on one day and art another
3. All online
4. Baron Gavine Armestrang: This is more than just VF. This is also kind of to start getting a bit more information on what
5. Lady Ursula Blackpoole: read over the notes from the previous Officer meeting to touch on thoughts brought up then.
6. HL Hextilda Marshall reminded everyone about the idea of using color bracelets to show your level of comfort with a hug, touching, or social distancing.
1. HL David Archer - for the bracelets, we should talk to other seneschals in the Kingdom to coordinate the color scheme for this.
2. Propose to other Baronies
7. Question to the Populace: How do you feel about coming back, what is your safety level, etc?
1. Baron James Highgate: Guiding star on this is to wait on anything, even a day trip, until numbers are getting lower… Much lower.
2. Mistress Adelheid Leinwater: A month and a ½ is short notice, even for a day event. I suggest a virtual event and if for some reason we can get together, we can find a park/somewhere to put it together. Flu season is real, even when we don’t have Covid. But this is when school goes back and I don’t think we want to think about an event when there might be a Covid upswing at that time.
1. I don’t think the Kingdom has even allowed a meeting face to face
1. Hextilda said we can plan, but we can’t really have it yet.
3. Lady Ursula Blackpoole: Really feels this is dangerous when this is when we are going back to school and a number of us are teachers and that is dangerous for us to feel like we might be bringing the virus into an event with our friends and loved ones.
4. Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune: I think the whole idea of the wrist bands, while cool, needs to be set aside until we have a definite get back together again. There has to be a flyer, regardless of what we plan, turned into Talewinds, so that we can have a court if our Baron and Baroness would like to.
5. Gravin Eva van Oudeachterko: Thank you Adelheid for saying what I was thinking. I would like to also have a virtual event. We could have classes, an official court, etc.
6. HL David Archer: Based on the new school situation, we agree and support we should cancel all in person from events till the start of the year. ~ David & Brittany
7. Brian Retzlaff: I vote nothing in person until 2 months after we get the all clear.
8. Christine Chabrier: At the A/S meeting, she volunteered to talk to another group about a Art/Sci competition. They are having another meeting as we meet now, and they will be doing a virtual A/S competition in the future. This could be used as guidelines, etc for doing this. I think we should plan to do it the A/S Regional virtually in case we need it.
9. Lady Thyri Bersi: Not just the numbers going down, will make it okay for an event. Going downward does not make us safe.
10. Mistress Adelheid Leinwater: She is going to take the information Christine and the A/S meeting talked about and go to the Laurels to see if we can have the Regional Art/Sci virtually? This even could be really large as it is online and would have a larger Kingdom approach.
11. Michael De Lace: I want to have events this weekend, as a fighter, but I do think we need to be safe.
12. THL Valgard: I feel safe, but I respect everyone else’s opinion about holding off. Though I would like to get back with the fighting community.
13. Lady Ursula Backpoole: I think we definitely need to talk to IAN to see if he wants to have his event at Trident or Clans. We should NOT just put a virtual event on him without talking to him first.
14. HL Hywel ap Wyn: would like to move his event to a real event
1. Question: Do you want to have your event at Trident - at the Investiture?
1. He is okay with it, but would like to check with his people beforehand to make sure they are okay with it.
15. Mistress Adelheid Leinwater: Can we schedule an additional meeting to plan the VF online event?
1. We will message back and forth with Baroness Milesenda de Bourges to make a day for a meeting where we can plan this.
16. Even if we do a 1 day event in the future: We need a fighter event. So that they can play as well.
17. Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune- : Thumbs up and down on a virtual meeting.
1. 13 votes to have the event online with 22 people in the room.
18. HL Hextilda Marshall: Motion to move Village Faire to a virtual event in September.
1. HL David Archer Seconded the motion
2. Motion Passed by the officers
3. When will officers make a decision to participate in Lady of the Lakes:
1. Lady Ursula Blackpoole - Wait till August to make a decision
2. Mistress Adelheid Leinwater- Let the people from Lady of the Lakes know that we will not be present so that they can start to prepare.
3. Christine Chabrier - Considering the number of people that don’t wear masks here in Lake County. I don’t think we should attend.
4. LeAnn Meyrick- My family will NOT be attending.
5. Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune- My first event should be with friends and family I know and will try to be safe. Not 1000s of strangers with bad behaviors we have seen in previous years.
6. HL Tahmineh Ctesiphoni: Plan for the best and I love the optimism in the room, but realistically we probably will not be able to hold events in November and December. If everyone was social distancing/wearing masks, etc, then maybe, but since that isn’t what we are seeing.
7. Lady Thyri Bersi - Toki has recovered from Cancer. Due to this, we will NOT be at Lady of the Lakes
4. How large would a fighter event be?
1. What does Duke U. normally run.
1. A decent attendance with many people.
2. When it is announced that an official event with fighting is allowed, everyone will be there.
2. Mistress Adelheid Leinwater: I have been to a couple Duke U events and both had an easy 100 at those.
3. Lady Thyri Bersi: TAD is a martial event for archery and it runs about 75-100 for it.
4. Baron Gavine Armstrang - A just fighter event will be easier to plan than a more involved/regular type of event. If we do plan to have Trident: It still needs to be planned. It is easier to cancel than plan at the last minute.
5. Mistress Adelheid Leinwater: Might want a larger than normal event staff. If it is okay to happen, Trident will be a very LARGE event as it will be one of the first events we have face-to-face and it will be an investiture. We will probably have close to 300 or 350 people there.
6. HL David Archer - We currently have the highest rate in the whole country. And number 6 in highest number of cases and total deather. Keep that in mind when you are thinking about events.
5. I am currently at the ½ way mark of my Seneschal and would love to get deputies in line
1. Currently we have one: Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
2. But we are always ready to look for others interested.
2. Constable - Lord Kylan Hundr
1. No Report
3. Exchequer (Treasure) Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol
1. All of our outstanding check requests have been paid
2. Let her know if you have any that you need to be paid
3. Insurance
1. If you reschedule in the same year, we get a full refund
1. As we are doing refunds to be used for next year, we will get ½ of the amount back.
4. We had a successful class for reservations through Zoom
5. Contact the deputy of training if you are interested in Exchequer 101 that will be held on July 15th.
6. Remember that reports are due: Officers and Cantons! Please email her with questions.
4. Quartermaster - David Archer
1. Populace - Some things have been donated. Please check the meeting notes from Monday to see them.
5. Art Sci (Research and Projects) -HL Calpurnia Fortunata ( not in attendance)
1. She is currently looking for a deputy as she is at her ½ way point.
2. The class schedule is good at this time
3. We would like to have people to teach after July. Please see her if you need to talk.
6. Herald - Baron Gavine Armestrang
1. No Report
7. Chatelaine (Retention and Recruitment) - Lady Margarita di Rossi
1. Lady of the Lakes is currently planning to go forth as scheduled
1. She has let them know that we do NOT know for sure what we will be doing at that time.
2. We are still planning for it, in the hopes that we do have an event.
1. At this time, we cannot post about an event online until the SCA allows it. Noted by Lady Thyri Bersi
2. Currently she is looking for someone to take on deputy for her office as well.
8. Marshal (Referee) - HL Hywel ap Wyn (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
9. Rapier Marshal -Master Clothar Bructerus (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
10. Archery Marshal - HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi
1. Darkwater Archery Marshal is also available for a new deputy to take over.
2. You do have to be warranted, but reach out and I will help you on your way.
11. Thrown Weapons Marshal - No current Marshall
1. No Report
12. Webmaster - Lord Thomas von Wildtstein
1. No Report
13. Chronicler - Lady Ursula Blackpool
1. Please send us or post your stuff - What hobbies are you working on? Send us pictures or a handout that we can post online. We would like to keep the SCA alive and interesting, even if it has to be online instead of in person.
5. HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
6. Baron and Baroness: Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. Apology for not being at the Officer Meeting
2. It is really wonderful to see how people are trying to keep the SCA alive in this, but remember to go slowly and carefully.
3. Please don’t take the risk of meeting up when it is not more important than your health and well being.
7. Cantons
1. Loch Griffin - HL Hywel ap Wyn
1. No Report at this time
2. Swamp Keep - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. Did the scheduling time work out for the 18th for a meeting?
1. In theory on the 18th of July Swamp Keep will have a social hour.
2. She is checking with Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
3. Seminole County SCA group - Cathy Abernathy
1. No Report at this time
8. Guilds
1. Scribal - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges
1. No report
2. Brewer’s Guild - Cathy Abernathy
1. No report
3. Fiber Arts - Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
1. No report
4. Lampworkers Guild - Lady Thyri Bersi
1. No report
5. Dyers Guild - LeAnn Meyrick
1. No report
6. Performance/Bardic Guild - ?
1. No report
7. Cooking Guild - Lady Margarita di Rossi
1. No report
8. Costuming Guild - ?
1. No report
9. Herbal - Lady Rahil bint Haroun
1. No report
10. Craftsman - ?
1. No report
11. Defense - ?
1. No report
9. Upcoming Events
1. Currently on Hold
10. Announcements From the Populous
1. Mistress Adelheid Leinwater: Is putting together a calendar for Zoom/Virtual Events will be listed.
1. To make everyone’s life easier at being able to find events and meetings that are coming up virtually.
2. This would allow us to post the Zoom links to the calendar so that we don’t have to go back and forth to get to the links when it is time to meet.
3. We extended this offer to the other groups in the Kingdom at the Art/Sci meeting for the Kingdom last night. This way smaller groups, that don’t have access to the things they need, could have support, a Zoom room, etc.
4. Please email any classes to Baroness Ilene Johnnestouneor Mistress Adelheid Leinwater
2. Upcoming classes:
1. Christine de Pizan taught by HL Adelina
1. Time: Jul 9, 2020 07:00 PM
2. Home Apothecary Part #1 (salves and other items) taught by Meisterin Adelheid
1. Time: Jul 16, 2020 07:00 PM
3. Home Apothecary Part #2 Making tallow and soap taught by Meisterin Adelheid
1. Time: Jul 23, 2020 07:00 PM
4. Papyrus Making taught by Master Udvarhelyi Barar Aeryck
1. Time: Jul 30, 2020 07:00 PM
11. Adjournment
1. Next Officer Meeting is on Zoom on Monday, August 3rd
2. There is a populace meeting on Thursday, August 6th
3. Next Business Meeting at Fashion Square Mall is on hold
12. Meeting Closed - Baron Gavine Armstrang

Seneschal Letter July 2020

Greetings all.

I have a few things for you today. First off, I hope everyone is well and surviving these trying times. Remember we are all family and if you need help, let us know. We have been discussing events at the last two Financial Committee meetings and would like your input. We would like to know how comfortable you all feel with the idea of having day trip events in the future. We are looking at planning Village Fair and how to do it safely and successfully. The officers have decided to make it a day trip event. The question becomes what kind of day trip event we want to have. Do we want to meet at a park with a byo food and beverages along with social distancing measures? Maybe having wrist bands that help us identify how close we are comfortable with friends getting? Do we want to have an online class day like TRU? Do we want to have a hybrid between the two where the fighters can get together in small groups on one day and the classes can be held online the other day? Any other ideas? Our first priority is the health and wellbeing of our populace and that will be the main determining factor in whatever decisions we make. We will follow all state and county guidelines for gatherings. That being said, we would like your input on how to move forward and if we are even ready to think about moving forward.

Also, it has come to the time in my term to start looking for a successor deputy for the office of the Seneschal. If you have any interest in becoming the next Seneschal or would like to become a deputy please send me an email at seneschal@baronyofdarkwater.org.

I look forward to seeing everyone at the populace meeting this Thursday.

Hextilda Marshall

Aka

Kimberly Calvin

Officer Meeting Minutes July 2020

June 29th, 2020 - Barony of Darkwater Officer Meeting
Zoom meeting online

Officers in Attendance:
Lady Ursula Blackpool - Chronicler
Lord Kylan Hundr - Constable
Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol - Exchequer
Lord Thomas von Wildtstein - Webmaster
Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune- Deputy Seneschal - Social Media Liason
Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi - Archery Marshal
HL Hextilda Marshall - Seneschal
HL Calpurnia Fortunata - Art Sci (Research and Projects)
HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara
HL David Archer - Quartermaster

Officers Not in Attendance:
Baron James Highgate - Baron
Baroness Milesenda de Bourges - Baroness
Master Clothar Bructerus - Rapier Marshal
HL Gareth Dalyngrige - Librarian
Lady Margarita di Rossi - Chatelaine
HL Hadassah bat Josef - Chamberlain
HL Hywel ap Wyn - Knight’s Marshal

1. Call to order - Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
2. Greeting by Seneschal - HL Hextilda Marshall
1. SCA local chapter description
3. Confirm Minutes Approved Offline
1. Motion to approve the minutes: Baron Gavine Armestrang
2. Seconded by Gravin Eva van Oudeachterko
3. Motion passed
4. Officers reports.
1. Seneschal (President) HL Hextilda Marshall
1. Polling: Not sure if the crown will announce it or how it is going to work.
1. As soon as Hextilda knows, she will tell everyone else.
2. We have received the new contract from Kiwanis
1. There is a 60 day cancellation policy now.
1. This means we have about a month to make a decision on Village Faire
2. They also said that Camp Kiwanis is now open. There is a new lease agreement.
1. They will apply the Clans deposit to the next event… whenever that is.
2. They will calculate any difference at the time that we make a decision.
3. Gravin Eva- We have a contract for both Clans and Village Faire. We need to get a hold of Kiwanis to talk about this.
4. Prices on the lease are the same, but the following changes were made:
1. Full responsibility for any illness, damage, etc. is not on them.
2. Any sickness that happens, example Covid, while there, is NOT Kiwanis’ responsibility.
3. See the files on the Officer’s page to read through the lease/contract information from Kiwanis.
3. We will have a talk on Thursday, at the populace meeting to see if we want to do Village Faire or what it will look like.
1. Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune: Society is stating nothing and making no statements about this and all Kingdoms are making their own decisions.
2. The Kingdom Seneschal is still at the stance that we aren’t doing anything at this time. He has not given an idea of when it can happen.
1. The state still says only 50 people at an event.
1. We can’t gate lock at 51.
2. We need to have a tiered list of plans for the event so that we can have cut off for the event.
1. Do we day trip?
1. Gavine said that this would work best for a barbecue.
2. Gravin Eva suggested that everyone bring there own food.
2. Is it a full day trip?
3. Is there feast or not?
4. Can we comfortably have feast?
3. Money questions: Gravin Eva van Oudeachterko
1. We need 110 people to break even. NOT counting feast.
2. Insurance final decision date is August 14th.
3. July 24th is the final decision date to cancel the Kiwanis date.
4. Park suggestions if we need to day trip
1. Turkey Lake Park
2. Magnolia Park
3. Don Knight Park
4. What questions do we want to ask these parks? And we need to make calls.
1. Are they even accepting reservations for events.
2. What is the number you are willing to have at this park?
5. Populace/Officer Thoughts:
1. Thyri added that a lot of other things are cancelling until 2021. Examples: Broadway, etc.
2. Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune also noted that we might not want to do a meeting at Kiwanis.
3. Gravin Eva also put in that we schedule in July for the next year. It might be well to use them as we can use the money that we have already.
4. Ursula: Doesn’t feel safe to have an event at Village Faire
5. HL David Archer: Made a call to Lana and they do not feel that Kiwanis is a good idea. And if the numbers are high, they feel like a day event is also NOT safe.
6. LeAnn: Could we make this a virtual class event like TRU as Village Faire is a class event?
7. Jenn: Sing-a-longs? Populace hangouts/craft night? Etc?
8. Gavine and Ilene: Fight/Champion on one day and art/classes another day. Saturday/Sunday as an example.
1. Ursula: Will that really work with a 50 person cap? How many people will go to the park to see people?
2. Toki: What about court?
1. Hextilda: Online court can happen.
3. Because we will move Ian’s event to Trident maybe officers can do Village Faire’s day trip.
4. Trident: Make sure we ask Ian if he wants to take on an investiture.
3. Motion on the floor to CANCEL Kiwanis and make a day trip as a possible alternative for Village Faire:
1. Motion put on by: HL Hextilda Marshall
2. Seconded by: Gravin Eva van Oudeachterko
3. Motion Passed
4. Decisions about Trident are being made at a later date because we want to look at dates with the incoming Baron and Baroness named.
1. Dates for next year should also be made next month.
4. Color wristbands for closeness.
1. We have colors we can use for this so that people are aware about whether someone is comfortable with someone near them, hugging them, or handshakes, etc.
1. Calpurnia is going to look into getting the bracelets and pricing.
2. Gavine: link:
1. https://www.rapidwristbands.com/order?utm_source=adwords&utm_campaign=Custom+Wristbands&utm_medium=ppc&utm_term=%2Brubber%20%2Bwristbands%20%2Bcustom&hsa_kw=%2Brubber%20%2Bwristbands%20%2Bcustom&hsa_cam=340707437&hsa_src=g&hsa_tgt=kwd-38915364225&hsa_mt=b&hsa_grp=25983933077&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&hsa_acc=3184204708&hsa_ad=232740849775&gclid=Cj0KCQjwoub3BRC6ARIsABGhnybrX8tpEjgEm9aBtUc-v2jK8QzqMyGAgSKNqaOgGaRrHE4fHIzkLWsaAtLtEALw_wcB#/order
2. thats $100 for 225 (+200 free) 75/color, .41 each
5. How are we going to keep people safe when we are together?
1. Bring your own food.
2. No alcohol
3. Masks if still required/needed
4. State and Local requirements MUST be followed for that time.
6. Discussion next month… Start thinking of ideas now.
2. Constable - Lord Kylan Hundr
1. No Report
3. Exchequer (Treasure) Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol
1. Insurance: We had an event. Clans. That insurance is on hold. If we rescheduled it in 2020, we would only need to put in a new piece of paper. If we do it in 2021 it would be ½ back and would have to pay the other have.
1. $50.00 dollar insurance would be $25.00 dollars on top of that.
2. We have lost 25.00 dollars on both clans and the demo at the bird thing.
2. Question from Toki: We haven’t done any archery practice for a couple months and it doesn’t look like we will again. How does that work?
1. We pay a multiple day insurance and it pays for itself. Practice insurance is 50.00 for all of the year’s practice.
3. All outstanding check requests have been written and filled.
4. Next check will be September storage fees.
5. Thank you to Ilene for helping with registration class that she held.
1. The class was developed before Covid-19 and registration may have to change when it comes to the physical part of registration.
6. We might need to deal with Paypal at an upcoming event or might need pre-res only as an option.
4. Quartermaster: HL David Archer
1. As we know, we recently lost someone in the Barony. She has donated a pavilion to the Barony. It comes with the poles, etc. But no rope or stakes.
1. David is going to put it up, using the Baronial pavilion stakes and ropes, to see if it is in good condition.
2. If it is good, the Barony can make a decision about whether or not to purchase the missing items.
5. Art Sci (Research and Projects) -HL Calpurnia Fortunata
1. We would love more people to volunteer to teach
2. Currently poking people and putting in messages to FB for people to join.
3. TRU was fantastic and fun. A lot of great classes and great job setting it up.
4. Currently looking for anyone that wants to be her deputy.
5. Kingdom art/sci meeting is this week and Calpurnia is looking into doing an online Art/Sci. She will let us know what they come up with after the meeting.
6. Herald - Baron Gavine Armestrang
1. No Report
7. Chatelaine (Retention and Recruitment) - Lady Margarita di Rossi
1. Lady of the Lakes:
1. Are we participating, etc.
2. The deadline on the insurance is 6 weeks prior to the event.
1. July is when it is usually put in.
2. The SCA usually forwards the insurance if the event doesn’t happen… It would go to the next demo.
8. Marshal (Referee) - HL Hywel ap Wyn (Not in attendance)
1. No report
9. Rapier Marshal -Master Clothar Bructerus (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
10. Archery Marshal - HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi
1. Southern Archery Day
1. We had 4 of our Trimaris archers in the top.
11. Thrown Weapons Marshal - No current Marshall (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
12. Webmaster - Lord Thomas von Wildtstein
1. Cantons are set to no meetings. And to look for FB groups for updates
2. Calendar is fixed for events and for practices at this time. All on hold.
13. Social Media -Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
1. People in Darkwater are polite and doing a wonderful job.
14. Chronicler - Lady Ursula Blackpool
1. Post a day of what you are doing!
1. Thyri: Does her posts on her own page, but she will move them to the Darkwater Populace
2. The Barony of Darkwater page is not being used
1. Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune is going to post and tag a message to go to the Darkwater Populace page.
5. HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara
1. We need to work on keeping the SCA alive
1. Virtual classes, etc.
2. We don’t know when we will have meetings again… What can we do to keep people interested in the SCA and in our Barony and Kingdom?
3. The Valencia Renaissance Faire is being backed up by the Dean
1. This could be a place to record and post classes, etc.
2. Colleges are scrambling to find things about art to teach that isn’t stagnant or the “norm” and this could be the chance for the SCA to do this.
1. If you have any questions, contact her Highness. If something happens and she needs another contact, she will let us know.
6. Baron and Baroness: Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. Not in Attendance: message sent to Thomas
1. As noted previous, James and I are offline tonight for his birthday. Got a call from Dave. We are good for a day trip Village Faire. If it is safe. Otherwise, we will do an online something and court. At this time, with the current number, NO way are we risking any of you.
7. Cantons: Note from Seneschal: Please know you can have meet ups on Zoom to keep the SCA going and keeping people involved.
1. Loch Griffin - HL Hywel ap Wyn (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
2. Swamp Keep - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. It exists and not a lot is going on at this moment.
2. Zdinka will talk to the officers about doing an online/Zoom meeting
3. Seminole County SCA group - Cathy Abernathy (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
8. Guilds - Note from Seneschal: Please post what we you are doing. Something to keep us all going and keep people interested in the SCA.
1. Scribal - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges
1. No report
2. Brewer’s Guild - Cathy Abernathy (Not in Attendance)
1. No report
3. Fiber Arts - Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
1. No report
4. Lampworkers Guild - Lady Thyri Bersi
1. No report
5. Dyers Guild - LeAnn Meyrick
1. No report
6. Performance/Bardic Guild - ? (Not in Attendance)
1. No report
7. Cooking Guild - Lady Margarita di Rossi (Not in Attendance)
1. No report
8. Costuming Guild - ? (Not in Attendance)
1. No report
9. Herbal - Lady Rahil bint Haroun (Not in Attendance)
1. No report
10. Craftsman - ? (Not in Attendance)
1. No report
11. Defense - ? (Not in Attendance)
1. No report
9. Upcoming Events
1. See Senechal notes:
1. Discussions to be held at the next meeting and next meeting as well.
10. Announcements From the Populous
1. Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune reiterated that we need to really listen to her Highness, and teach, post, something so we can keep people interested and informed in the SCA!
2. Lady Thyri Bersi also said that during TRU, there was a class about how to teach an online class. He went over setup, etc. His whole class is on Youtube.
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PV1Wn571338&t=25s
11. Adjournment
1. Next Officer Meeting is on Zoom on August 3rd
1. Please keep in mind that we might need an emergency meeting before then. Hextilda will let us know after the populace meeting this week.
2. There is a business meeting on Thursday, July 2nd.
3. Next Business Meeting at Fashion Square Mall: Currently on hold due to Covid-19.
12. Meeting Closed - Baron Gavine Armestrang

Officer Meeting Minutes June 2020

Barony of Darkwater Officer Meeting -June 1, 2020
Zoom meeting online

Officers NOT in Attendance:
HL Calpurnia Fortunata - Art Sci (Research and Projects)
Lady Margarita di Rossi - Chatelaine
Master Clothar Bructerus - Rapier Marshal
HL Gareth Dalyngrige - Librarian

Officers in Attendance:
Lady Ursula Blackpool - Chronicler
Lord Kylan Hundr - Constable
Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol - Exchequer
HL Hextilda Marshall - Seneschal
Lord Thomas von Wildtstein - Webmaster
HL Hywel ap Wyn - Knight’s Marshal
Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune- Deputy Seneschal - Social Media Liason
Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi - Archery Marshal
HL David Archer - Quartermaster
Baroness Milesenda de Bourges - Baroness
HL Hadassah bat Josef - Chamberlain
Baron James Highgate - Baron
HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara

1. Call to order - Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
2. Greeting by Seneschal - HL Hextilda Marshall
1. SCA local chapter description
3. Confirm Minutes Approved Offline
1. Motion to approve the minutes: HL Hywel ap Wyn
2. Seconded by: Lord Kylan Hundr
3. Motion passed
4. Officers reports.
1. Seneschal (President) HL Hextilda Marshall
1. Polling -
1. Everyone should have gotten their forms and it should be turned in to Kingdom by now
2. We don’t have a date for the final decision at this time.
2. Called Kingdom Seneschal to see about openings?
1. Until the state of FL opens up to more than 10 in group gatherings, we will NOT be gathering.
2. We are still online only!
2. Constable - Lord Kylan Hundr
1. No report
3. Exchequer (Treasure) Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol
1. Our tax exempt status is now on Zoom
2. Eva would like to use the Zoom account on Monday, June 15th from 7-9
1. Registration orientation class / limit to 5.
1. Reserved!
2. Officers first to get in and then add any that want it on top of them.
2. Ilene has a calendar for our Zoom account now when you need to set up a meeting see her.
3. Trident -
1. We 2105 dollar check has been put in from the event.
2. Most receipts taken care of/in
3. Trident broke even
4. June and we need to write checks and we need to get them signed:
1. Storage locker as one example
2. Ilene will meet with her to sign checks
3. Reimbursements - Can we also get them signed at this time.
1. Will be signed on the above date.
5. Should we get the insurance for Village Faire?
1. Yes, we are thinking it will be happening. They are trying to get opened up by August for a Fall Coronation event.
4. Quartermaster - David Archer
1. No longer the acting Quartermaster! :)
5. Art Sci (Research and Projects) -HL Calpurnia Fortunata (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
6. Herald - Baron Gavine Armestrang
1. A lot of heraldic submissions have been done and are on their way to Kingdom!
7. Chatelaine (Retention and Recruitment) - Lady Margarita di Rossi (Not in Attendance)
1. No Report
8. Marshal (Referee) - HL Hywel ap Wyn
1. No Report
9. Rapier Marshal -Master Clothar Bructerus (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
10. Archery Marshal - HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi
1. Will provide a link to an archery competition that will be going on society wide
1. You can see the information on the facebook pages
11. Thrown Weapons Marshal - No current Marshall (Not in attendance)
1. No Report
12. Webmaster - Lord Thomas von Wildtstein
1. Check the site for issues
13. Public Relations - Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
1. The Zoom account is set up for meetings.
1. See the Hextilda, Ilene, or Calpurnia if you have any questions.
14. Chronicler - Lady Ursula Blackpool
1. All paperwork sent to the King/Queen to look at for candidates for the baronial offices.
5. HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara
1. So happy to see everyone meeting together and talking to everyone.
2. We are planning a meeting this Wednesday, as long as we can work that out with current issues in the state.
1. The Baron and Baroness, Officers, and nominees should hear about this first and it should happen sooner than later so that people can plan/etc.
2. Gravin Eva would like to know how many letters were received by the Kingdom so she can see what they got in.
1. The Queen had received 55 envelopes as of last Friday.
3. Send any questions you would like Islay to ask at their meeting.
3. Are there safety food guidelines in place and can we work on training for this before the next event?
1. Nothing has come down officially yet.
2. Baron Gavine Armstrang - There has been a servsafe class taught at other events within the Kingdom, but it isn’t required to be done.
1. This does cost per person, but Baron Gavine Armstrang is going to look into the training and costs.
6. Baron and Baroness: Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. We are trying to make it online for Thursday classes, but life is keeping them from making it.
2. Stay safe and know we miss you all!
3. We are looking forward to Village Faire and are waiting to hear what happens with that event in terms of how we can spend it.
7. Cantons
1. Loch Griffin - HL Hywel ap Wyn
1. No Report
2. Swamp Keep - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. No Report
3. Seminole County SCA group - Cathy Abernathy
1. No Report
8. Guilds
1. Scribal - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges
1. No report
2. Brewer’s Guild - Cathy Abernathy
1. No report
3. Fiber Arts - Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
1. No report
4. Lampworkers Guild - Lady Thyri Bersi
1. No report
5. Dyers Guild - LeAnn Meyrick
1. No report
6. Performance/Bardic Guild - ?
1. No report
7. Cooking Guild - Lady Margarita di Rossi
1. No report
8. Costuming Guild - ?
1. No report
9. Herbal - Lady Rahil bint Haroun
1. No report
10. Craftsman - ?
1. No report
11. Defense - ?
1. No report
9. Upcoming Events
1. Workshops
1. No Report
2. No Events to report on at this time
10. Announcements From the Populous
1. Not Clans - Virtually - HL David Archer
1. This could be done later to not conflict with other groups or go forward and see if we can put something together?
1. Baron Gavine Armstrang did not see a problem with meeting socially via Zoom as this isn’t going to step on another Kingdom as doing it in person would.
1. HL David Archer pointed out that the other Kingdoms are working to not overlap on the calendar and thought it might be nice to try and not overlap as well.
2. Mistress Milesenda de Bourges did not think this would be an issue and we could go ahead and move on with this.
2. Ring of Chivalry - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges will put a form out in the next month or so to make this happen. Online voting will take place at that time. Stay tuned.
11. Adjournment
1. Next Officer Meeting is on Zoom on June 29th, 2020
2. There is a business meeting on Zoom on June 4th, 2020
3. Next Business Meeting at Fashion Square Mall TBD
12. Meeting Closed - Baron Gavine Armestrang

Seneschal Letter May 2020

The polling letters have all gone out. If you do not receive your polling letter by Friday May 15th, please email me a copy of your membership card and your address. We will make sure a polling letter gets out to you as long as your address is in the barony's list of addresses. The request must be sent via email to my official SCA email. It can not be done through Facebook. My email address is seneschal@baronyofdarkwater.org

In Service,

HL Hextilda Marshall

Announcement: From the Kingdom Seneschal

From the Kingdom Seneschal:

Currently the SCA in Trimaris is suspended. Until the restrictions of gatherings have been removed, until the social distancing guidelines have been removed, until the medical authorities and government agencies say we can gather, we are suspended from in-person SCA official operations. That is the official response to any inquiries about resuming operations in the kingdom.

Meet The Candidates Night 2020

“Meet the Baronial Candidates” Meeting Notes: 4/30/20

Tonight’s meeting was done by Zoom and there were a few technical difficulties in hearing some people completely and some interpretation was necessary. Please forgive any misinterpretations. Please also pardon any spelling and/or grammar errors as those are the fault of the Darkwater Chronicler and NOT the candidates or those that asked questions.

Thank you for your forgiveness and patience,
Barony of Darkwater Chronicler, Lady Ursula Blackpoole and Deputy Chronicler LeAnn Meyrick

Introductions of our Baronial Candidates:

First we had Sir Johan Craft and Honorable Lady Vivienne le Corbeau
Second was Mistress Christine Chabrier, OL and Baronessa Calpurnia Fortunata
Third was Lady Thyri Bersi and Honorable Lord Toki Inn Eldri Bassi
Fourth was Honorable Lady Adelina de Bretigny and Honorable Lord David Archer

➢ In the interest of time while typing, the names of the candidates will be shortened to their first names.

All couples gave us information about how long they have been in the barony and what offices they have held. As well as how many offices they are in. This information is in the “Meet the Baronial Candidates” flyer that was mailed and posted on FB in April.

Question:

Asked by HRM Maisie of Dunbarton: 

Have you read Kingdom Law?

Calpurnia and Christine: both said yes.

Thyri and Toki: both said yes.

David and Adelina: both said yes.

Vivienne and Johan: both said yes.

Question:

Asked by HRM Maisie of Dunbarton
Thyri was asked what she would do with her role of HRM Chamberlain if the Baron and Baroness role came up and advised that options needed to be prepared just in case. HRH Martin said they were good and plans are in place.

It was stated that Trident Tourney, third weekend in January, will be the date for the new Baron and Baroness.

Question:

Asked by HRM Maisie of Dunbarton
Thyri and Toki were asked if they understood they were the voice of the crown. They both replied yes and discussed the power of the crown and gave compliments to the Kingdom and Barony based on their travels.

Question:

Asked by HRM Maisie of Dunbarton
Toki had talked about his interests in archery and Masie asked Thyri what she was endeavoring in. 

She explained her involvement in the lampworker’s guild, and then was asked if she had someone to take that responsibility. Toki and Thyri both replied that they have people in place to take over their positions in archery and lampworking.

Question: 

What will you bring fresh to the SCA?
Asked by HRM Maisie of Dunbarton

David: Shake up how we do feast. Trying out some more interesting flavors. Check in with laurels and change up how we do the events that might have become a bit static. Gave compliments to our many chefs in the barony.
Adelina : She comes from a theater background and a Live Action role playing background. And would like to see SCA events with themes similar to that happen more in the Barony. Escape room. High authenticity feasts. Etc.
David: Also suggested holding courts earlier so feasts don’t run so late.

HRM Kurn O'Farrell of Ulster : It’s important to have a balance. Feast doesn’t need to be a big deal every time and it’s not everyone’s tea. He also thanked everyone for their interest in supporting the role of Baron and Baroness. It’s nice to see four really good candidate couples to promote Darkwater.

HRM Maisie of Dunbarton: Asked the candidates if they would be willing to submit a letter of why they would like to seek the chair of the barony. She would like the input and offered support to the candidates as well.

Question:

Asked by Trish Amador Baroness of Wyvernwood:
Thank you for putting this together and thank you to all of the candidates for volunteering to take on this role. If you could choose one thing to do for your populace that you feel would be inspirational for them to show your love for the SCA what would you do?

Vivienne: There is a lot we try to do on a regular basis. We have been supporting Loch Gryffyn currently. We really just want everyone to feel appreciated and loved. We can’t give everyone an award, but we can still show love and say thank you.

Calpurnia: Her whole “shtick” is about making people feel appreciated and this would allow her to do it on a bigger and official scale. Christine would say the same thing. We just want to show people how much they are loved. Take care of them. How appreciated they are. We can do so many things beyond awards. They gave the idea of the tokens given out by those before her. Christine said JP covered the bases. And she said they wanted to expand by increasing the recognition of people that are in the Barony that might not make it to an event. She mentioned ideas and art sci she can do to make things for them.

David and Adelina : Beyond the awards, you need to be on the lookout and ready to recognize people in the moment. Let them know that we see what they are doing. But you also have to watch how engaged others are. If everyone is engaged then everyone is participating as well. Create shared experiences that gather both the fighters and artists, that gather both children and adults. You can’t do it for everyone, but you can try to give them the opportunities. Create an environment where people can do it for themselves.
David: Take the time to recognize people at the events. He doesn’t want to open court all the time, but find a way to have larger courts and pull people in to offer recognition at different times. If it is the right time, with the right people, we should do it then.

Thyri and Toki: I believe that awards are amazing. They are breathtaking and important thank you’s when you get called up in court. But they are minor when compared to the work the Baron and Baroness should do in talking with people, being present for people, doing things, working with the populace. There are so many people, and what our dream is, is to have our presence as Darkwater reflected in the event. Several of the people in here now run these events, but we would love to find a way to get all of the populace reflected in the event so they can all have a part in the events. Because we gave of ourselves, that when people come to meetings or events or practices, everyone should feel included in some way. Not feeling like a guest.. This is us! I am part of this. Set up the baronial pavilion and provide people a space to be a community. We know it will be a lot of work, but the Baron and Baroness is a service, a job. We are willing to do it.

Question:

Asked by HRH Martin
At one point in the future all of our lives will return to normal and might not be soon. Given the uncertainty that we are all in right now, and what that might mean for the SCA, what do you all feel the SCA can do, and specifically the Baron and Baroness of Darkwater, do to limit the damage and help the growth when this pandemic has led many to feel scared?

Vivienne: People are wary of congregating but also everyone is aching to get back together and wear garb and drink and dance with our friends again. We may not be going out to campsites but we are still doing things. We are in this together. We are doing online classes, meet and greets, websites, and zoom classes. We are uploading things to Youtube. These small changes we are making involves people in the remote settings and will help pull people in rather than pushing them away.

Christine: It Is going to be a different life and that can be an advantage. We can use this time to plan ahead, work together, and start back, mind you some of us aren’t as young as you physically, maybe start with small gatherings. We don’t have to have 50 people crammed into a room. We can have 10 people in 10 different rooms and make them sit 6 feet apart and still have the joy of each other's company. We can work with this, and as it gets more comfortable, we can enjoy each other’s company in ways we can create. Maybe more frequent, smaller get-togethers and fewer big ones. I think that actually, this weaving of the internet and interpersonal is going to make us stronger.
Calpurnia: I totally agree. With the things that we have been doing online during these precautions, we are actually able to reach out to more people than we might not have reached out to or met before. We have more tools to reach a wider audience now.
Christine: I think one of the reasons this seems so hard is because it has been only 6 weeks, but we will get better at this. At the moment it is still new.
Calpurnia: We can do more in small groups. Like Adelina’s idea of escape rooms. It gives us the opportunity to try new things. IF it doesn’t go well, then that is okay.
Calpurnia: I would like to implement tea time with the baroness again. That’s a thing.

Toki and Thyri: First things first, let’s follow the CDC guidelines and keep our populace safe. We are staying in, social distancing and follow guidelines right now so we can all gather again and not have anyone be missing. We would like there to be many different things to make it so people are apart but enjoying their event in safe/small groups.
Thyri: We have a lot of smart, problem solvers in the group and we can use this as the template to have a large or small event that will work. And maybe something better. This isn’t a one person problem and we can solve this as a group. We make this the best event to help everyone.

David and Adelina: I suspect that when we open up, next to harassment policies at events there will be CDC safety policies and guidelines from the board. Earlier it was noted that we used to mail things and now we are in this digital age. I remember that it was quicker to drive to out of town friend’s instead of sending something in the mail. We have a great opportunity to change some things and in 6 months we can go back or change things. But this has shown that we can integrate technology in our groups and make interactions happen between groups in a different manner. The baronial officers will have to get together after the CDC guidelines are in place and they’ll get guidance from the board and the kingdom level and have a long conversation.
Adelina: Be careful and considerate when we come back to normal. The power of pause. We are at a point where we have to take a pause and breath and consider what is important. What do we need to keep moving forward and what do we need to let go of. And in my mind, the most important thing is the connections between people. Maintaining these connections and continuing to work together. We have dance videos, scribal wars, and classes going right now.

Question:

Asked by Mistress Jehannette de Lille:
I would like to know what the candidates have planned to increase the numbers in the barony. That is the A /#1 problem right now.

Vivienne: Johan and I have been working on this for years. We always try to reach out in ways like colleges, larp fests, dice tower con, etc. In Trimaris, we are an aging audience. Average age is 50. We have to pull in new and younger blood to continue our Barony. By reaching out where other nerdy people hang out, we can bring in those people. Lady of the Lakes helps, Megacon, etc.

Calpurnia: We do have an older populace and as someone that was recruited out of high school, and is now in her 30s, I think a LOT of people my age and younger would really find this different. Nerdy history culture would love this. We have a lot of colleges and conventions to reach out to. We can reach out to the number of colleges and cons we have.
Christine: I back all of that. Given that 50 is no longer considered old, one thing we might look at is the activities groups of The Villages to grow numbers. 50 is young and retired people may not move away and might be bored. Think about some venues we haven’t talked to before. Retirees that are bored. Etc.
Calpurnia: Kids activities need to be increased to bring in families. Foster people that grew up in the barony and want to stay.
Christine: There is no reason to limit the age up or down.

Adelina: The reason we don’t keep people is membership experience. We need to support families with small children and young adults when there are so many other things competing for their time. There are a lot of people who might want to be involved but they may not be fighters. We need to have other things for them to do and other ways for them to get involved and feel appreciated. Get children excited so they want to be part of this as well and want to drag their parents to the event.
David: Some kids that he knows tell him they like coming to events and ask about the SCA all the time. We also need to express the hospitaller a bit more. Having the Hospitaller class. Too many people say that they have bad experiences in the SCA. Information warfare is a thing we need to work on.

Thryi: I don’t think we have a problem with recruiting new people. We have a problem with retention. In Darkwater, we have had people come to meetings that sit against the wall. No one talked to them. They regretted coming, so I started talking to them and Johan came up to explain “cut and thrust”. It doesn’t matter how many newcomers come if we don’t get them to stay... If we don’t talk to them. We get a lot of people from Lady of the Lakes. 300 people from each weekend to contact, but we don’t keep them. There’s interest and we have to branch out of our circles. Why do we stay? There’s cool things and I love the SCA, but we stay for our community. We have to build the connections so they feel like they’ve found home and stay.

Mistress Jehannette de Lille: You are Mom and Pop in a barony but outside, you are a PR machine. You are a PR machine.

Thyri: And I have seven years at Lady of the Lakes PRing my butt off. I love demos. You will find me at almost all demos talking up the SCA and how cool my hobby is.

Question:

Asked by Zdinka Jezek
How do you plan to balance the demands of position with work and family commitments:

David and Adelina: We will try to be at major business meetings and will break up the class meetings. David is limiting travel and works from home. She will go to Kissimmee and Seminole while he will go to Loch Gryffyn. A number of friends and family have offered to help with their son, they have full time babysitters that will come to events and help them with their son.

Vivienne: Our balancing act is a little less precarious because we are both self employed and make up our own schedules, but also less flexible because we base our schedules around our clients. However, if it is something important we can not schedule anything on those meeting days or weekend events. Our daughter loves the SCA more than we do and wants to be there. We also have friends and family that want to help us out.

Toki: We are fortunate that our little ones aren’t so little anymore. We pretty much have that covered. Our youngest is turning 18 when this would start. She loves the classes at Gulf Wars and had tears to not be able go this year. Toki is the breadwinner and she is the “mooch”! (joke) They make it work and have gone to just about every baronial event, meetings, some of the canton meetings.

Calpurnia: I am a childless married woman that has a husband that doesn’t play. And I work a 9-5 Monday through Friday job that allows me time off when I need it. I don’t think I have missed a baronial event in ages. I make every kingdom event. Most meetings. And we would like to split up and make it to many if not all of the cantons.
Christine: I am in the same boat as Calpurnia. The current job she was going to do has been put on hold but would be 8-4 Monday to Friday with ability to take time off.

Question:

Asked by Mistress Anne of Blackthorne
Are you aware of the extent of the cost of being a Baronial Noble?

Thyri and Toki: We have taken into account the cost. We have a savings put aside for this that covers the 4 years. Whether we win or not, we will be able to have an opportunity to continue to go to other events over the years. We are planning to attend many of the events of all of Trimaris’ that we can in the next few years.

Christine: We have discussed it, have it figured out, got it arranged and plans are in place.
Calpurnia: Pretty much.

David: We talked about this a LOT beforehand. We discussed it with other Baronial nobles to get an idea of what costs would be. We do have it fully budgeted in our plans and we are good with costs. We have a good amount in our “fun fund”. My job allows me to get free miles that I can use to go meetings outside of the kingdom.

Vivienne: We weren’t in the right place the last two times to run and we have sat down with the past three baronial nobles and with some from other baronies to see what we were getting into. We already do a lot of travel out of the Kingdom. We try to hit at least one baronial event and as many other events as we can. Might have to up our garb game a little bit and share more of ourselves, but it won’t change things a lot.

Question:

Asked by Baroness Marie le Mains
How do you feel your weaknesses are and how do you feel this experience will change you for the better?

Adelina: Introvert. Very nervous. Most people assume that David wanted to run, but after Marcaster chose an introvert I thought I could do it too. I am working on my self confidence and this would help me continue that journey.
David: I think this will help me grow and focus on individual people. I do a lot of my service behind the scenes and tend to try to do things without being noticed. I think this will continue to make me better at things.

Christine: I am an introvert but have grown over the last 30 years. To become Baroness I am following in the footsteps of my family in service to a group I love. It isn’t so much about overcoming or repairing something but more about fulfilling the dream.
Calpurnia: I tend to overload myself. I want to do all the things and I want to help to the point that I will do it if I don’t see anyone else doing it. I am making improvements. I acknowledge what the problem is and that I need to be able to let people do things, to serve me, etc. The “helium hand” is getting punctured.

Johan: said it was he can’t stop talking. He said he will strive to stop and listen. Sometimes you don’t have to fill the silence.
Vivienne: Comes off scary and has RBF, but she is nice. She also doesn’t always know about Art/Sci and that is something she needs to be more connected to. But that makes me different. Fighters don’t have to explain things to me but people could teach me something in a scribal class.

Thyri: We are from New England, and one of the first rules we had is we are not mind readers and we tend to be direct communicators. There is no trick and no hint or meaning you need to get. I am very on the table with what I say and what I mean. I’m growing in learning that there are more subtle styles of communicating.
Toki: This is an extremely important job. It can be scary. It is like holding a child and being scared you will drop it. We are scared to fail and let people down and we need to work on leaning on others for help when we need it.

Question:

Asked by Lord Nickel Hartman:
Do you want a Baronial Signet Herald?

Adelina: Yes, please. We have sat in enough meetings and through enough court business meetings to know we need one.
David: Absolutely. I understand how stressful your job is and we have talked about how there needs to be a strong line of communication between us and the signet and autocrats.

Thyri and Toki: The job that the Baronial Signet does is so important and is needed. They help to make sure we don’t lose someone in the shuffle of things.

Vivienne and Johan: Yes! We have seen first hand how important they are and would love Jessi to do it, but only if he wants to.

Calpurnia: The Chart Signet should be chosen by the baronial nobles. It is a job that requires a lot of trust and communication and should be chosen by someone that they know is super reliable in that position.
Christine:Everything that everyone else has said has been true but I would like to add one thing. Could you train a deputy so you could have some more fun too?

Question:

Asked by HRM Kurn O’Farrell of Ulster
How do you deal with conflict? Especially if it deals with friends as most of those in our hobby are friends?

Christine: I have not had to deal with a problem in the SCA but many years ago, while running a white water canoeing group, there was an attempted coup against the palace. Things were handled quietly and everyone settled down and everyone got along well after. I have experience with dissolving a friendship for the responsibility and greater good of the kingdom/barony. Been there.
Calpurnia:I hate conflict. I despise it. It makes me super uncomfortable. But, I have also really learned to navigate conflict. I really try to keep a rational head. If I can help, I will help. There is a limit of what we can do and love people anyways.

Johan: I am not afraid of dealing with conflict because conflict happens, we are a social club. Sadly, conflict happens often, especially with fighters. You have to talk them through it. Make sure everyone walks away with a cool head.
Vivienne : Came in as nobody really, but took over the baronial fighter marshall, sometimes you have to be bigger and stronger and sometimes softer. You have to know the scenario and know how to talk to them.

Thyri: Conflict is never easy but is inevitable. Sometimes we have to deal with things that aren’t easy but we have to manage feelings within ourselves so we can be a fair witness of the situation. We heard that someone was upset with me. I asked them if they had said things about me. And this required time to talk about it. And it was uncomfortable, but we talked through it. It is two people learning how to communicate and work together. You have to lean into the conflict and work on it to move on.
Toki: I am usually on the archery field and the community is fairly calm and not full of conflict. It just really is about being on the same page, understanding what is being said or told, somewhere in the middle is the truth.

David: I had to discipline someone recently that is a friend and he might lose his job because of it, but you have to be willing to step up and deal with these things regardless. I have dealt with it in the SCA and it is the same thing. Most conflicts are due to misunderstandings. A lot of stuff gets resolved with mediation and with taking the time to talk to each other. Pull in a third party if you need to. I have watched our current and past baronial nobles solve conflicts with friends and have learned from them how to handle things.
Adelina: It doesn’t come natural for my personality, and I don’t like it, but I work in HR and have had to learn to deal with conflicts and I have my HR face when I need it. If it involves you talk through it. Stay calm and work through it. You can’t solve it for them but you can be a sounding board.

Question:

Asked by Baron James Highgate
The coronet often requires a large amount of diplomacy and tact, because the reality is that we have no stick, only a carrot. How comfortable do each of you feel being able to say the things that need to be said, often where everyone knows it needs to be said, but finding the compassionate, kind, and tactful way to say it?

Calpurnia: Customer service face. You learn to use your words and calm your voice. Talking to people is one of my strong suits and I try hard to be a compassionate and kind person. I feel I have empathy that I can use to help people.
Christine: A lot of us grew up in service jobs, and sometimes you almost have to be a parent in the SCA. Sometimes people don’t realize they are doing something wrong or incorrectly. Sometimes it requires a quiet talk. I try to the best of my ability to care for whomever I am talking to.

Thyri: I am going to approach this as, I honestly speak with you to the point and without bullshit. NO one comes to this volunteer organization to screw everything up. They are there to help and do their best. When you need to speak to guide, mentor, support as they learn so that they can grow from failure. When people are overly sugar coat things it can come across as insincere or patronizing. We are all mature and intelligent people and need to be rewarded for trying. Be sincere and honest so people will trust your words. Be who you need them to be. Have the kindness you would want to be corrected with.
Toki: She (Thyri) is spot on.

Adelina: You can be honest and still be kind. Even if you are saying something unpleasant, people will respect that you are being honest. Give it to them straight with compassion and empathy. They might be mad at you in the moment, but it all comes back around. Be the best you can be. Deliver it with respect.
David: We have dealt with this in different offices and positions I have had. I believe in encouragement as being the best way, but you do have to be firm with people sometimes. Sometimes you have to sit people down and explain some facts to people. If a gentle hand will work to solve something I will be okay with that, but I will also use a stronger hand if needed. People treat people with shiny hats differently and while I don’t think you need to use that, it does offer that respect.

Vivienne: We are parents of a 6 year old. There is a fine line between correction and crying. Johann is a people person and likes to talk to people. It is important to be able to gage people’s reactions. Everything is based on the people you are talking to. Everyone is an individual and you have to talk to them in the way that works for them. Deal with them one at a time! Know your audience. Some people require you to be the baseball bat while others require the feather. Start below where you need to be and you can always go up from there.
Johan: I’m a people person. I talk to people all the time. Being able to gauge people in a conversation will tell you how far your tact has to extend. Everyone is different and is an individual.

Question:

Asked by Baron Gavine Armestrang
Gavine: There are times when you might not be in your head. You might not be in the kindest mindset. How comfortable is everyone and how they would handle being stuck talking to someone they didn’t want to. How do you escape if you are trapped for lack of a better term?

Toki: Your time isn’t your own as Baron and Baroness. You need to be “their person” in this role. Put aside your personal thing and be their Baron and what they need.
Thyri: You should give to all people. Everyone gets to sit at the table. You might not choose them normally, but they are your people now. Regardless of time or place you need to be there, step it up and be what they need. This is what makes the dream come true.

Calpurnia: I already have experience with this with the whole St. Calpurnia thing. The shouty post was meant to just make people feel better and I got put on a pedestal and it’s weird, but now people all over the knowne world want to be my friend on FB so they can see that. So I have to be that person for them regardless of how I am feeling.
Christine: When you wear the coronet of Darkwater, you are Darkwater. It isn’t about you. You are Darkwater and as such you have no emotions, no sex, no hunger, no nothing. You are a representative but at the same time you are an embodiment of the dream that can be talked to, hugged, curtsied to, bowed to, whatever. Sometimes you have to put aside your exhaustion, hunger, tiredness aside, to remember that to this person or others watching, you are Darkwater.

Adelina: Yes, when you have the coronet on you have to act accordingly and be the Baron and Baroness, but you still need to take care of yourselves and you need to take breaks. Landed Baronials have told me to take time for myself so when I do go out, I am ready and can be what the populace needs. I also think it is okay, to ask someone to schedule a time to talk about what they want to discuss. To let them know that you need a minute or that it isn’t the best time. It’s a balancing act.

Thyri: I fully agree. If you need to tag out, tag out.

David: This is something I have had to learn in the SCA. I am 100% in the belief that when the hat is on you are on stage, but also when you take on the role, you are that person and on stage all the time. Social media, etc. Sometimes eating crow is necessary to get things done. One thing I have learned from Jake is how well he does this.
Adelina: It isn’t about you. It is about the populace. It’s what’s required of you.

Vivienne and Johan: We are in the spotlight and the representation and face of the barony. We sometimes have moments where we just have to suck it up. And there are times where we can excuse ourselves and walk away. Everything we are doing affects everyone. The populace as part of the kingdom. As part of the Barony. We have a beautiful schedule in that we sleep at different times and so one of us is usually available to be that person.
Johan: I travel extensively. You are the face of your kingdom. You have to be tactful and sometimes, even when you don’t want to talk to them you have to take a breath and say okay and realize that is what and where you are.

Jake: We can label a question on the barony populace page and let the running candidates answer.

Question:

Asked by Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
When you are the landed noble you are working with the crown and representing both sides to the crown and the populace. How do you handle that if you do not care for the current crown or their views:

Vivienne: The reality is the Crown’s rule is law. As long as they aren’t breaking the law or Corpora, you eat crow. Even if I don’t agree or I don’t like you, the Crown’s rule is law.
Johan: You have to resign if you are that against the Crown or what they are doing. They are the crown.

Calpurnia: The nobles power comes from the crown. It is their stuff, we just move things for them. The Crown’s will is law. Play nice or step down. You can disagree but you still have to do your job.
Christine: I agree with JP with the point that the Barons are here for 4 years while the Crown is here much less. If you can’t deal with the crown for a short time you shouldn’t be a baron for a long time. As barons we support the crown and the populace.

David: Sometimes you have to explain things to the Crown or just say Yes, Your Majesty. If the Crown says this is what I want to do, then you have to do it. You can give feedback and ask if they thought of all or a certain aspect. If they still want to do it, they are the Crown and you have to be willing to let them do their thing. As long as it isn’t breaking a law, it is their will. But you have to be willing to talk to them and occasionally push back to do your populace justice:
Adelina: Agreed with David. It is a landed nobility’s job to advise and support the crown. But know you have to be able to suck it up buttercup!

Toki: You need to swear fealty when a new Crown comes in and it is a bonded and binding relationship. It becomes the Crown’s will and you are a spokesperson for that Crown.
Thyri: When you swear fealty, you swear to accept their word as law. And your attitude and presence around the Crown is how the populace sees the Crown. Their word is law, regardless of your issues, but when at an event you treat them as royalty. Put your mundane and personal feelings aside and fulfill your job!

Baron & Baroness Letter May 2020

Hail and well met Barony of Darkwater!

If there is one thing that bothers us most about the current plague ravaging the land it is that it is stealing a large amount of our final year. This is a time when we should be excitedly looking towards the future of our Barony and looking forwards to the upswelling of activity and interest that tends to come in a new baronial tenure.

Instead, we're all at home. We would like to commend the various couples who are running both for their willingness to devote the next four years of their SCA time and their courtesies shown on the conference call where they endured a grueling three hours of question and answer time. We are confident that the Crown and people will make the best choice for who is to lead in the future of a post-covid Darkwater.

One of the questions, posed by His Highness, Prince Martin stood out to me and has been echoed recently on the Trimaris populace groups by my scholar-brother, Don Brian.

What does this all look like when the pandemic passes? Who gets to come to events again and how do we make those accessible and safe?

It is entirely possible that things will not go back to normal - or rather, a new normal will become established. We would encourage you, in that new normal, to consider how the SCA may become more accessible and not less. How it may bring more people in, make more people welcome, and help more people find their home and tribe.

We tell new peers, often, that their words will now carry more weight. Perhaps this is true of all of us - as we contemplate the world that will come after this plague passes, choose your words with care. Some words move lightly over snow without ever disturbing it and some words walk with heavy steps that echo, for good or ill.

Step carefully. Step wisely. Always try to be nice but never fail to be kind.

Yours in service, and love
James and Milesenda
Baron and Baroness

Officer Meeting Minutes May 2020

Barony of Darkwater Officer Meeting -May 4th, 2020 

Zoom meeting online 

Officers in Attendance:
Lady Ursula Blackpool - Chronicler
Lord Kylan Hundr - Constable
HL Hextilda Marshall - Seneschal
HL Calpurnia Fortunata - Art Sci (Research and Projects)
Lord Thomas von Wildtstein - Webmaster
Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune- Deputy Seneschal - Social Media Liason
Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi - Archery Marshal
Baroness Milesenda de Bourges - Baroness
HL Hadassah bat Josef - Chamberlain
HL David Archer - Acting Quartermaster
Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol - Exchequer
HL Hywel ap Wyn - Knight’s Marshal

Officers Not in Attendance:
Baron James Highgate - Baron
Lady Margarita di Rossi - Chatelaine
Master Clothar Bructerus - Rapier Marshal
HL Gareth Dalyngrige - Librarian
HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara

1. Call to order - Baron Gavine Armestrang - Herald
2. Greeting by Seneschal - HL Hextilda Marshall
1. SCA local chapter description
3. Confirm Minutes Approved Offline
1. Motion to approve the minutes: HL Calpurnia Fortunata
2. Seconded by: Baron Gavine Armestrang
3. Motion passed
4. Officers reports.
1. Seneschal (President) HL Hextilda Marshall
1. Polling
1. I believe we have a full and complete list of those in our Barony and Cantons.
1. We have searched through and found everyone that is a paid member.
2. The list has been sent to Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol to put them together and mail them out.
1. We are going to send emails and posts in social media that if they have NOT received it by a certain date to let Hextilda know so that we can get them an email with the polling sheet.
1. We have also included the extensions on the current paid as of Covid 19.
2. The list does have the dates, but it has the extension.
3. ½ of or more will be sent by Wednesday.
3. Polling needs to be returned by May 31st. Though it was said by their Majesty’s that it needs to be in by May 18th.
1. Hextilda will reach out to the King and Queen and ask for the extension.
2. This was already talked about with the King and Queen and we don’t see a problem with extending the return date.
4. We need to make a blog and post for all the messages and directions for polling to social media and the mailing list.
2. Bids for Village Fair (Hywel)
1. Lady Ursula Blackpoole: Motion on the floor to accept the Village Fair bid from Hywel
1. Motion seconded by Lord Kylan Hundr
2. Motion Passed
2. We need to keep a “Plan B” in our pocket in case we can’t do a cabin/overnight event.
1. It might need to be a day trip
2. Would we still do it at the same campground? If not, where?
1. Plan B at our normal campground for a day trip.
2. Decision will have to be made more than likely around August.
1. We need to check in with the campground to see if we can do a daytrip if we need to change this.
3. Zoom
1. We have officially purchased our Zoom account
2. TRU and Zoom
1. HL Hextilda Marshall: Motion on the floor to allow TRU to use the Barony of Darwater’s Zoom.
1. Seconded by HL Calpurnia Fortunata
2. Motion passed
2. Deputy Illene
1. No report at this time
3. Constable - Lord Kylan Hundr
1. We have the same amount of lost and found as before. :)
4. Exchequer (Treasure) Gravin Eva van Oudeachterkol
1. 1st quarter report is in and done
2. Clans and ARC insurance had already been paid and we are waiting to get that money back
3. We have some people that need reimbursements, thank you for your patience.
4. We still have 2 meeting days credited from the mall - Should we book June?
1. Baroness - Hold for now.
5. Quartermaster - David Archer (Acting)
1. Called the storage shed place 2 weeks ago
1. Unless there is a need, they would prefer people to not come by. If we do NEED to come by, then we can.
2. We have stuff but we can’t visit our stuff!
6. Art Sci (Research and Projects) -HL Calpurnia Fortunata
1. We have a couple of classes lined up
2. Do we want to have a Barony Business Meeting?
1. Hextilda would like to talk briefly about polling.
3. Illene reminded us that we can do this on other days. It doesn’t have to be on Thursday night.
4. Gravin Eva: We could also look at what other people in other Kingdoms are doing and post that as well.
5. Plans are happening and we will let you know as we get more things going.
6. This could also be extended for Canton meetings, guild meetings, etc.
7. Herald - Baron Gavine Armestrang
1. We have about ½ dozen submissions we are currently working on getting sent up.
2. 2 months ago, it was approved to do a folding screen white board. It is a piece that will fold out 3 ways. We get 18 different areas to write on at an event for messaging/notes/etc.
3. He would like to move it to the shed when it is convenient.
8. Chatelaine (Retention and Recruitment) - Lady Margarita di Rossi (Not in attendance)
1. ARC Demo is canceled, but Archery is welcome back. Just let them know.
2. See her if you want to help with Lady of the Lakes
9. Marshal (Referee) - HL Hywel ap Wyn
1. Since we can’t meet in person, we aren't really hitting people.
2. We are working on Marshals getting their stuff done, but until classes are allowed we are in a holding pattern.
10. Rapier Marshal -Master Clothar Bructerus (Not in attendance)
1. No report
11. Archery Marshal - HL Toki inn Eldri Bassi
1. No report
12. Thrown Weapons Marshal - No current Marshall
1. No report
13. Webmaster - Lord Thomas von Wildtstein
1. No report
14. Public Relations - Illene
1. Trekking along
15. Chronicler - Lady Ursula Blackpool
1. We are currently finalizing the notes from the Baronial Candidates meeting. They will be sent to the King and Queen along with the original question and answer sheets that were turned in.
2. We are still always looking for letters or posts about interesting things SCA related.
5. HRH Islay Elspeth of Glen Meara (Not in attendance)
1. No report
6. Baron and Baroness: Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. We are here and miss you all. If anyone would like to talk to them, let them know.
7. Cantons
1. Loch Griffin - HL Hywel ap Wyn
1. Getting ready to check in about Art/Sci reports
2. Fighters are feeling restless
2. Swamp Keep - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges and Baron James Highgate
1. No Report
3. Seminole County SCA group - Cathy Abernathy
1. No Report
8. Guilds
1. Scribal - Mistress Milesenda de Bourges
1. There are a lot of online challenges happening now and people are working on these all over the Known World.
2. Brewer’s Guild - Cathy Abernathy
1. No report
3. Fiber Arts - Baroness Ilene Johnnestoune
1. Other than posts - Formal guild things are on hold.
4. Lampworker’s Guild - Lady Thyri Bersi
1. Making 5 beads a day for largesse. But currently on hold as well.
5. Dyers Guild - LeAnn Meyrick
1. No report
6. Performance/Bardic Guild - ?
1. No report
7. Cooking Guild - Lady Margarita di Rossi
1. No report
8. Costuming Guild - ?
1. Original person can no longer do it.
2. We will post it for an opening, but we do have a person we can put in there.
9. Herbal - Lady Rahil bint Haroun
1. No report
10. Craftsman - ?
1. No report
11. Defense - ?
1. No report
9. Upcoming Events
1. Gathering at the Tavern -
1. No Report at this time
2. We need a bid for Village Faire
1. Done in the above notes
10. Announcements From the Populous
1. Someone asked yesterday about the shirts: They are at David Archer’s house. He is NOT shipping them at the moment as it is a bit expensive to do this.
2. ½ dozen responses about doing something on the day of Clans on Zoom?
1. Can David do something, use the Zoom, and make a plan?
1. Illene - If you, David, want to organize and put it together, I am all for you.
2. Officers agreed and passed.
3. TRU is June 20th, entirely online, and still looking for teachers. It can be a recorded class, a handout, or a live class on Zoom.
4. Could we do a guild day type activity. Something to pass around.
11. Adjournment
1. Next Officer Meeting is on Zoom on June 1st, 2020
2. There is a business meeting on Thursday, May 7th
3. Next Business Meeting at Fashion Square Mall currently suspended due to Covid
12. Meeting Closed - Baron Gavine Armstrang

Baronial Candidates 2020

Barony of Darkwater

 Baronial Candidate Revel

Greetings from your Baronial Chronicler!

Below you will find a picture of your Baronial candidates as well as a question and answer interview for each. Please take a few moments to peruse their thoughts on our Barony, Kingdom and the SCA. Then join us on Thursday, April 30th, on Zoom, for a “Meet the Baronial” get together where you can ask any questions you might have to any of our candidates!

Sir Johan Craft and Honorable Lady Vivienne Le Corbeau

What, if anything, do you hope to do to expand the artistic presence and involvement of Darkwater?

Allow teachers and learners the ability to contact one another to expand their knowledge and teach their skills to others with their same passions and interests.

What, if anything, would you do to foster unity, solidarity, and a feeling of inclusiveness in the barony, especially between those who attend meetings and those who attend fighter practice?

To foster unity between the members of the Barony's different communities, we would like to make it available for them to do more together. Classes about fighting theory and classes at practice on heraldry or other outdoor available arts. So to allow inclusiveness to all of the activities that we do. 

What would you do to encourage longevity in our members?

We encourage them to find what they love and do it. Try everything and see where you fall in love. 

Describe how the Baron and Baroness fit within the Baronial Officer structure.
They make one vote of the officers together. Our job is to steer the Barony in a good direction with the help of the officers so that the Barony is getting what they need to continue to thrive.

What are the duties of the Baron & Baroness?
The recognition of the members of the Barony and its Cantons along with all those who do good works in and for our Barony. To uphold the reputation and grace that is Darkwater. To foster and grow the Arts, Service, and Fighting communities. To represent the Kingdom and the Crown when they are not present.

How would you, as Baron/Baroness, deal with interpersonal issues between members of the Barony?
So that is a sticky question. We are adults and mediation is the only resource available to us. We would encourage them to talk out whatever issue they have to try to find a suitable compromise.

Where do you see the Barony in 4 years?
We see us as a little larger and as active as we have been in the many years we have lived here and played here.

What do you see as the role of the Cantons in the running of the Barony and vice versa?
The Cantons are extensions of our Barony. We support those groups and they support the Barony. It allows us to expand their resources as well as our own for running events and the overall growth of our populous.

Would you travel to the various Cantons? 

Yes, we live in a Canton 

Would you encourage the Cantons to either sponsor the traditional Baronial events or create (or resurrect) their own?
We would encourage them to sponsor Baronial events, we do not currently support hosting more events unless they are in the off months due to the packed nature of the Kingdom Calendar.

What suggestions would you give to the Canton Seneschals to help their groups grow?
We would advise them to seek out the 18-30-year-old people to find the love of what we do. Colleges and other LARP groups have members who want more and we can offer them more.

Why do you want to be Baron and Baroness?
It allows us to help give the Barony direction to continue its growth and survival over our tenure.

What positions have you held in the SCA?
Johan: Marshal, Baronial Marshal, Hospitaler, Youth combat Marshal. Event staff: Autocrat, Feastcrat, Marshal, Hall Steward, Herald, Teacher, and Gate.
Vivienne: Marshal, Baronial Marshal, Kingdom Traveling Practice Coordinator, Kingdom Lystmaker. Event staff: Autocrat, Fundraiser lunch coordinator, Marshal, Lystmistress, and Teacher

If you are not chosen as Baron & Baroness, do you see yourself staying active in Darkwater and supporting the barony?
Always have; always will.

How long have you been actively playing in Darkwater? Johan has been here 20 years and Vivienne has been here 10.

Mistress Christine Chabrier, OL and Baronessa Calpurnia Fortunata

What, if anything, do you hope to do to expand the artistic presence and involvement of Darkwater?

We would like to do group projects that involve more of the Barony; not quite as big as the Trimaris Peerage Tapestry, perhaps, but we have some ideas of things that could be fun and involve lots of artists while adding more pageantry to our group. This is especially true of projects that will make our fighters appear like the excellent force that they are, and add more beauty to our lyst fields. We would also like to talk with more schools and other organizations about doing small demos for educational purposes. 

What, if anything, would you do to foster unity, solidarity, and a feeling of inclusiveness in the barony, especially between those who attend meetings and those who attend fighter practice? 

We would continue to work on reactivating the baronial revels, because days where the whole Barony can get together are important. We would like to encourage non-fighters to come to fighter practices and have an artisan area, perhaps once a month, and to encourage more fighter-orientated craft sessions. 

What would you do to encourage longevity in our members? 

We would like to see more activities and socials that encourage a wide variety of interests. We would encourage more people to step up to volunteer so that no one in the Barony feels overburdened and like they have to take on more than they could handle; burnout is a real risk and it is something we would like to avoid for everyone. We would do our absolute best to be open and supportive to those who volunteer in any capacity. Overall, we hope that we can encourage volunteerism overall so that individual workloads become less, and everyone can have more fun as a whole. 

Describe how the Baron and Baroness fit within the Baronial Officer structure. 

The Coronets are the pretty and ceremonial public face of the Barony. The Baronial officers, such as the Seneschal and Exchequer, do most of the hard work. While the Coronets do have an incredibly important and challenging job in managing the ‘game side’ of the SCA, the officers are who keep us functioning as a real 501c3 educational nonprofit. The Coronets should, of course, help support the officers in any way that they can and stay up to date on the structural workings of the Barony, but it is also important to know when to stay out of the officers’ way. 

What are the duties of the Baron & Baroness? 

The Coronets are to represent the Crown of Trimaris to the Populace and to represent the Baronial Populace and their interests and concerns to the Crown. If the officers are the ones making sure that the mundane health of the group is taken care of, the Coronets are the ones who make sure that the game side is just as healthy. The Coronets are the ultimate cheerleaders for the group, the support structure; they should be a source of inspiration and guidance, of love and kindness and joy. They should watch their people, to sing loud and public praises of their triumphs and to say a kind private word if someone is struggling. Above all, they should make sure to support the Baronial populace in whatever way they need, whether it be from heading the charge to War, or a shoulder to cry on a Tuesday afternoon. 

How would you, as Baron/Baroness, deal with interpersonal issues between members of the Barony? 

When an issue is brought to our attention, or we discover its existence, our first question to those involved will be “Have you talked with the other party?”. We would try to encourage open and honest communication between Barony members; we are all adults with a shared love of our Barony, our Kingdom, and our Dream, and we truly discourage bickering and gossip and meanness. That being said, we would also act as mediators if requested, and would do our best to assist anyone who is feeling left out, disrespected, hurt, or in any other way like they are having an issue with another member of the Barony. 

Where do you see the Barony in 4 years? 

We see the Barony stronger and more active than it is now, which is saying something! However, this can only happen with the assistance of the entire Populace. Darkwater is a very welcoming group and we wish to see that characteristic remain strong. We hope in the coming years that we can achieve even more unity between the various groups and communities within the Barony, so we can present an even more unified front to the rest of the Kingdom. 

What do you see as the role of the Cantons in the running of the Barony and vice versa? 

Cantons are the local representatives of the Barony within specified geographic areas. The Barony is large enough that having only one central point of activity means a lot of people could not participate. The Cantons offer an opportunity for those at the farther ends of the Barony to have a more local group that they can participate in. The Barony’s role in this partnership is to provide support and advice when needed, while the Cantons provide the Barony with outreach, recruitment, and support in areas that the central Barony might not be able to otherwise reach. 

Would you travel to the various Cantons? 

Of course! Christine is already an officer in Loch Gryffyn, and we both try and make meetings when we can. As Coronets, we would attend as many Canton activities as we could, and lend support even if it was not something we were able to personally attend. 

Would you encourage the Cantons to either sponsor the traditional Baronial events or create (or resurrect) their own? 

Yes for both traditional and new ideas, to the extent that a calendar allows. One day events in support of other organizations, especially public ones like libraries, are an excellent example; currently, Loch Gryffyn supports the Astor Library at a demo while Swampkeype supports a library day in Kissimmee. We would also highly encourage the Cantons to run the larger Baronial events as well. 

What suggestions would you give to the Canton Seneschals to help their groups grow?

We would speak with the officers about what they feel the current needs of the group are, and what the Barony can do to support them. Running Baronial events is definitely an idea since the Barony can profit split with the group and it allows Canton members to get more recognition. We would also encourage more small one-day demos. We would encourage Canton officers to have a few business cards on them to hand out to anyone who seems interested in the SCA. 

Why do you want to be Baron and Baroness? 

We both love Darkwater with all of our hearts and want to serve this group. The position of Coronet, while an incredible joy and honor, is also a 4-year commitment and a job that requires a huge amount of effort Even with the commitment and work, however, we want the chance to serve as the inspiration and cheerleaders for this group that we love so dearly. We want to continue the good work that our predecessors; it seems to us that as Baronesses we would have the longer time frame in which to nurture and support this family of ours. 

What positions have you held in the SCA? 

Christine has held multiple officer positions for the Canton of Loch Gryffyn, has worked as staff for many events, and is a member of the Order of the Laurel. Calpurnia has served as several officer positions for the Barony, is currently serving as Chronicler for the Kingdom, has been a deputy officer for the Triskele Herald’s office for many years, and is a baroness of the court. Full resumes for each of us are available upon request. 

If you are not chosen as Baron & Baroness, do you see yourself staying active in Darkwater and supporting the barony?

Of course! Darkwater is our home, and we will be here to support the group for as long as we possibly can. 

How long have you been actively playing in Darkwater?

Christine has been playing in the Barony since she moved here in 2016. Calpurnia has been a member of the Barony since she started playing in 2007. 

Is there anything specific you would like to add? 

We have so many thoughts and plans that we are working on that we would love to be able to bring to fruition. Also, please contact us if you have any other questions for us! Our emails are: calpurniafortunata@gmail.com (Calpurnia) and clothier16c@hotmail.com (Christine) 

What piece of advice would you give to a newcomer at their first event? 

First of all, have fun! This is a game, and while we all take it incredibly seriously because it brings us so much joy, always remember that your real life is important and it is okay to play at whatever level of involvement is best for you. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, as most of us in this game will happily talk about our interests, or will point you to someone who has more knowledge than we do. Take some time to just play and have fun before you feel like you have to jump into volunteering or service or anything else, but at the same time, if you find something that really interests you, don’t be afraid! The worst that happens is that you don’t like it, and you find something else to love. 

What makes Darkwater special as a barony? 

Darkwater is the biggest and best Barony in the Kingdom. We have such an immense wealth of knowledge within our Populace, in art and fighting and service all. While we may have our squabbles, as any group may do, we treat each other as family, and we come together if someone dares try to hurt one of our own. We have both traveled to many places, around the Kingdom and across the Known World, and neither of us has ever seen a kinder or more loving group than Darkwater and its people.

HL Adelina de Bretigny & HL David Archer

What, if anything, do you hope to do to expand the artistic presence and involvement of Darkwater? 

Darkwater does pretty well in this regard as evidenced by our recent Patron of the Arts win at Winter Art-Sci. However, in order to keep up the momentum, we need opportunities for artists to gather, work on their projects, and teach. The combined Scribal and guild days have been great for this, and we would like to keep those up as well as occasional specialized get-togethers to work on various things such as garb/costuming, fiber arts, leatherworking, etc. 

We would also like to see if we could get some arts going in conjunction with our regular fighter practices as well. Especially at the Sunday practices there is the ability to encourage artists out to work on their projects while the fighters practice as a regular thing. This would help bring together both communities and give more opportunities for family involvement where one person fights and another is interested in the arts. 

What, if anything, would you do to foster unity, solidarity, and a feeling of inclusiveness in the barony, especially between those who attend meetings and those who attend fighter practice? 

This is an area that every SCA group struggles with. As mentioned above, one thing we would like to do is continue to encourage non-fighter participation at the Sunday fighter practice with revels and crafting days. To encourage fighters to come to the meetings, the best thing we’ve found is to ask them to come and give them something interesting to attend. Along those lines, there is no reason we cannot better encourage some martial classes on Thursdays, and we’d like to ask some of the squires and knights to do classes about things like sword making and maintenance, strategy, and other topics which can be done indoors. 

What would you do to encourage longevity in our members? 

The best way to encourage longevity is to make sure people are having fun. We plan to put some time aside to make sure that we check in on people at events and between events. To make sure they are having fun and they are able to follow up on their interests. The baron has a huge number of subject matter experts who will talk your ear off about things, but making sure people know they are there is important. 

Another important aspect of retention is to focus on populations that generally drop out of the SCA for one reason or another. Two of the biggest ones are families with small and school-aged children and teenagers to young adults. Families need the engagement and participation of their children to be a priority so that the parents can enjoy their events and the children are excited about attending. Likewise, teenagers and young adults need support and encouragement at a time in their lives when there are many things competing for their attention and limited funds. Darkwater has been a pioneer in these areas over the last several years, but there is a lot still to do. Both Brittany and David feel strongly about the engagement of our children and young adults and will continue to make this a priority. 

Describe how the Baron and Baroness fit within the Baronial Officer structure.

The Baron and Baroness are the on-stage embodiment of the Barony. It’s their job to represent the populace and make sure the populace is given every opportunity to excel and shine. This involves recognizing people, supporting their efforts, and providing direction. Though they have a voice on the financial committee, there is a clear line between the administrative aspects of the barony and the function of the sitting nobles. The nobles should inspire, but it is the seneschal and other officers who are the legal representatives and leaders of the Barony. It’s key, in our opinion, that the Baron and Baroness support the Baronial Officers. 

What are the duties of the Baron & Baroness? 

The Baron & Baroness are responsible for supporting and encouraging the members of the barony. They have the ability to create and grant baronial awards for the populace. This includes presenting awards on the crown’s behalf in some situations. 

They should oversee the selection of the baronial champions. This usually means working closely with last year’s champions who generally run the selection contests. They should also attend the selection contests. 

They are a rallying point for the Crown’s agenda concerning events, wars, and other activities. They coordinate certain activities and treaties with the Territorial Baronials from other areas. 

They should work closely with the baronial officers concerning membership experience to ensure that every member of the populace feels welcomed and engaged. This is especially important with newcomers and areas of the population which need retention encouragement. 

How would you, as Baron/Baroness, deal with interpersonal issues between members of the Barony? 

It depends on the situation, as there is no one size fits all methodology. The SCA has rules concerning conflict resolution that should be observed, but oftentimes we have seen from our past Barons and Baronesses that it’s usually a matter of getting people to sit down and listen to each other. A large number of problems happen due to assumptions or miscommunication. Therefore encouraging fruitful communication between the parties involved is the key to handling most interpersonal issues and should be the first step in any situation. 

Where do you see the Barony in 4 years? 

Is on a beach in the south of France an option? 

Joking aside, we hope that the Barony will continue to grow in members and that we expand our activities and the things we do to support our club. Our last few sitting nobles started some really great initiatives and projects, and we’d like to expand on that. One special focus is continuing the efforts to get the fighters and non-fighters more interaction. We would also like to continue focusing on quality versus quantity for our events and get-togethers. The Barony’s energies are better served attempting something new and exciting instead of plugging away doing what has always been done at the cost of engagement. 

What do you see as the role of the Cantons in the running of the Barony and vice versa? 

The primary goal of a Canton is to provide a local group closer to home that people can interact with. Darkwater is a very large Barony and it’s not practical for everyone to travel from one side to the other for every meeting, practice, and class. For some that hour or more drive is prohibitive, and having the Cantons gives them a place to be involved and a local support structure. 

Both of our current Cantons have been growing over the last few years and we look forward to supporting that. The potential return of the third canton has also been going well and has attracted local participants. We’ve talked about how to make sure that we attend the Cantons meetings regularly so they get the support that they need. We’d also like to encourage members of the Barony to attend canton gatherings and meetings outside of their own. This provides an opportunity to meet new people and encourages relationships and cohesion across the Barony as a whole. 

Would you travel to the various Cantons? 

Yes. We already attend these meetings occasionally because we like seeing the people, and if we end up as Baron and Baroness will make that a more regular occurrence as part of our duties. 

Would you encourage the Cantons to either sponsor the traditional Baronial events or create (or resurrect) their own? 

Due to the desire of the Kingdom to limit the number of events, we wouldn’t recommend any new large event. But we would recommend that the Cantons hold revels, workdays, practices, and other small day events to fit the needs of their local populace and to attract visitors from elsewhere in the Barony. 

We are both strong supporters of Cantons running Baronial Events. It helps move around the responsibility of running the events and provides financial support for the cantons. This may seem daunting but it has been our experience that the Baronial populace is always willing to pitch in to help a Canton run a successful event. 

What suggestions would you give to the Canton Seneschals to help their groups grow?

Local partnerships can be invaluable to helping your group grow. Swampkeype has grown and become far more active since their partnership with the local library system. The newest canton has also had some great results from their efforts to spread information through their local game shop and local social media. 

Why do you want to be Baron and Baroness? 

Brittany originally expressed the desire to run for Baronial nobles due to the choice of Marcaster’s current nobility. Like Jared, Brittany is an introvert and more comfortable supporting others than being a leader. However, she has always believed that part of what a good Baroness does is to inspire and support the Barony. Realizing that Jared makes the role his own and still has the support of his people made her realize that she could do the same. 

When Brittany approached David about the idea, he happily agreed. Supporting others is something he has always enjoyed and he likes the idea of trying it from a different direction. We both believe that we can do a good job of helping the barony continue to grow. 

What positions have you held in the SCA?

Brittany: 

Triskele Editor (Kingdom Chronicler’s Office)- Current 

Kingdom Chronicler Drop-Dead Deputy- Current 

Kingdom Trimaris Chronicler 

Seneschal- Canton of Swampkeype 

Chatelaine- Barony of Darkwater 

Arts and Science Officer - Canton of Swampkeype 

Hospitaler- Shire of Trysel 

Barque Signet- Kingdom Hearld’s Office 

Warranted Hospitaliter At Large- Kingdom 

Various event positions- Autocrat, Classcrat, Hall steward 

David: 

Trimaris Kingdom Web Minister 

Darkwater Seneschal 

Swampkeype Seneschal 

Shire of Trysel Exchequer 

Shire of Trysel Web Minister 

Deputy positions include Herald, Marshal, Seneschal, Constable

If you are not chosen as Baron & Baroness, do you see yourself staying active in Darkwater and supporting the barony?

Yes, we’re not going anywhere any time soon. If we don’t get chosen we have some thoughts on other things we will likely focus on in the SCA. 

How long have you been actively playing in Darkwater?

About six years now, since we moved here from Fort Myers. 

Is there anything specifically you would like to add?

We’re very open to questions. If people have more questions they are welcome to reach out. We’re happy to sit down and talk to anyone, either by video during the current situation, or in person once we are able to do so. 

What piece of advice would you give to a newcomer at their first event? 

Enjoy yourself and take your time. Explore everything the SCA has to offer, meet people, make friends, try anything you think you might enjoy. It can be scary because you don’t know what is going on, but people are always willing to explain. And once you find what brings you joy, then dive in. 

What makes Darkwater special as a barony? 

Darkwater has a vibrant history filled with amazing people. We have a lot of really cool traditions and even cooler members. The populace is Darkwater’s best resource and it’s hard to find a subject that we don’t have someone with that knowledge and experience. 

HL Toki Inn Eldri Bassi & Lady Thyri Bersi

What, if anything, do you hope to do to expand the artistic presence and involvement of Darkwater? 

We would like to continue to cultivate the artistic presence by involving Darkwater’s community showcasing the populace and guilds at Baronial events. By utilizing classes, it builds excitement and involvement in our local events. Classes can encompass and give visibility to all the Baronial guilds and potentially increase involvement. Supporting the autocrat and event staff by potentially making site tokens and decorations for the site and the Hall. This support may encourage more members to step forward to run events knowing they would have many hands of support. 

By doing this, it could increase exposure and build momentum for the upcoming event. It may bring people out to meetings to participate in the classes which may increase meeting attendance. The classes would teach members skills but then by also allowing them to contribute to the event they become invested in the event. Having their efforts showcased adds to the atmosphere and presence which builds a feeling of community. This makes our event a beautiful tapestry of the efforts of people of Darkwater and potentially increases Baronial event attendance as people would like to see their efforts displayed. 

What, if anything, would you do to foster unity, solidarity, and a feeling of inclusiveness in the barony, especially between those who attend meetings and those who attend fighter practice? 

We would like to: 

--Set up a Baronial pavilion - at other Baronial events as well as Kingdom events. This would be a Baronial presence and would be a Baronial home base where members of the populace and friends of Darkwater can find a welcoming place to relax and enjoy our Barony’s hospitality. Incorporating Darkwater’s banners would make an artistic statement throughout the Kingdom. 

--Explore utilizing locations like the Seminole county Canton’s meeting location, to hold Baronial revels/ bardic circles mixed with fighter practice and other get togethers. Encouraging community involvement in the bardic arts, classes and fighting. 

--Encourage classes that include martial activities both on the field and those that incorporate the many skill sets it takes to be involved in a martial activity. 

--Promoting a social atmosphere with activities on Friday nights at events. This could include working with event staff to revitalize Midnight meat and hosting lawn games or game nights in the feast hall. 

What would you do to encourage longevity in our members? 

Each member of the Barony is vital to the kaleidoscope of Darkwater. Nurturing our longtime members as well as the potential of our newcomers with inclusive activities allowing increased involvement. Continuing to focus on hospitality and inclusivity to strengthen the community as a whole. We can enhance hospitality skills to allow everyone feel welcomed both at home and within our Barony. We believe this will have an impact to increase longevity and participation in the Barony. 

Describe how the Baron and Baroness fit within the Baronial Officer structure. 

The Baron and Baroness are a combined voice within the officer group. They are one vote within the officer/ financial committee. They must always keep the best interest of the populace in mind and work with all the officers in regards to the business decisions of the Barony. The role of the Baron and Baroness is to be an inspiration to the populace and to carry their voice to the Crown. 

What are the duties of the Baron & Baroness? 

The Responsibilities of the Baron and Baroness are to be the inspiration as well as the representation of the populace. They connect and communicate with the Crown to assist them in creating the kingdom that is Trimaris. They are to serve and represent the populace of Darkwater to the best of their ability and represent the virtues our dream is built upon, with the understanding that it is a privilege to serve and it is a role not to be taken lightly. To be the best version of themselves to better serve the Crown and populace with Truth, Honor and Grace. 

How would you, as Baron/Baroness, deal with interpersonal issues between members of the Barony? 

Conflict is inevitable but within it, lies the potential for tremendous growth. By being a good listener and remaining impartial, we can create stronger bridges within the community and each other. Making time to hear a person’s thoughts and concerns is often the first step in the process of resolving disagreements. Creating space so that people can listen and speak, facilitating understanding allowing all parties to move forward towards a solution. We all come from different backgrounds with differing communication styles. Most conflicts are resolved without the need for outside involvement, though for the times when progress has stalled, we will make ourselves available to listen if requested. 

Where do you see the Barony in 4 years? 

We hope to see a community that showcases the diversity of the Barony. Growth in membership and participation from all age groups. Strong guilds with an increased presence and involvement. We would like to become a part of the process that allows the Barony to become known across Trimaris for its inclusivity and hospitality. 

What do you see as the role of the Cantons in the running of the Barony and vice versa? 

Cantons are a vital part of the membership of the Barony. They are essential to the health and growth of the Barony as a whole. The location of the Cantons offers a unique opportunity for a wider reach outside of the central Barony and makes the SCA accessible in central Florida. The Barony’s role is to support their endeavors and offer resources. It can provide them with opportunities to showcase their members to a larger stage. The Barony’s involvement in the canton closes the distance gap and fosters community on the Baronial level. 

Would you travel to the various Cantons? 

Yes, We have been actively attending Canton meetings as they are great opportunities to see our friends across the Barony. We look forward to attending meetings with all the Cantons, as they are a great way to connect with people who may not be able to attend the central Baronial meeting. 

Would you encourage the Cantons to either sponsor the traditional Baronial events or create (or resurrect) their own? 

Yes, We would fully support the Cantons submitting event bids for the traditional events or creating their own events. We would also encourage and support the Cantons to host Demos and make the SCA visible to their local communities. Both Swampkeype and Loch Gryffyn have successful yearly demos and we would love to see these continue. Toki and I have been heavily involved in Loch Gryffyn’s Demo - Lady of the Lakes, since we joined in 2014. 

What suggestions would you give to the Canton Seneschals to help their groups grow? 

Keep doing those Demos! Demos open doors and acceptance through the broader community of central Florida. The classes and the hospitality at your local meetings will encourage newcomers to stay. Invest in making the group a welcoming place of learning and friendship. Maintain a web presence with up to date information. 

Why do you want to be Baron and Baroness? 

We love the SCA, the dream that it is, and the dream of what it can become. We have found, not only our friends, but our family within Darkwater. The community and family that we have found here has enriched our lives. Some of our greatest joys during the past years have been serving the Barony and sharing our passions with people. Both of us have benefited from the generosity of the Darkwater community. 

We recognize the tremendous amount of work and commitment the role of Baron and Baroness involves and we wish to offer to serve to the best of our ability. SCA is amazing for its Arts and sciences, inspiration of fighting, and the awe of court. The wonder of learning and the joy of teaching. The truth of the SCA is that all these are the backdrop to what makes the SCA something we all love - the community. The people and the feeling of being a part of something. No matter our interests, the wonderful feeling of coming home is what keeps us all returning again and again. We would like to continue to foster this feeling, the feeling of home and belonging, for all of the populace - Newcomers and longtime members alike. 

What positions have you held in the SCA? 

Toki - Baronial Archery Marshal. Leader of the Craftsmen’s Guild, multiple event staff positions, a teacher at meetings and events for multiple classes 

Thyri - Baronial Hospitaller Deputy, Baronial Hospitaller, leader of the Glassworker Guild, autocrat, feastcrat, multiple event staff positions, Archery Marshal, a teacher at meetings and events on multiple subjects, Chamberlain to TRH Trimaris 

If you are not chosen as Baron & Baroness, do you see yourself staying active in Darkwater and supporting the barony? 

As we have said, our home and family is Darkwater. Whether we are chosen to serve in this role or not - our home will remain in Darkwater, where we will continue to serve the Barony and the Kingdom. 

How long have you been actively playing in Darkwater? 

We've been active for 6 years, beginning in Jan 2014. 

Is there anything specific you would like to add? 

We love the SCA and are willing to serve to make our community stronger and to become a voice for all the people who make Darkwater the incredible home it is. We will work tirelessly, with kindness and dedication to the Barony and the Kingdom. We look forward to answering any questions at the “meet the candidates” meeting. 

What piece of advice would you give to a newcomer at their first event? 

Explore, have fun - try everything! You don't know what your passion is until you have exposure to it. Give yourself time to see and experience all the cool things within the SCA. Ask Questions and Welcome Home. 

What makes Darkwater special as a Barony? 

Though we are a large and very active Barony filled with a passionate, diverse, and incredibly talented community - we continue to grow, continue to learn, and continue to serve Trimaris. Vivat!