South Downs Baronial Business Meeting
1 February 2017, 7:30pm
Atlanta Friends Meeting House
Notes submitted by Lady Raven Helmsplitter (mka Helena Bretherton Hay), South Downs Chronicler.
Lord Lucien d’Artois called the meeting to order.
Officer Reports
- Chronicler (Lady Raven Helmsplitter)
- Working on newsletter
- Will post a call for content on website and FB group shortly
- Content deadline for the first issues will be 28 February, for publishing late March
- Need name for newsletter: The Tower Times? The Read Tower?
- Working on newsletter
- Rapier Marshal (Lord Brendan de Hay)
- Practices are going well! We continue to have practices Tuesday evenings and Sunday afternoons (weather and event schedule permitting).
- We have several new fencers who are almost ready to authorize
- MCA – the second annual Meridian Challenge of Arms – is coming, 25 February 2017, at University of West Georgia. Come on out and support the fencers of South Downs!
- Armored Marshal (Lord Robert Throckmorton)
- THL Mathias reported on behalf of Lord Robert; 3-4 fighters come out to practice each week.
- We will have practice on Sunday of Midwinter A+S as much as possible, working around conflicts with War College and the Super Bowl
- Chatelaine (Lady Stella di Silvestri)
- Demo season is coming! Abel is coordinating Streets Alive! on 11 June over by Georgia Tech. Streets Alive is held several times a year, throughout the city – the 11 June event is the most likely to not conflict with other SCA events, so come on out!
- There will be Gold Key at Midwinter A+S, so even if you don’t have garb yet, you’re set for Midwinter A+S
- Webminister (Master Wistric Oftun)
- We have a website! And thanks to Lord Pietro, the South Downs’ FB group posts are now feeding into the website (so cool!)
- Herald (Lord Lucien d’Artois)
- Will bring heraldry books to the research library at Midwinter A+S, and will be consulting – so if you’re working on a name or device, this will be an excellent opportunity to get help on your submissions
- Submissions – Devices
- Piers Simmons – passed Kingdom! Yay!
- Arts & Sciences (Lady Veronica da Lucca)
- Report will be part of the Midwinter A+S update below
- Reeve (THL Maire Dhocair Inghean Chairain)
- Year-end Domesday report was submitted on time
- We have money!
- Their Excellencies
- Reporting on behalf of Her Excellency Adela, His Excellency Lorenzo announced that the Meridian Knowne Worlde Party will be Thursday night at Gulf Wars, not Saturday! Everyone is encouraged not only to attend, but volunteer – earn volunteer points for the Barony (and yourself) while you sling drinks at the party!
- Seneschal (THL Mathias Blackett)
- Seneschal report will be submitted in the next couple of days
- Master Wistric will step up as Seneschal in April
(Kingdom-Level) Event Bids for 2017
- Bid for Coronation fell through; Glenn Rhe got it
- Red Tower (7 October 2017)
- We got Booker T Washington Park in Chattanooga (where Crown Lyst was held) for Red Tower, complete with cabins and kitchen! Had hoped to get Hard Labor, but discovered it was already booked (need to book 13 – not 12 – months in advance)
- Even though we have a site for Red Tower, we don’t have a bid – so please submit a bid to autocrat by the April business meeting
- Because we didn’t get the bid for Coronation (was it awarded to Glenn Rhe before we could submit a bid?), we still need to submit a KLE bid – possibly RUM or Artsy Crown?
- RUM
- Pros
- More time to plan event than Artsy Crown
- Midsummer is not a busy time in the schedule
- Easier event to run – RUM staff handles much of the event planning
- Cons
- Possibly one other bid submitted
- Pros
- Artsy Crown
- Pros
- Could co-autocrat with another group (Tir Briste? Another shire?)
- No other bids have been submitted that we know of
- Cons
- Memorial Day weekend is coming up soon
- Being a holiday weekend, potential sites may already be reserved
- Potential site at Shrine (that we could work with Tir Briste on) is likely unavailable, since it is hay season
- Pros
- RUM
- We need to replenish and expand our list of suitable event sites – some suggested are:
- Wesleyan College in Macon, where RUM was held 3 years ago
- Georgia Gwinnett College, where Saltare was held a few years ago
- UGA, but would need collaboration with MARS (the UGA student SCA group)
- Kennesaw State University (either campus)
- There was a recollection of Mistress Peryn having once compiled a list of event sites – is it still available? still current at all?
- The populace was asked to look for potential event sites over the next two weeks and provide any options to Mathias and his committee, who will then contact the sites and get more information
- We used to have a deputy seneschal whose job was dealing with sites – can we do that again?
- Lord Lucien volunteered to autocrat an event, as long as he could work with a more experienced co-autocrat; Mathias offered to help him – REVENGE OF THE HERALDS!
- Other event bids needed – bids due for April business meeting:
- Castle Wars
- Iazzie and Piers are working on a bid for Castle Wars
- Castle Wars
- Regarding our site at the Shrine in Macon: Mathias spoke with Sir Tim – the Shrine is very happy to have us, and thinks it may be a good idea for us to put up a permanent storage structure for Castle Wars and other event-specific supplies (Lord Brendan suggested a giant silo of Andro). This storage structure will be shared with Tir Briste. We would build it ourselves, with the understanding that we will be committed to holding Fools War and Castle Wars there for the next couple of years (at an agreed-upon rate). We should get a contract to guarantee prices for the period. Duke John recommended that we first figure out what size shed/storage building we will need to store all the things.
- Maire will have a mtg with Tir Briste and will make sure everyone is on the same page. Added bonus – this could also allow us to move to a smaller SD storage unit.
Upcoming Events
- Midwinter Arts + Sciences (4-5 February 2017)
- Everything seems to be under control
- Lost three classes this week, but it looks like replacement classes may already be lined up
- Please pre-reg! Zeliha is managing registrations
- Master Lorenzo is coordinating site cleanup – please get in touch with him if you can help
- Site load-in starts at 7:00am Saturday morning – there are rumors of coffee and doughnuts being provided for the early birds
- Lord Pietro is coordinating troll, and Mathias will be handling money (Maire has to work that day, and Zeliha needs to step away from her role as deputy for the time being). Volunteers for troll are welcome!
- Bring your cash and your appetite! The Meridian Order of the Blade will sponsor a fundraiser lunch – several varieties of soups and stews will be offered, along with a drink and cookies for $5. Proceeds from the lunch will help establish a bank account for the MoB which will fund tournament prizes, etc.
- There will not be a regional practice on Sunday, since War College will be the same weekend – but we will still have our regular practice that Sunday at Blackburn Park
Other SCA Business
- Mistress Mara asked if we could have baronial business cards to hand out at demos, etc. Vistaprint is having a sale on business cards, so it would be rather inexpensive. Lady Raven volunteered to design them.
- Rhiannon mentioned that Hedgehog Handworks is closing, as the owner is retiring. Some great deals on the website for embroidery supplies are available – check it out!
Non-SCA Business
- Maire has started a new career as a tax preparer and is looking for clients – come see her if you need help with your taxes
- Duke John mentioned the Atlanta Soldier Show will be held the weekend of 17 February at the Marriott Century Center (I-85 and Clairmont Rd), and will feature model military figures from all time periods, very cool
- Netherworld will be open for one weekend only for Valentine’s Day event – reservations only
All the business issues having been addressed, the business meeting was closed.
Next South Downs business meeting will be held Wednesday, 1 March 2017, at the Atlanta Friends Meeting House.
–Raven