I first like to thank everyone from all the Kingdoms around the Known World that have been in communication with myself and our Crown and our landed nobility in the areas hit by Harvey.  Your concern and generosity has been nothing less than inspiring.  Thank you for all you continue to do to walk beside us in our time of need.

I want to thank everyone for wanting to step up and help.  I know of several fundraisers in the works.  I know of collection jars at events for gift cards at events in many Kingdoms.  The generosity of our SCAdian family always touches my heart and I am always in awe of how we help our own find their feet in these situations.

I would also like to thank the populace of our Kingdom for opening their homes during this time.  As of right now, everyone who is evacuated currently has a place to stay.  As this is a fluid situation and things will continue to change, I am keeping a list of everyone who has offered their home on the chance that as people continue to be evacuated or as people are allowed home, we need to utilize your home for those who find themselves without a place to go.  If you have crash space, or if you find yourself without a place to go (or you know of a family that doesn’t have somewhere to go – sometimes our newer families don’t always know how to reach out for help), please let me know so we can make the necessary arrangements.

I have received the names of several individuals who have been directly impacted by the storms, and a few have been in touch with me directly.  If you have been impacted by the storm and will need help, or you know of someone who has been impacted by the storm and you think they may need help (because some SCA people are hard headed and won’t volunteer they need help even when their house has blown down), please send me their information.  Names will remain confidential unless they tell me I may release them.  All I need is a name and an email address and I can do the rest.  They can even tell me they don’t feel they want or need help (I will just redistribute what would have been allocated to them to the others).  Once we know most people have a fairly clear idea of losses, we will start working on if anyone has “stuff” needs and/or SCA equipment or regalia we need to address.

To address immediate needs, we are taking gift cards and PayPal/cash donations.

We will have a collection jar at Braggart’s War this weekend.

For collection jars in a Kingdom near you, check your Kingdom pages.

PayPal address for donations: AnsteorraTwister@gmail.com

The account only has monies donated for Hurricane Harvey Victims given by individuals for other individuals.  No donations given are tax deductible.

Mail Donations to: Brandy Merrell, 629 Unbridled Lane, Keller, TX 76248

Again, I want to reiterate a very big thank you to everyone for the response to this situation. It is truly overwhelming and a little humbling, even for someone who has worked a major disaster before.

Yours in Service,

Marion, DRC Ansteorra

Greetings from Ansteorra!

As everyone knows, The Kingdom has been visited by Hurricane Harvey.  It has ravaged our coastline and many of our Baronies and Shires in that group have taken more than 20” of rain with more on the way.  Many people have evacuated, and some are still in the process of being evacuated.  It will be some time before we know the full extent of the damage Harvey has left.

Their Majesties, their Highnesses, and their Excellencies Bonwicke, their Excellencies Elfsea, and their Excellencies Steppes, and the autocrat of Braggart’s War this weekend have been very gracious in allowing me to place a collection container at the gate table to collect gift cards and cash for the victims of this storm. Please do not bring stuff. We are not ready to accept donations other than gift cards or cash, there is nowhere to store the stuff (the rain is still falling and everyone is still evacuated).  We will do another collection for this at a later time.

At this point, we are going to limit donations to gift cards, cash, and PayPal donations. Once people have returned to their homes and begun to assess the damage, we will begin to start a list (physical and amazon wish-type) of “stuff” that needs to be replaced, but we will only do that once the rain has stopped, Harvey has left, and they have a place to put it.

The only monies in the PayPal account are relief funds. Any cash received will be added to the PayPal account for accounting/accountability purposes. It is not an SCA affiliated account, nor are the donations tax deductible. All monies need to be given by individuals to help those who want to help those affected. All donations will be used to help the affected, and any excess money (after the tornado, we split all monies equitably, and I foresee this being the same situation with no excess) will be given equally to Red Cross, Salvation Army, TX Food Bank, and the Humane Society.

We could also use gift cards to help fill immediate needs and help with clean-up. The best gift cards are Generic Visa/MC, Wal-Mart, Target, Home Depot, Lowe’s, HEB, PetCo, and other big box stores.

Donations can be sent to the PayPal address AnsteorraTwister@gmail.com.

Mail (and gift card) donations can be sent to me:

Brandy Merrell
629 Unbridled Lane

Keller, TX 76248

I will send them on to where they will be most helpful.

Anyone can feel free to contact me for more information or clarification: Brandy.Merrell@gmail.com.

In Service,

Lady Marion inghean ui Ruanadha
DRC Ansteorra

The Monthly Roundup: September 2017 (a quick summary of the calendar listed events)

By HL Ivo Blackhawk
Deputy Editor

The fall season is shaping up to be a busy one this year, with no less than nine events or activities spread across five weekends in the month on the kingdom calendar.

Starting off the month in style, Braggart’s War will run from September 1^st through the 4^th, taking advantage of the Labor Day holiday to give the camping event an extra day of competitions and activities. This war will see the baronies of Bonwicke, Elfsea, and Steppes come together in a three-way competition involving thrown weapons, target and combat archery, chivalric, and rapier combat, as well as numerous other activities, including a largess derby. The event will also have a plethora of Kingdom level activity as there will be both the crown and heirs present at the event. They will be hosting a Centurions circle and a White Scarf circle as well. The hosting site is Sid Richardson Scout Ranch, located approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes North West of Fort Worth. Event registration is $25 for adults and children 6-17 are $10. Children under 6 are free of charge.

On Sunday the 4^th, there will be an entirely different activity, as Shadowlands hosts an Open House demo in conjunction with the Texas A&M Student Organization. As outreach to the local community is important to the SCA, anyone in the Texas A&M area that day is encouraged to reach out to Shadowlands and see if they can help with the display. Please remember that as the demo is on a college campus, weapons and alcohol restrictions do apply. College Station is, interestingly enough, roughly equidistant, about an hour and a half, from Waco, Houston, and Austin, Texas.

On a much more formal note, on Tuesday the 5^th, the Barony of Eldern Hills will be conducting a baronial polling, held on the campus of Cameron University in Lawton, OK. If you are a member of the barony or have a vested interest in this process, please look for details on the kingdom calendar to help decide if you should attend.

On Saturday, September the 9^th, Bryn Gwlad will host this year’s Laurel’s Prize tournament. This one-day, kingdom-level competition will see artistic displays judged or just commented on by some of the kingdom’s best artistic minds. Artisans are encouraged to attend, and those interested in feedback are encouraged to display or enter the competition. A lunchtime sideboard will be included with your site registration. The all-day, indoor event will take place at VFW Bell Post 1820, in Temple, TX, approximately an hour south of Waco.

September the 15^th through the 18^th will see two events, one in the north, and one in the south.

Starting with Raven’s Fort, the barony will be hosting its annual “Defender of the Fort” event. Competitions will include championships in Chivalric, Rapier, Bardic, and archery, as well as  A&S, with a separate title for brewing. Additionally, there will be three age groups for non-adult competitions will be held in Bardic, Arts & Sciences, Rapier and youth chivalric. The local Minister of Children will also be running non-competitive activities. Feast will be served Saturday night, and the crown prince will be in attendance at this event. Site is considered primitive with barrel water and port-a-potties for facilities. Attendees are strongly encouraged to bring their own drinking water. There is no event address, but directions can be found on the Raven’s Fort event page, as well as in the Black Star. Registration costs for the event are $15 for adults, $10 for children 6-17. Feast cost is $8 per head for the first hundred people to purchase. Children 5 and under are free admission. The location shows as one hour, fifteen minutes north of Houston, TX.

Moving north, the Province of Mooneschadowe will host the 12th Provincial Triumph of the Eclipse event. The weekend camping event will include competitions to select Championships in chivalric combat, rapier, target archery, thrown weapons, and bardic, as well as Children’s championships in youth heavy weapons, archery, and bardic.  The event will also host equestrian games, with riders expected from both Ansteorra and Calontir. The Crown will be in attendance, and will also host a Masters of Defense Circle, as well as meeting of the Order of the Golden Lance. The event stewards also want people to know that taverns will be open Friday night, Saturday morning, and Saturday for lunch. The event takes place at Will Rodger’s Boy Scout Camp, in Cleveland Oklahoma, approximately 45 minutes west of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Site registration is $15 for adults, $5 for children 7-17, and free for children under 6.

September 29^th through October 1^st is listed as Bryn Gwlad’s fall baronial event and shows both the crown and heirs in attendance.

Saturday, October 1^th will see the Barony of Elfsea host its Baronial College. The indoor, day event, themed “Newcomers are the future”, will see a full day of classes along all levels of interest, as well as hosting the prince and princess. Additionally, the baron and baroness will be selecting their Arts & Sciences Champion. The event will be held at First Jefferson Unitarian Universalist Church, in Fort Worth, TX.

More information about each of these events can be found on the kingdom calendar, including links to maps, contact information for the stewards, and more detailed breakdown of site registrations, family maximums, and details about membership discounts. Visit the Kingdom calendar at  http://www.ansteorra.org/events.php