To all the College of Arms and all others who may read this missive, from Shauna Laurel, Evan Wreath, and Margaret Pelican, greetings.

The following is a table showing the status of Letters of Intent, Laurel Letters of Pend and Discussion, and Letters of Intent to Protect. The header rows are the dates of the meetings that will consider them, the dates when primary commentary is due, and the dates when responses to primary commentary are due. The key follows.

Month day: the date on the Letter of Intent, Letter of Pend and Discussion, or Letter of Intent to Protect.
(Month day): for administrative reasons, this LoI has not yet been scheduled.
[P Month day]: postmarked on that bracketed date, so the LoI is redated or postponed.
"-": no LoI is scheduled for that meeting from that kingdom.
?: tentative.

The April Wreath meeting was held on May 1. That is, Wreath's decisions to be published in the April 2004 LoAR were made at a meeting on May 1.

The May Wreath meeting was held on Sunday, May 16, and continued on Wednesday, May 19. The May Pelican meeting was held on May 15. They had a joint road-show meeting on May 22 at Æthelmearc War Practice.

The June Wreath meeting was held on June 12 and the June Pelican meeting was held on June 13. They held the traditional Known World Heraldic Symposium road-show meeting on June 27.

The August Pelican and Wreath meetings were held as a series of mini-meetings at Pennsic.

Wreath and Pelican will hold a joint meeting in the greater Washington D.C. area on September 25-26, with Wreath holding another meeting in advance on September 11.

The December Wreath meeting is tentatively scheduled for December 11 or 18.

Not all letters of intent may be considered when they are originally scheduled on this cover letter. The date of mailing of the LoI, date of receipt of the Laurel packet, or other factors may delay consideration of certain letters of intent. Additionally, some Letters of intent received may not have been scheduled because the administrative requirements (receipt of the forms packet, receipt of the necessary fees, et cetera) have not yet been met.

REMINDER: Until all administrative requirements are met, the letter may not be scheduled.

From Laurel: New times, new things

There are many new and different projects underway at this time. Some of them are explained further in this Cover Letter, and some will be written about in future Cover Letters.

I am also introducing two new sections to these Cover Letters: Administrative Handbook section of the month and/or Rules for Submissions section of the month. Each Cover Letter, one section from either or both of these publications will be put out for general information. Some of these sections need fuller explanation from time to time. In addition, some sections will be highlighted because of changes being made to them. All changes to the AH will be in a Cover Letter and will also be approved by the Board of Directors at their quarterly meetings. All changes to the RfS will also be in a Cover Letter, but the Board does not have to approve these changes.

From Laurel: A final farewell

Last month, in his final letter, Master Francois la Flamme elevated Mistress Zenobia, Mistress Mari and Master Daniel to the rank of Herald Extraordinary for all their work during his tenure. They were not the only ones to work long and hard at the job. It is only fitting in my opinion, therefore, to bestow the same rank and privilege on Master Francois la Flamme because of his efforts during the past three years as Laurel Sovereign as well as his long history of effort in many areas of heraldry in his home Kingdom of Ansteorra. I do elevate Francois to Herald Extraordinary as of the printing of this letter. He may choose a title to go with this rank at any time he so chooses. The title will be registered to him through this office whenever he wishes it.

From Laurel: Revised Deadlines for Submissions Heralds

The AH currently states, in VIII. Laurel Office Processing of Submissions, for item 3:

3. Delayed Paperwork - No letter of intent shall be scheduled until the Laurel Office receives a complete packet for that letter. Packets received less than six weeks prior to the date of the meeting for which the letter would normally have been scheduled will automatically be postponed. For each month or partial month that elapses between the six week deadline and the time the packet is received, the letter will be postponed one month. If paperwork is delayed excessively, all items on the letter may be returned at Laurel's discretion.

This is now being changed to read:

3. Delayed Paperwork - No letter of intent shall be scheduled until the Laurel Office receives a complete packet for that letter. Packets received more than six weeks after the date of the Letter of Intent will automatically be postponed. For each month or partial month that elapses between the six week deadline and the time the packet is received, the letter will be postponed one month. If paperwork is delayed excessively, all items on the letter may be returned at Laurel's discretion.

In addition, there has not been a concrete deadline set for payment of submissions fees to Laurel. The preference is for the check to accompany the submissions packet, but many Kingdoms have difficulty with this because they go through their Kingdom Exchequer to get the payment issued. In addition, there are Kingdoms that deal with foreign currency and have special payment arrangements because of the difficulties this can cause. The deadline for all Kingdoms that are not on special arrangements will be eight weeks from the date of the Letter of Intent.

I would ask that all the Principal Heralds communicate these deadlines to their respective Kingdom Colleges and any Exchequers who might not get this Cover Letter.

The combination of these two actions means that, for a Letter of Intent dated (for instance) 1 January, the packet is due to Laurel by 15 Feb and the check for that same LoI is due by 1 March.

From Laurel: Forms, again

The issue of forms and conforming to standard sizes, information and construction continues to appear. Many Kingdoms seem to have a problem with armory forms in particular. If the escutcheon is not of the dimensions set down in the Admin Handbook, it is subject to return. We are working hard to get a completely generic set of forms in a fully electronic format that all Kingdoms can use, but this process is taking more time than previously estimated.

From Laurel: Communication is a good thing

The Electronic Communication Policy has been revised, and any Principal Herald can declare a specific e-mail list as an official means of communication. I am declaring the Principal Heralds list, maintained by Laurel, as an official list pursuant to this policy. A list called 'coa-announce' has been set up on the sca.org server to allow for a much broader range of strictly announcements to be sent out to the College as a whole. I encourage all members of the College to sign up on this list. Go to http://www.sca.org/mailman/listinfo/coa-announce for instructions.

There is also a list for Submissions Heralds at Kingdom level, both internal and external, on sca.org. This list is also maintained by Laurel, and is also an official list specifically for Kingdom Submissions Heralds.

In addition, several other lists have come into being over the last few months in order to provide a forum for discussion on various on-going projects. The lists include coa-geeks@sca.org for those of a more technological outlook to work on the technical aspects of some of the ongoing projects, precedence@sca.org to work on the creation of a Society-wide Order of Precedence and precedents_search@sca.org to look into the creation of a simpler way to search the Laurel Precedents.

If you are interested in aiding any projects, or would like more information on or to be added to any of the e-mail lists, please contact Laurel at herald@sca.org.

From Laurel: New look to an old friend

For the last several years, Mistress Jaelle of Armida, Argent Snail Herald, has been maintaining the Laurel web pages. She did a great job, and she will continue to advise on this project. I want to take this opportunity to thank her for all the work she put into the initial pages as well as spearheading the project to get all the past LoARs webbed and online. This was a massive undertaking and she accomplished it with a great deal of skill.

Many of you, by now, will have noticed the new design and fresh look to the Laurel web pages. This is due to the hard work of the new web minister for Laurel, Meradudd Cethin of the Principality of Gleann Abhann. He has taken the title of Codex Herald for these duties. This new design and reformatting of the Laurel web site took over 1,000 hours of work and I commend him for completion of this task in a remarkably short time.

From Laurel: Colors and how to use them

Once again, the subject of color photocopiers and color printers used in creating armory forms has come up. At this time, the entire subject is under review by Laurel and Wreath. Lady Teceangl Bach, Ounce Herald in An Tir, has been doing extensive testing of several types of markers as well as printer and photocopier products in a wide variety of conditions. Her results are expected soon, and will be published in their entirety in a Cover Letter in order to attempt to more widely educate both the heraldic and non-heraldic community as to the problems associated with the various methods of coloring in armory submissions.

From Laurel: KWHS 2005 and beyond

The bid from the Kingdom of the Outlands for KWHS 2005 has been accepted, and the event will be held at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, CO, co-hosted by the Baronies of Unser Hafen and Caer Galen. The event will be held July 22-24, 2005, more information can be found at: http://www.outlandsheralds.org/kwhss/ and e-mail queries can be sent to kwhss@outlandsheralds.org

For KWHS 2006 and beyond, it is never too early to start thinking about a bid. A packet of information regarding past bids and events, as well as some cost comparisons from past events, is available upon request to herald@sca.org.

From Laurel: Administrative Handbook (AH) section of the month

This month, I am starting out with several sections on the same subject: Reports. The issue of on time reporting is a problem at all levels and in all areas of our Society. Reports allow each level to check on the health and welfare of the level below, and also allow for communication of ideas, problems and solutions to those problems both up and down the chain of reporting.

Administrative Duties is the portion of the AH where all reporting duties are laid out. Each type of Herald has their own section of the AH. We'll start from the top and work down.

IX. Laurel Sovereign of Arms

A. Reporting Requirements - The Laurel Sovereign of Arms is responsible either directly or through deputies for rendering the following reports:

NOTE: Not all reports are done by one person. Deputies are allowed and encouraged at all levels to assist with reporting duties.

1. Annual Report - An annual report on the state of heraldry in the Society must be rendered to the Board of Directors and the Registrar at the second quarter Board meeting. This report must include a detailed accounting of the condition of each kingdom as well as a survey of events which have occurred over the previous calendar year.

NOTE: This is usually referred to as the 'Domesday Report', and is the most important report of the year for all reporting officers of the Society. Many kingdoms have in their Kingdom Law a clause that states that failure on the part of any officer to file a Domesday report will mean that the officer in question will result in that officer being suspended or removed from office.

2. Annual Financial Report - An annual financial report must be forwarded to the Society Treasurer as part of the annual tax reporting process. Deadlines and required information for this report shall be determined by the policies of the Treasurer's Office.

NOTE: Laurel has an Exchequer specifically detailed to monitor the Laurel bank account and do all appropriate reports throughout the year.

3. Quarterly Report - A quarterly report must be rendered to the Board of Directors and Registrar prior to each Board meeting. This report should include a general summary of any issues currently before the College as well as any administrative situations or issues of which the Board should be aware.

NOTE: This is the compilation of the individual Kingdom reports and allows for the Board to get an overview of the Society heraldic activities. Laurel can also alert the Board to specific issues that might need attention. This is the report where changes to the AH or policy decisions are sent to the Board for approval.

4. Special Project Reports - Reports on special projects to the Board of Directors, to the College of Arms or to the membership of the Society may be required as circumstances and the needs of the Society warrant.

NOTE: This section allows for anything in the way of special reports, including things like rewriting the AH or the RfS, in whole or in part, as well as any projects that might involve other Society officers, like Kingdom Heraldic Financial Policies.

X. Principal Herald

A. Reporting Requirements - The Principal Herald of each kingdom is responsible either directly or through deputies for rendering the following reports:

1. Annual Report - An annual report on the state of heraldry in the kingdom must be rendered to the Laurel Sovereign of Arms no later than February 15. This report must include a detailed accounting of the condition of the kingdom as well as a survey of events which have occurred over the previous calendar year, a financial report and a current roster of all warranted heralds.

NOTE: This is self-explanatory. This is the one report every year that must be on paper and mailed to Laurel for receipt by February 15 of each year.

2. Annual Financial Report - An annual financial report must be forwarded to the kingdom exchequer as part of the annual tax reporting process. Deadlines and required information for this report shall be determined by the policies of the Treasurer's Office.

NOTE: This report can be done by a warranted exchequer for the kingdom College of Heralds, and it is highly encouraged to have an exchequer at least review the report before sending it up.

3. Quarterly Report - A quarterly report must be rendered to the Laurel Office so a report may be prepared for the Board. To meet with the Board's meeting schedule, these reports will be due the end of February, the end of May, the end of August and the end of November. This report should include a general summary of any issues or occurrences of note in the kingdom as well as a current roster of all warranted heralds. With the prior consent of the Laurel Sovereign of Arms, regular written monthly reports may be substituted for the quarterly report.

NOTE: This is the meat of the issue: Regular reports from the Kingdoms to Laurel allow for monitoring of situations at Kingdom level and also allow for Laurel to spot problems and address them before they get out of hand. Currently all quarterly reports can be filed electronically and no paper copies need be mailed. No consent has been given by Laurel for monthly reports as a substitute for the quarterly report for any Kingdom at this time. The dates listed for receipt are not suggestions or guidelines, they are deadlines. If any Principal Herald has a problem with meeting a deadline, the first thing they should do is contact Laurel at herald@sca.org for notification of the problem. A variance from a deadline will generally be granted once Laurel has been notified of a problem or concern. These variances will be granted on a case by case basis, and will only be valid for the specific reporting period in question.

4. Reports to Crown and Curia - As kingdom law and custom require, reports should be circulated to the Crown and officers of the kingdom to keep them informed of the state of the herald's office. If law and custom permits, this requirement may be fulfilled by sending copies of the reports to the Laurel Office to the relevant royalty and officers.

NOTE: This section and all of the following sections are mostly covered in Kingdom Law for the various Kingdoms. At this level, Laurel is not involved directly.

XII. Principality/Regional Herald

A. Reporting Requirements - As required by kingdom and/or principality law and custom, a Principality/Regional Herald may be responsible either directly or through deputies for rendering the following reports:

1. Financial Reports - Financial reports must be filed according to the policies established by the Principal Herald and the Kingdom Exchequer.

2. Other Reports - Other reports shall be rendered to the Principal Herald, the Crown, the Coronet and other officers as kingdom and/or principality law and custom demand

XIII. Local Heralds and Heralds at Large

A. Reporting Requirements - Local heralds and heralds at large, where permitted by kingdom and/or principality law and custom and the policies of the Principal Herald, may be responsible either directly or through deputies for rendering the following reports:

1. Financial Reports - Financial reports must be filed according to the policies established by the Principal Herald and the Kingdom Exchequer.

2. Other Reports - Other reports shall be rendered to the Principal Herald, the Crown, the Coronet and other officers as kingdom and/or principality law and custom demand.

As you can see, the higher up the chain you go, the more detailed the reporting requirements become. They cannot be written without input from the levels below, so in order for the reporting process to go smoothly, everybody needs to submit their reports to their superior on time.

Roster Changes

The format of the roster has been modified. For each kingdom, the first herald listed is the principal herald. Where known, short job descriptions have been added for each person. An "M" before an entry means that the person is on the College of Arms Mailing List; everyone on the Mailing List should be sent all LoIs and LoCs. Each person's preference for receiving LoIs and LoCs in now included on the roster. These preferences are:

• e-mail: prefers to receive their copy e-mailed to their listed e-mail address.

• LoI: e-list: prefers to receive their copy e-mailed to loi@sca.org.

• LoC: e-list: prefers to receive their copy e-mailed to loc@sca.org.

• paper: prefers to receive a hard copy via regular mail.

• both: prefers to receive both a copy e-mailed to their listed e-mail address and a hard copy via regular mail.

Updating preferences is not complete. Where no preference has been indicated a "?" is used. Treat this as a request for paper copies. These will be updated as soon as possible.

Note that LoIs and LoCs may be e-mailed ONLY to those people who have expressed their willingness to accept e-mail copies. Senders may always choose to send paper copies to anyone.

Subscription to the LoI e-mail list (http://www.sca.org/mailman/listinfo/loi) or LoC e-mail list (http://www.sca.org/mailman/listinfo/loc) does not prevent you from receiving a paper copy of the LoI and/or LoC. If you subscribe to one of these lists and wish to continue receiving paper copies, your preference should be listed as "paper". If your preference is to receive only the electronic copy, your preference should be set to "e-list". If you want an electronic copy sent directly to you (rather than through the e-list), your preference should be "e-mail" -- and you must have an e-mail address on the roster.

Because of the number of updates and corrections that needed to be made to the roster, a new roster is enclosed. Included are numerous changes in offices, titles, and mailing addresses. If the information listed for you is incorrect, please contact Jeanne Marie Lacroix at crescent@castle.org with the correct information.

Send What to Whom

For all Letters of Intent, Comment, Response, Correction, et cetera, send one paper copy to both Wreath KoA and Pelican QoA at their mailing addresses as shown on the College of Arms Mailing List.

Send to Shauna of Carrick Point, Laurel Queen of Arms (whose contact information heads this letter), all Laurel office copies of all submissions-related paper, including

• Letters of Intent, Comment, Response, Correction, et cetera (note: such paper copies for the Laurel office are in addition to the personal copies for Pelican and Wreath mentioned above)

• Submission packets (one copy of each name form plus documentation, including petitions; two colored copies of each armory form plus two copies of any associated documentation, including petitions)

• Cheques or money orders for submissions, payable to "SCA Inc.-College of Arms"

Send Laurel office copies of all submissions-related electronic files to submissions@sca.org. This applies to all LoIs, LoCs, LoRs, et cetera.

Send roster changes and corrections to Laurel, above, and also to Jeanne Marie Lacroix at crescent@castle.org. College of Arms members can also request a copy of the current roster from her.

For subscriptions to the paper copy of the LoAR, please contact Laurel, above, and also Jeanne Marie Lacroix at crescent@castle.org. The cost for an LoAR subscription is $25 a year. Please make all checks or money orders payable to "SCA Inc.-College of Arms". For subscriptions to the electronic copy of the LoAR, please contact Laurel at herald@sca.org. The electronic copy is available free of charge.

For all administrative matters, or for questions about whom to send what to, please contact Laurel.

I remain

In service to the Society

Shauna of Carrick Point
Laurel Queen of Arms

Created at 2004-09-18T11:34:30