Unto the members of the College of Arms and all others who may read this missive do Dame Elsbeth Anne Roth, Laurel Queen of Arms, and Master Pietari Pentipoika, Pelican King of Arms, send greetings.
The August Laurel meeting was held Sunday, August 5, 2000, and considered the following letters of intent: Calontir (February 14) (delayed due to late receipt of paperwork), East (February 27) (delayed due to late receipt of paperwork), Atenveldt (April 1), Caid (April 4), Drachenwald (April 16), Atlantia (April 23), An Tir (April 28), Ansteorra (April 30), and Meridies (April 30).
The September Laurel meeting was held Saturday, September 9, 2000, and considered the following letters of intent: Ealdormere (February 15) (redated to March 25 based on postmark, and delayed due to late receipt of paperwork), Artemisia (March 17) (delayed due to late receipt of paperwork), Middle (April 20) (redated to May), Trimaris (April 25) (redated to May based on postmark), Outlands (April 30) (redated based on postmark), Artemisia (May 1), Caid (May 1), West (May 5), Drachenwald (May 18), Æthelmearc (May 20), Atlantia (May 22), Lochac (May 22), Middle (May 22), Outlands (May 29), An Tir (May 31), and Ansteorra (May 31). The September Pelican meeting was held Saturday, 30 October, 2000.
The October Laurel meeting was held Saturday, October 14, 2000, and considered the following letters of intent: Atenveldt (May 1) (delayed due to late receipt of paperwork), Atenveldt (June 1), Caid (June 1), Middle (June 19), Artemisia (June 22), Outlands (June 27), Trimaris (June 29), An Tir (June 30), Ansteorra (June 30), and Meridies (June 30). The Pelican meeting was held Saturday, October 21, 2000.
The November Laurel meeting is scheduled for Saturday, November 18, 2000, and will consider the following letters of intent: Lochac (January 1) (mailed to the College in July), Atlantia (June 17) (redated to July 11 based on postmark), Lochac (June 18) (redated to July 11 based on postmark), East (June 30) (redated to July 6 based on postmark), Atenveldt (July 1), West (July 8), Æthelmearc (July 10), Middle (July 12), Lochac (July 16), Atlantia (July 20), Caid (July 24), Drachenwald (July 24), An Tir (July 31), Ansteorra (July 31), and Meridies (July 31). Responses and rebuttals to commentary must be in the College's hands no later than October 31, 2000.
The December Laurel meeting is scheduled for Saturday, December 9, 2000, and will consider the following letters of intent: Outlands (July 29) (delayed due to late receipt of paperwork) Atenveldt (August 1), Caid (August 1), Æthelmearc (August 6), Drachenwald (August 9), Artemisia (August 13), Atlantia (August 13), Nebuly Letter of Intent to Protect (August 16), Middle (August 20), Lochac (August 23), Atlantia (August 25), An Tir (August 29), Atlantia (August 29), Meridies (August 30), and Ansteorra (August 31). Original commentary on these LoIs must be in the College's hands no later than October 31, 2000. Responses and rebuttals to commentary must be in the College's hands no later than November 30, 2000.
The January Laurel meeting is tentatively scheduled for Sunday, January 14, 2001, and will consider the letters of intent from September.
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, etc.) have not yet been met.
REMINDER: Until the packet containing the paperwork is received, the letter may not be scheduled.
I must make a clarification on the issue of the Administrative Handbook drafts. The e-mail list I set up only replaces the work done by Laurel by herself or with the help of staff. It should be considered the equivalent to Palimpsest, not the College. The College of Arms' role is the same as it has always been. I will soon be asking questions concerning issues that have been brought up that require the College's opinion.
The November kingdom newsletters should contain the following announcement:
Position Opening - Laurel Sovereign of Arms
The Laurel Sovereign of Arms (Laurel) is the principal heraldic officer of the Society and the head of the College of Arms. Laurel is responsible for fostering the study and practice of heraldry, processing submissions, and overseeing the heraldic activities of the Known World. Because the time and commitment required to oversee the College of Arms and process submissions are so great, the Laurel Sovereign of Arms usually has a major deputy, the Pelican Sovereign of Arms, to perform part of the duties. The current split has Pelican in charge of processing name submissions and Laurel in charge of everything else. The previous incarnation had Pelican in charge of administration instead. Applicants may use either of these configurations, or a new one which better fit the applicant's skills. The Board will accept applications from an individual or a team to perform the duties of these offices; however, they will not accept applications where only part of these duties will be assumed.
Laurel and its deputies are unpaid positions. Laurel currently requires approximately 20 hours a week (primarily submissions processing) plus about 10-20 hours a week for Laurel staff. Also required is office space sufficient for 18 filing cabinets, 20 boxes of "to be archived" submissions files, 1 filing cabinet of "currently in process" submissions, and about 20 more boxes of assorted books, etc., plus the computers, computer programs and documentation, backup tapes and disks, printer, photocopier, and flatbed color scanner.
The position requires tact and patience, local staff to assist in the weekly filing (an average of 4-6 people at least once a week), knowledge of armory and onomastics, bureaucratic ability, the ability to meet tight deadlines and produce a Laurel letter of Acceptance and Return monthly, computer literacy and word processing skills, e-mail access, and time and ability to travel.
Resumes should be made in writing to the SCA office, at Box 360789, Milpitas, CA 95036 by January 1, 2001.
If anyone has any questions regarding the workload or the job function, feel free to contact the current Laurel (Elsbeth Anne Roth (Kathy Van Stone), (412) 306-0416, herald@sca.org).
At this point if there is someone willing and able to become Laurel, I will probably not seek another year. Alternatively, I am willing to be Laurel for an additional year, particularly if I have a potential successor (or successors) to train. Also, while the Board of Directors will only consider bids for the entire task of Laurel, if you are interested in doing only a portion (such as names, armory, or administration) of the job, or have a new idea on how to organize it, please let me know; I may be able to team you up with others.
Pietari Pietari Pentipoika, Pelican King of Arms, has a new address: Antti Leino, Lohkopellontie 18 A 2, FIN-00650 Helsinki, Finland.
Irene von Schmetterling, deputy for large events, is removed from the mailing list although not from the roster.
There is a new Gold Falcon Principal Herald (Calontir): Mikhail Nikolaevich (Michael Straatmann), 2345 Randolph St. #5, Lincoln, NE, 68510, 402-474-1442, mstraatm@unlnotes.unl.edu. The former Gold Falcon, Madoc Arundel, is removed from the mailing list and roster.
There is a new Green Mantle Herald (Ealdormere): Edmund de la Haye, David E. Hayward, 43 Chestnut Street, St. Thomas, Ontario, N5R 2A8, Canada, 519-637-0862, daveh@execulink.com. The former Green Mantle, Erick of Longacres, is removed from the mailing list and roster.
Colm Dubh (Meridies) is removed from the roster and mailing list.
Vesper Principal Herald (West) has a new address: Mary Seabrook, 38338 Redwood Ter, Fremont, CA, 94536-4071.
Send roster changes and roster corrections, to Lord Symond Bayard le Gris, Bruce R. Nevins, 2527 E. 3rd St., Tucson, AZ, 85716-4114, (520) 795-6000, (520) 795-0158 (fax), bnevins@nexiliscom.com. College of Arms members can also request a copy of the current roster from Symond. Send all other administrative requests or payments to Laurel.
For subscriptions to the paper copy of the LoAR, please contact Symond, above. The cost for an LoAR subscription is $25.00 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.
Until then, I remain
In service,
Elsbeth Anne Roth
Laurel Queen of Arms