[Ansteorra] Twelfth Night Thanks

[HE Kainin Tepesa]

Greetings Ansteorra,

Twelfth Night has always held a special place in my
heart as it was the first event that I ever attended
in the SCA. This was well before Bonwicke was a
Barony, but still the gathering was large and the
splendor magnificent; my young heart was enthralled. I
have rarely missed a Twelfth Night since, even when I
was in college and not playing much. Because of this I
have long wanted to steward a Twelfth Night, and this
year I got my wish. I feel that the day was a success,
but it would not have been so without the hard work of
some generous people.

First, I would like to thank three of our newest
members and two of our members who have been playing a
long time. These gentles should be an inspiration to
all in what service is really about. They gave freely
of themselves and worked without ceasing, never
waiting to see what they could do to help, but seeking
out the tasks that needed to be done. Troye de Leon
and his son Alexander were attending their first
Twelfth Night and instead of sitting and enjoying the
feast they were serving it so that others could enjoy.
They helped set up Friday night and stayed late taking
it down Saturday. Troye heralded for the first time;
calling the lists, making announcements, even helping
in court and did a wonderful job. It takes a lot of
courage to be the voice of the SCA (I know), and I
have full faith that this weekend another voice has
been added. Alexander likewise was everywhere helping
do whatever needed to be done, the saying "like
father, like son" is fitting indeed, and we are glad
to have you both. Our other newcomer, Beornwyn æt
Devonscire, likewise worked with an energy and spirit
of giving that is an inspiration to me. This was her
second Twelfth Night but you would never know it with
the poise and confidence that she showed serving the
head table teaching us to dance. Then after all that,
she worked late helping take down and clean. I had to
finally send her home; I am certain that she would
have worked until she dropped. Likewise Master Hakon
and Mistress Anna showed what it means to be members
of the Order of the Pelican. Their service was
invaluable, helping from setup to take down, helping
with the feast, bringing decorations for the hall and
offering guidance along the way. Baron and Baroness
Bonwicke have, from the beginning, been my SCA role
models, and I am honored to have their service so
freely given to me now that I sit where they once did.

Secondly I would like to give tremendous thanks to my
feast steward and dear friend, Honorable Lady Serafina
de Gratia. This was her first large scale feast, and
it was tremendous. She worked extraordinarily hard to
bring us a traditional English feast that would be
period but still appeal to our modern palettes, and
she accomplished this with great flourish. With the
four full courses that she provided we were all filled
to overflowing, but I made sure to try every dish and
without fail they were all extremely tasty. I tried
several dishes that were new to me and was pleasantly
surprised with how much I enjoyed them. My only regret
is that I did not have more room to enjoy more of this
truly outstanding feast. I can only imagine the amount
of work that went into this level of preparation. I
know that she spent many long hours cooking both
Friday and Saturday and then cleaning afterwards and
was dead on her feet by the time we closed the hall
and headed home. You have my undying thanks. Also to
our dear friend Lady Cahira who drove ten hours to
come and serve the Barony that she still calls home.
She arrived in Bonwicke on Friday, immediately coming
to the hall to help with the decorations and feast
preparations. Then she spent all day in the kitchen
helping Serafina with the cooking and cleaning,
retiring in the wee hours of the morning when we
finally closed the hall, only to get up on Sunday to
make the ten hour trek home. She did this because she
has a love for the Barony of Bonwicke. This type of
dedication is a precious commodity, and I thank her
from the bottom of my heart for it.

It is hard to be sure to thank all that helped to make
an event like this a success, so many have hands in
the process and often the event steward is simply
unaware of all that has been done to make it a run so
smoothly. I would like to give special mention to my
herald and sword brother, Lord Tristan. Be it midnight
trips to get more chairs or running to get her
Excellency and I drinks, his help was, as always,
invaluable. My thanks to Lord Kormak for casting the
site tokens and the awesome medallions that were given
to the favorites of the lists. He donated not only a
tremendous amount of time but also the materials.
Thanks to Lady Morrigan, who graced us with her
musical talent in court and all through feast and to
Lady Simone for her lovely voice, as well. My thanks
to Lord William, Lady Kristyan, Tristana and all that
worked gate, many for the first time. My thanks to all
that helped set up and take down the list field and
pavilions; Lord Frederick and his son Daniel and even
Centurion Curn from Adlersrhue and Herr Eric from
AmLoch. My thanks to all that served feast, giving up
their chance to sit and enjoy it with the rest of use,
especially Lady Kate de la Hyte and her friend from
Adlersrhue – my apologies for not being able add your
name to this list. My thanks to the judges of our
titled artisan competition, Honorable Lady Adelaide,
Honorable Lady Torfengr and Centurion Gustav. It is
good to have members of the Order of the Iris on hand
to help judge for us, offering comments and making a
hard choice in our stead. My thanks to Lord James who,
as always worked until the end taking down and
cleaning the hall, we would have been there far longer
had it not been for his help. My thanks to Honorable
Lord Marcus who came at the end of feast simply to see
his old friends again and then who I found later in
the kitchen washing dishes. It is clear that his
Lordship remembers the ways of service of the Bonwicke
of old. My thanks to all that donated to the family of
Michael of Langley, the merchants that offered items
for the silent auction and to all who bought something
from it or one of the T-shirts or simply donated
money. Because of your generous efforts we raised a
goodly amount to help our friends in need. My thanks
to all the others, that I am sure to have missed, that
lent a hand throughout the day to make Twelfth Night a
success.  

My thanks to those who came and participated in our
tournaments and competitions, and also to those who
traveled to come and celebrate with us. It would have
been a small gathering indeed if you had not taken the
time to come to our humble lands and share in our
hospitality. Sharing this time with you is what makes
Twelfth Night worthwhile. Special thanks to our
friends from the Outlands who traveled out of their
own Kingdom to share this day with us. I hope that you
take back with you the warmth of Ansteorra, and that
we can return the favor soon.

Lastly I would like to thank my lady wife who is a
constant inspiration and strength to me. I am forever
taking on tasks like this, and when I do, I am never
just committing my own time, I am also committing
hers. She is a help like no other, working alongside
me and giving me the strength and support to see the
task through to the end. I can never thank you enough,
my love.

In service,
Kainin Tepesa
Steward of Twelfth Night
Baron of Bonwicke


		
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