[Ansteorra] Pennsic Thank You's (LONG!)

[Queen Elizabeta]

Hello Wondrous Kingdom!

We wanted to take a moment to try and thank everyone that made Pennsic so
amazing this year. While we can NEVER thank you enough we sure can try!

To Seraphina, Our New Lion of Ansteorra (& her crew) – Thank you so much
for all the hard work you put in to Pennsic every year. Your tireless
efforts make it possible for all of us to bond & truly enjoy the event.



To all those that joined us at opening Ceremonies to march in the
torrential rain in our best clothes; thank you for coming out and finishing
the march even though We released you to get under cover. We know it was
more than being ‘already there & wet’. ;D



To all the artisans who displayed at Pennsic, shared their time in classes
or donated to the Kingdom Gift Exchange effort; we blew them away. We
personally saw TRM Caid using many of the items that were donated in the
days following the exchange on Monday they were so thrilled with
Ansteorra's gifts.



To those that took to the fighting fields; thank you so much for honoring
both Us and the Kingdom with your efforts. So many people came to us &
spoke of not only Ansteorra’s prowess but also Our unfailing honor. We
couldn’t be more proud. Special thanks to those gentles that took time away
from their fun to serve as guard to Her Majesty on BOTH the Heavy & Light
fields; she had an absolute blast and had multiple kills each scenario and
was not killed even once the entire war. That truly shows how hard you all
worked to safeguard and guide her & know she will value the memory of those
days forever.



To the fighters that represented Our Kingdom in the Champions battles &
various tournaments; you are an inspiration. Count Lochlan won his bout in
the Heavy Champions. Don Allesandro won his bout in the Rapier Champions.
Centurion Sven (We announced him at court on Thursday!) won the Known World
Squires Tourney (he won the Gulf War one this year too btw). Lady Solia won
the Known World Baronial Champion Rapier Tournament. We’d also like to
thank all those who even took part in the tournaments; your efforts and
comportment did not go unnoticed & you made your Kingdom proud.



To all those that helped at Chili night, even through the torrential rains
and winds, we thank you! To HE Donnchadh; thank you for organizing and
making 600+ servings of chili that was delicious and not too hot for
everyone! Thanks to the cooking crew who slaved tirelessly over hot
skillets & pots to make this happen. Thank you to Mistress Ameline & those
that organized & decorated the main pavilion as well as the royal seating
area; it was absolutely gorgeous up until the storm tore it down and tried
to kill Her Majesty Trimaris! (Don’t worry, Her Majesty saved her and
pulled her to safety!) His Majesty Trimaris did joke about it saying “We
thought you asked us to bring the hurricanes?” ;)



To HL Ysabea and all those that helped with the Ansteorra Rapier tournament
luncheon; it was very well received & several times We heard fighters
gushing over how wonderful the tournament is every year. Thank you to HE
Myfanwy for being the list mistress for the tourney and to Don Tristan for
being the Marshal in Charge & to all those that assisted in any way on or
off the field. The tournament ran quickly, smoothly and was exciting to
watch at all times!



Special thanks to those that assisted in providing us with various items
needed for Pennsic. To Baron Duncan Hepburn with assistance from Sir Asoph
and Mistress Michelle for making the coins we gave during court to all
those who travelled with us to Pennsic (if you were not able to attend
court please see/contact us privately to arrange to get your coin). To Lady
Antigone who created the Lion banner We used to surprise Seraphina with her
Lion. To HL Caley for the garters and belt favors Elizabeta was able to
gift to various fighters. Thank you again to Count Lochlan for the cast
‘E’s that were given out at the Rapier tournament as they were at Queen’s
Champion.



Last but not least, thank you VERY MUCH to all those who assisted us on
Retinue duties. We know this is your vacation too and while we like to
think of ourselves as fun people We realize that sometimes you’d rather be
doing something else rather than just following Us around. More than once
We were told how Ansteorra’s relationship with their Crown & how they treat
them has inspired others to greater heights. We truly appreciate your
efforts!



We are sure there are people who we missed but it was a LONG week & a half
and a LONG trip home… all with minimal amounts of sleep due to not wanting
to miss a minute of the awesomeness. So thank you to each and every one of
you that had any part in making this Pennsic one for the recordbooks.



With much Love,
Hrafn & Elizabeta