[Bryn-gwlad] Badges and banners

[Dennis Grace]

Salut cozyns,

The whole idea of badges makes me itch. I realize it's just my fevered 
imagination, but every time anyone mentions newcomer badges, I picture drab 
Warsaw crowds sporting pink triangles and yellow stars. Beyond that little 
bit of personal neurosis, I know I'd feel damned silly if I went to a club 
meeting and had to wear a label that said NEOPHYTE. I'd feel even more 
uncomfortable if asked to do so for more than one event.

When I join a group that interests me, I want to know as much as possible as 
soon as possible. I do lots of research. I appreciate a little help along 
the way, but I mostly want to get past being seen as a tyro. I want a sense 
of belonging.

I keep thinking, okay, this is just me. Everyone else doesn't feel this way. 
Of course, that's part of the point. We're all different. We're all here for 
different reasons. As others have noted here, dealing with newcomers in a 
recruitment-positive way involves asking questions, listening, and then 
deciding how to help someone along. Blanket solutions are generalizations 
about the individual, and generalizations will only move you along a little 
ways.

People examine the SCA for many different reasons, join the SCA for many 
different reasons, and remain with the SCA for many different reasons. In 
recruitment, our goals should be to facilitate the first two of those 
mechanisms--examination and joining:

1. Advertising - providing just enough information to tantalize and doing so 
in multiple media. That means demos showing our best side (glad last night 
was such a success, by the way), signs and banners at every gathering and 
event, available stock handouts and flyers with contact information.

2. Information - handouts, flyers, and the web site should provide research 
starting points: baronial and kingdom history, links to key research points, 
links to SCA data sources, links to specialized how-tos and merchants.

3. Guidance - individuals willing to mentor. I'm not sure that this should 
be too thoroughly institutionalized. How do you institutionalize the kind of 
affectionate shepherding provided by folks like Marion and Tabitha? It 
probably wouldn't hurt for the hospitaler's office to keep a list of 
individuals and households willing to do some mentoring, though.

Yes, I included willing households under mentoring. A group working together 
has an easier time mentoring than an individual. I do not, however, think 
that this should be a dedicated newcomer household. That's just a ghetto. 
Households should be about belonging. The goal of a member of a newcomers' 
household is to graduate from it. Now a newcomers' college--that I can see.

So, badges? I'd vote no.

Banners? Yes.

Flyers? Yes.

Links? Yes.

Newcomers' household? No.

Mentoring? Yes.

Classes specifically targeting newcomers? You bet.

lo vostre por vos servir
Meser Lyonel Oliver Grace
_________________________________
Micel yfel deth se unwritere.
		--AElfric of York