[Hellsgate] Our Final Thanks

Robyn Bainter myfanwy at pug.net
Sun Feb 2 19:18:01 PST 2014


Greetings one and all,

  We know that you are tired of hearing from us and we are no longer your Territorial Nobility, but you need not worry as this is our final letter of this nature. Candlemas was our final event and our final court. For us it was quite emotional, swinging from joyous to great sadness.

  Thanks to those Honorable Lady Katrina and her staff for putting on the event. We greatly enjoyed the theme and we were so glad to see such an array of classes and dancing in alignment with it. It is often that we forget that while there is much that is historically wondrous, there is so much that we need to make our organization thrive as well as the origins from which we came. These are things we not only enjoy, but we also can not forget. Thank you all.

  In our final court we were allowed to recognize a few individuals and we want to call them out as they were special to us in those final moments. While we were unable to bestow one of the awards because of their absence, they are still someone we are grateful for and want them to understand our appreciation of all they do when our current Territorial Nobility are able to recognize them on our behalf.

Cailee of Hellsgate and Jared of Hellsgate were bestowed the Dragon's Egg of Bryn Gwlad. In addition to the great story we will always have of their parents putting them into our servitude, these two youth were always there to help us when needed as well as bring us hugs and smiles.

René d'Amours was bestowed the Martlet of Bryn Gwlad for all he has done for the Barony and Stronghold not only within the rapier community, but also by the various ways he pitches in at events and through his council to help us be stronger.

Fionn Ó Dibhái was bestowed his Award of Arms for while yesterday was his first anniversary in the Society, he has thrived and made it his own and his home. He has revived the Brewing Guild with regular classes with guest speakers as well as a competition at yesterday's Candlemas, as well as taking on the office of Webminister with such prompt attention to updates that he has completed the work before you are able to go on to your next written missive.

Rowan of Bryn Gwlad was bestowed her Award of Arms which Her Majesty felt she needed to "fix". While we have known Rowan much longer than she has taken on the Society as her own, the time she has spent here is quite memorable. While no one can miss the colorfulness she shows, no one she faces on the rapier field can miss the enthusiasm she brings. We were very pleased that Their Majesties did this in our presence so we could be a small part of it.

Asta Bassadottir and Havaar Ericsson were bestowed the Sable Comet for Hellsgate. Their work as Treasurer and Hospitaler have been stellar, but it is their enthusiasm they bring to the group and enjoyment we see them show that we find refreshing. They are part of the new generation and we are so glad to see what it has become. Of course their putting their children into our servitude was in no way a factor of our enjoyment to recognize them.

Her Excellency Helene Dalassane was inducted into the Order of the Dreigiau Bryn of Bryn Gwlad. As the incoming Baroness, she will not only be the premier of the order, but it is well known that she will have deserved this recognition many times over by the time she steps down from her station. It is because of this work to be freely given that the tradition from the creation of the Order has been that each of the incoming Territorial Nobility were inducted if they were not already a member. We are pleased that we were able to continue that tradition with one of our Heirs.

And with all sneakiness on our part, we were able to surprise Magdalena Cortez by inducting her into the Order of the Dreigiau Bryn of Bryn Gwlad. As our head of entourage she knew all of the awards we were giving and the sequence of our final court. It was joyous to watch the expression of complete and utter surprise on her face when she was call and to hear the enthusiasm of the crowd at her being so recognized. Her hard work for this Barony and the inspiration she gives our newer members is something to be aspired to. We thank her for all she has done.

Over our three years as Bryn Gwlad's Nobility, we've had many Champions, Officers, entourage, friends and advisors.  All of these individuals have made our time as Baron and Baroness easier.  We thank all of you from the Barony and Stronghold.

We want to echo Her Majesty's words about family. The Barony and Stronghold is a family.  Treat each other well.  Talk to one another when there is a problem.  Respect one another's differences and remember there are multiple ways of reaching greatness. 

Retired and visiting our adopted homeland on the steppes of Mongolia,
Phelim and Myfanwy


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