Service, was: Re: [Artemisia] Northern Barony

[Thor and Jenn Nordwick]

Very good point!  I'd also like to add my little tiny tidbit to all of 
this...

Sometimes it's hard to find that niche. I've been playing for over 7 years 
and have only now just begun to figure out what I want to do within the SCA. 
It's hard to help out sometimes when you're not really sure what it is you 
should be doing.

Also, for some of the more timid, alot of helping out and volunteering also 
means quite a bit of recognition. I'm all for helping out in the kitchen and 
staying late to make sure the hall is cleaned after an event or filling in a 
vacant officer's position until somone suitable steps up. I'll sit in shire 
meetings and help make site tokes.... but PLEASE PLEASE don't stand me up in 
a crowd and publically thank me.  Please don't drag me in front of court to 
give me some award. I'd rather not help than have to stand in front of a 
huge crowd (in many cases of a whole lot of people I don't know) and have 
all those faces staring at me.  I'd really rather not do it. I have no 
problems with public speaking when I know I'm going to do it and I've had a 
chance to prepare myself for it. But to have my name suddenly called in the 
middle of an event...no thank you!

Sometimes just a small personal request with a sincere *personal* thank you 
is all it takes to get people motivated and willing to volunteer.

Just my 2 cents...

m'Lady Gwenhwyvar (Thor's wife)

>From: "Angela Perry" <angela_s_perry at hotmail.com>
>Reply-To: Kingdom of Artemisia mailing list 
><artemisia at lists.gallowglass.org>
>To: artemisia at lists.gallowglass.org
>Subject: Re: Service, was: Re: [Artemisia] Northern Barony
>Date: Tue, 15 Mar 2005 17:18:43 -0700
>
>Greetings to all :-)
>
>I have a rather personal, but short, story to share that might lend insight 
>into why some people play locally, some on the kingdom level, and some 
>hardly at all.
>
>There once was a young woman who discovered the SCA through college friends 
>and who loved the Dream, but never really became part of the Reality. On 
>the day she decided to quit playing because she felt lonely and not 
>included, she met her future husband. Thus, she stayed in the SCA. But a 
>child came along, and playing with small children is, as many of you can 
>attest, difficult at best. So she attended scant meetings, usually only the 
>“big” ones. And then one day she met a king, a great leader who saw through 
>her reticence, saw past the lack of letters after her name. The king gave 
>her a job, a special job all her own, and she became part of the Reality, 
>not just the Dream.
>
>Yes, the young woman was me. The king was His Grace, Duke Reinmar, to whom 
>I will be forever grateful for giving me a chance and making me a part of 
>something I knew I would love if only I could be included.
>
>Many of you have been playing for many years; in fact, probably most of the 
>people on this list (at least, the ones who post, not the lurkers like me) 
>have at least an AoA. I look up to you and respect you. But perhaps (and 
>please, no offense intended!) you have played so long, had a voice so long, 
>that you have forgotten what it is like not to have a voice. It is not fun 
>to always be the one in the background, the one who tries to participate 
>but doesn’t know how to fit in, how to find that special niche. It is also 
>not fun to always take orders from other people.
>
>So my recommendation (from very personal experience) is, if you want people 
>to participate, don’t just expect them to contribute. Befriend them, show 
>your confidence in them by encouraging them to take on important leadership 
>roles, ask them to do something they do particularly well. Find out what 
>the new players are interested in and point them to a group where they can 
>find common interests and make friends. A group, be it shire or northern 
>region or kingdom, with work together if people feel like they belong.
>
>~Lady Verdiana
>Ex-Kingdom Minister of Youth
>
>Some excerpts I thought were especially nice :-)
>
><snip>
>3)  Newer people don't always feel like they are given the opportunity or 
>encouraged to take positions of "authority" in a group of established 
>players.  Some do, but if the newer person
>is timid, they may feel like they are intruding on the group.
>4)  Unclear expectations.  This is one I am guilty of:  I just assume that 
>people know what
>to do.  If nobody takes the time to explain things thoroughly to someone 
>who is
>interested, it can lead to a bad experience for the person just trying it.  
>This
>can create a situation where they are unwilling to volunteer.
>5)  Do you take the time to find a new person to teach how to be an 
>officer, or autocrat, or
>cook a feast, or do you just do it yourself because it is easier than 
>trying to
>explain it?  Is that a service or disservice to you and your group?
></snip>
>
><snip>
>Helping newcomers make garb and meet people, or keeping a group of children 
>entertained and safe, is just as valid a form of service as heralding a 
>court or autocrating an event.
></snip>
>
>
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