[Artemisia] A Lady Remembered

[tangl]

Mistress Donnilee Witherspoon was the first person in the SCA that Jean Richard and I met. We had decided we wanted to get involved in this SCA thing and were so adamant that we said, "We live in Cedar City,Utah, home of the Utah Shakespearean Festival! If there isn't a branch here, we'll start one. This thing sounds awesome and a place like this should definitely have it."

Well, it turned out, we didn't need to go to all that work. Instead, we were introduced to Donnilee.

Donnilee was a chaming lady, one who regularly opened her home to the local events and the SCA in general. She was in charge of a group at her church and some folks interested in the SCA came to her because she was a great organizer. They got her interested and before she had her first garb or had attended an event, she was the Senechale of the Incipient Shire of Kedron Vale.

KV had exactly six members and only three active ones: Katherine the Herald, Fergus the Knight Marshal and Donnilee. Donnie did the reports for every other office on the registry. When she discovered Corpora did not allow her to be the Senechale and the Exchequer, she talked her daughter, Terry, into taking on that position. Terry figured this was only temporary and she would do this for her mom for a while until they got someone else. Well, as we all know, that's how they getcha!

JR and I saw Donnilee put on two events where they were hosted in her beautiful home and we decided to see if we could help out. Again, that's how they getcha. He took on chronicler, I took on A&S and I did that voodoo that I do so well: I recruited. It wasn't long at all before the events were bringing in too many people to be housed in her living room and she was delighted! 

People started coming from nearby towns to join in fighter practice. An event was held on the SUSC campus and was extremely well attened even though the weather happened to throw down a snowstorm in the four hours before it went off. Newcomers arrived with interest in holding offices so Donnilee could actually *enjoy* an event for a change.

This guy who knew how to fence showed up at an event and said this looked like a lot of fun. He decided to bring his 21 years of expertise to the group, and he was dubbed Guillaume. A beautiful lady with long, detachable blond hair who hand sewed every costume she had, hats included, because she didn't own a sewing machine and didn't know any better, brought her amazing voice and contagious Scottish accent to the group, and wrote a song called "Atenveldtus Glorious" that one or two of you may have heard.

And Donnilee got her AoA at the Coronation of Brion III and Anna II. After six years of holding the group together by will alone, she was recognized in front of all those who loved her and could not have been there without her. She wore a black, butter-soft velvet dress with real live cloth of gold skirt. I wish I had pictures to show you. It was amazing and she looked as regal as those she knelt before.

I was not there when she was inducted into the Order of the Pelican, but I am glad I had the chance to serve in the Order she was so very deserving of being a part of. She remains a great inspiration to me and I will miss her deeply. 


Maitresse Tanglwyst de Holloway
Barony of Arn Hold
Kingdom of Artemisia



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