[Archers] Recommendation

Thu Apr 5 09:32:10 PDT 2012

Thank you, your Majesty!  I believe this is exactly what we needed to hear - descriptions and intents of the awards from someone who helped create them.The question of what qualifies for an awards, be it service or skill, has been an on-going discussion on the archery lists for some time.  It never seemed to me that we ever really resolved these issues.  Hopefully, your words will finally settle the discussion.  Or at least, point us in a direction with a little more consensus!
YIS,
Reyne

A true friend is someone who knows all your faults and habits, and loves you anyway.

Per chevron purpure and vert, two sheaves of arrows and a griffin argent

Date: Thu, 5 Apr 2012 11:52:22 -0400
From: padrgroups at charter.net
To: cogworks at triad.rr.com
CC: archers at atlantia.sca.org
Subject: Re: [Archers] Recommendation

Good morning,

To address the specific topic at hand, Lord Alester MacClansy (which is how his name appears in the Order of Precedence) was awarded an Opal at Fall Crown Tournament.

But since I'm here, I hope you will allow me to share some thoughts with you about awards.  All Orders of Merit (KM, Sea Dragon, Coral Branch, etc) were written with the intent that they be for effort, not necessarily skill. I was the Queen that wrote them into law, so really, I know this.   Skill is an added bonus, but the purpose was to recognize people who are consistently trying and making some impact, somewhere, somehow. Royal Rounds can also be hard to come by if you live further away from a local group.  They are not often done at events, and not everyone has a local practice to attend.   Orders of High Merit, on the other hand, generally require a much higher level of skill and dedication to a particular discipline. 

The single best part of being royalty is the ability to recognize worthy subjects.  Being able to see the person's face when you give them an award is an amazing high.  It makes your heart full to read about all of the good things people are doing around the kingdom to support the hobby you love.

However, I have noticed two trends that I find troubling in award recommendations, but I suspect that both stem from a fundamental lack of knowledge about our awards system in general, and our awards within the greater context of the SCA.

First trend: recommending someone for an Order of Merit as a first award.  While there is no requirement that a person have X before they can receive Y, the generally accepted practice across the SCA is that the Award of Arms is the first award someone receives.  Many people played in the SCA for several years (3-4 for me) before receiving an AoA.  A good rule of thumb for most royalty is that the person has been around for at least a year AND consistently contributing to something during that time.

Second trend: recommending people for awards who have received awards fairly recently.  SCA awards are not merit badges, and should not be approached as something to check off a list.  Doing what you enjoy, because you enjoy it, is the surest way to gain satisfaction from it.  Everyone wants to see their friends recognized, and recommendations are vital to making that happen.  But before making a recommendation, please consider the following:

1. Check the OP to see if that person already has the award you are recommending, keeping in mind that you should check alternate spellings.
2. Understand that Orders of Merit carry an AoA with them if the person does not already have one.  So if you see that someone has a Coral Branch, then by default, he also has an AoA.  The same is true for Orders of High Merit (Golden Dolphin, Yew Bow) and GoAs.

3. Check when the person last received a kingdom award.  If it was within the last year, consider whether that person really needs another award so soon.  Most royalty are hesitant to make awards to people recently recognized.

4. Update the recommendations you make.  If you made a recommendation during the last reign that has not been acted upon, go back into the recommendation and update it as appropriate.
5. Keep in mind that Orders of High Merit and Peerages must be polled by Their Royal Majesties.  This process takes time.  If you recommend someone today for a Yew Bow, it will not be awarded this weekend, and probably not even this month.  

Also keep in mind that you can recommend people for Baronial awards.  I have found that most people are simply happy to be noticed.  Something as simple, but personal, as a token and a moment of thanks, especially in a public place, can have an incredible impact.  Lady Lorelei's archery tokens are an excellent example.  The SCA can be a life-long pursuit.  I've been doing this for 17 years, and many of you have been doing it even longer.  I'm looking forward to spending more time shooting very soon.

Warmest Regards,
Padraigin Regina

On Thu, Apr 5, 2012 at 9:07 AM, John Atkins <cogworks at triad.rr.com> wrote:

Janyn brings up and interesting point.  The first induction I witnessed into the Order of the Yewbow was at a Kingdom Champion Shoot.  I went up to the individual after court and congratulated him.  His response was “it certainly wasn’t for my shooting, probably for my promotion and service to the archery community”.  So Janyn’s point of a displayed proficiency with bow versus service to the archery community becomes the question.

 From the Atlantian list of awards, for the Missilier “Honors and recognizes those subjects who have distinguished themselves by their effort with bow and arrow  “.  That would mean to me that Janyn’s comment is valid.  What then would be the “proper” award for an individual who has performed great service to the Atlantian archery community, which I know firsthand and believe this individual has done?  Again from the Atlantian award site “Honors and recognizes those subjects of the Kingdom who have distinguished themselves by their service to Atlantia.  “, for the Opal.

 So would not an Opal be more appropriate in absence of a certain level of expertise as evidenced by a Royal Round award/score?

 Just my two cents worth,

CJg

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