On the eve of the American Thanksgiving, I want to say thank you to each and every one of you for making our hobby what it is. I continue to learn something every day because of all of you. Whether game-side, business side, or part of history, I am truly lucky to have you all in my world. Thank you for your time, your dedication, and your love for what it is that we do.
On that note, I wanted to let you know effective immediately I will not be looking at, or responding to, my Kingdom email until midday on Sunday 11/27/2022.
Everyone needs a break sometimes, and sometimes that’s me!
Remember that I do not do any form of official business via Facebook messenger, and everything should be sent to me via email at seneschal@eastkingdom.org. Should there be a true emergency (yes, I am knocking on all of the wood) the seneschals know how to reach me.
I wish you all the very best the next few days have to offer, regardless of what you choose to make of them.
I want to apologize again to the populace. I am sorry that the decisions I made caused upset. I hope that the coming information will help to begin to mend your faith in me and that we can all step together to find a middle ground.
To that end, I would like to share the Kingdom’s current response to COVID with you. I would ask that you please read all the way through, then re-read, as there will be a lot of information here, and there is no good way for me to break it up. I have provided a Highlights section here, so you know what to expect.
New Kingdom-Wide Variance – A new variance which applies to the entire Kingdom goes into effect immediately, requiring indoor masking at a specific threshold.
Status of Variances – A review of existing variances and how they are impacted by the new Kingdom-Wide Variance.
A Kingdom-wide variance has been approved by the Society Seneschal to go into effect immediately and will end on March 1, 2023. It is as follows:
Indoor Masking for all persons age 2 and over will be required at all official SCA Activities (events, practices, meetings, etc.) in the United States portion of the East Kingdom, under the following condition:
When the county where the activity is located reaches a status of HIGH on the CDC Community Levels map found here:
This is determined by the data on the Thursday just prior to the activity.
If state or local regulations are more restrictive, those measures are to be followed. For the Canadian provinces in Tir Mara, provincial and local guidance will be followed. This variance is in effect immediately and will end on March 1, 2023.
Examples: An official practice will be held on Tuesday, January 3, 2023 in Springfield, MA. If, on the Thursday prior, December 29, 2022, the Community Level in Hampden County, MA is listed as HIGH according to the map above, then masks will be required at the practice on January 3, 2023.
An event will be held in Bangor, ME on Saturday, January 21, 2023. On the Thursday prior, January 19, 2023, the Community Level in Penobscot County, ME is listed as LOW according to the map above. As such, masks will not be required.
An event will be held in Montreal, Quebec on Saturday, February 4, 2023. On January 12, 2023, the local government issued a mask mandate requiring indoor masking due to an increase in cases. Masks will be required at the event on February 4, 2023.
As the Kingdom has followed the CDC guidance from the beginning of the pandemic, we will continue to do so.
The CDC has recommended the use of the Community Levels map to determine action as it addresses the impact of COVID19 on communities. The chart below is taken directly from the CDC website and shows how the Community Levels are calculated.
(Chart pulled from CDC website on 11/10/2022)
The CDC has recommendations based on these levels, and they can be located here:
There are a few variances I approved for local practices and gatherings through November 30, 2022. Those will remain in effect through November 30, 2022 and then be replaced by the above Kingdom-wide variance.
There are a couple of variances I denied, based on the above CDC map at the time of decision. As the Kingdom-wide Variance is in effect immediately, should the county in question fall into the HIGH category on the Thursday prior, then masks will be required at the event.
As an example, this weekend is St. Eligius in New Haven, CT. New Haven is in New Haven County.
New Haven County’s current Community Level is MEDIUM. As such, masks will not be required at the event.
There are a few variances which are still “in the wings” so-to-speak. No decision has been made on them as of yet. I will be formally denying those variances in favor of the Kingdom-wide Variance, as all of those requests have come in for after December 1, 2022. I will be sending those notifications out after this has been posted.
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Requesting New Variances
Should you wish to request a variance to alter the Kingdom-wide variance (or any variance for that matter), there are a few steps which must be taken.
It must be specific in nature and have a metric and/or reasons for an alteration.
Confirmation that the request has been received will be made in 48 hours and provide a decision timeline.
If I agree with the variance request, I will send it to the Society Seneschal for review.
If I do not agree with the variance request, I will notify the branch Seneschal.
Should you wish to appeal my decision, the branch Seneschal would then email the Society Seneschal to request review.
If you would like to have a conversation with me regarding this process, or have specific questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
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Personal Responsibility and Illness
I want to stress the importance of taking care of yourself, your health (mental and physical), and those of your loved ones.
If you are experiencing any symptoms of illness, regardless if they are COVID-related or not, please do not attend the event/practice/gathering. If you are playing the “allergies or cold” game, please assume cold and do not attend the event.
If you test positive for COVID, please do not attend any event/gathering for 10 days, or when you have had 2 negative home tests 48 hours apart. The Kingdom has to rely on your honor for this, as we will not be allowed to ask for proof. Please choose to do the right thing.
In addition, all members of the populace should be prepared to mask at events and gatherings.
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Masking and Distancing
With all that said, I recognize there is always more we can do to protect each other while also respecting each other.
To this end, I ask that the people of the East begin to reframe how they interact with each other. Do not assume close contact is acceptable for everyone. Please ask before entering someone’s personal space. Remember just because you have received permission once, does not mean you always have permission. Similarly, if you are asked to mask when approaching someone, please do so. Consent is absolutely vital in our Society, and we should be making every effort to allow people that right.
I strongly encourage people to mask when possible, with the best masks they have access to. The CDC, along with other sources, advise the best masks available are N95s or KN95s.
As such, with the support of the Crown and Heirs, I will make N95/KN95 masks available for any event attendees between this announcement and the end of the variance, March 1, 2023.
Masks will be available for any event that has a listing on the East Kingdom Event Calendar and will be shipped directly to someone who will be attending.
(If there is a problem with the form, please email me as soon as you are able, and I’ll get it fixed!)
I have had several people ask if they can put verbiage out recommending masking at events. The short answer to that is “Absolutely!” I encourage groups to continue to promote masking. This can include signs at events, language in event listings, and setting an example by wearing them.
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Commitment to Vigilance
I will be routinely checking the CDC website and keeping an eye on the state of the Kingdom and the COVID levels. Should things in the Kingdom change, I will review our next steps appropriately and act with the best interest of the Kingdom as a whole.
I will be reviewing the existing variance in mid February 2023.
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I hope you were able to get through all of that, and thank you for sticking with me. I am thankful for each and every voice in our Kingdom, and hope with the above measures in place we are able to come together again and enjoy our hobby.
The following variance has been approved by the Society Seneschal, to go in to effect immediately:
Indoor Masking for all persons age 2 and over will be required at all official SCA Activities (events, practices, meetings, etc) in the United States portion of the East Kingdom, under the following condition:
When the county where the activity is located reaches a status of HIGH on the CDC Community Levels map found here:
This is determined by the data on the Thursday just prior to the activity.
If state or local regulations are more restrictive, those measures are to be followed.
For the Canadian provinces in Tir Mara, provincial and local guidance will be followed.
This variance is in effect immediately and will end on March 1, 2023.
Examples:
An official practice will be held on January 3, 2023 in Springfield, MA. If, on the Thursday prior, December 29, 2022, the Community Level in Hampden County, MA is listed as HIGH according to the map above, then masks will be required at the practice on January 3, 2023.
An event will be held in Bangor, ME on January 21, 2023. On the Thursday prior, January 19, 2023, the Community Level in Penobscot County, ME is listed as LOW according to the map above. As such, masks will not be required.
An event will be held in Montreal, Quebec on February 4, 2023. On January 12, 2023, the local government issued a mask mandate requiring indoor masking due to an increase in cases. Masks will be required at the event on February 4, 2023.
I’m going to attempt to start doing a “weekly newsletter” of sorts to let you know what kinds of things are going on, and where I/We stand on certain situations. I’m hoping for weekly, but the reality is, it might be a bi-weekly update. It will cover things like the current state of the Kingdom, COVID, what events I’ll be attending, and other things as needed.
You’ll be able to find it here on the Seneschal’s Website, but it will also be cross-posted to the EK-Announce Lists as well Facebook/Discord.
State of the Kingdom
As one might imagine, the populace is a bit animated with the lifting of COVID restrictions in a rapid fashion. The voices are being heard in my office from both sides of the fence. This has caused a bit of delayed response, unfortunately, because it is important that I be able to read through all of the responses. While I may not always respond to every single one, they are being heard.
The other side effect to the email-chaos, is that some emails have slipped through the cracks and into a filter that should not have been the case! I’m pretty tech savvy, but even I get caught up sometimes! If you have not heard from me inside of a week regarding something, please resend the original email to me so I can review it.
Generally speaking, though, the events I have attended all seem to be in good spirits and people are happy to be together more regularly. It’s important to take care of ourselves and be cognizant of our own health as we continue to move forward. I would ask all local groups to continue to encourage spaces where all members of the populace can attend, whether they be in-person, online meetings, or a combination of both.
COVID Restrictions
And that brings me to the hot-topic directly. I have heard many voices both for and against the lifting of restrictions.
Some local groups have requested variances to the policies regarding indoor masking for events and local gatherings. Generally speaking, I have been granting them. In full transparency, I am not granting any variances regarding the vaccination/negative COVID tests as the Policy as written (and kept by the Board of Directors) is no longer effective as an actual measure of safety. I’ll leave that conversation for in person discussions, and am happy to have that.
I am currently working on a variance request to Society which, if successful, I believe will make much of the populace feel better, and provide a measure of control at a local level. It is presently being drafted and I’ll be sending it off to the Society Seneschal for review by the end of the week.
Thank you to all those who have shared their opinions, both for and against, the restrictions. And an extra thank you to all who have reached out to share words of support for the role and me personally while this is all going on. It has meant the world to me to see a message or an email pop in saying that they care and hope I am weathering all of this okay.
In closing, I really appreciate the effort and care the populace puts in to this Kingdom. Whether as a regular attendee of gatherings in person or virtual, a volunteer, a member of landed nobility, or the Crown, the passion of people in this Kingdom are what drew me to this role as Seneschal and will continue to drive my work here.
Thank you all for everything you do, and I hope to see you soon. The events I’ll be at are shared at the bottom of this note!
In Service, Audrye
Upcoming Events
You’ll be able to find me at the following events:
