2019 Obligations - Grand Priory of the Scots · 2019-03-17 · hair longer to wear other hair...

The Supreme Military Order of the Temple of Jerusalem

www.grandprioryofthescots.org

March 2019 - Vol 7 Issue 1

© The Grand Priory of the Scots – All rights reserved

Balgonie Castle, Markinch, Fife

What’s Inside Page 2 – Grand Bailiff Message Page 3 – Chinotimbra Primary School Page 4 – Chinotimbra Primary School Cont. Page 5 – Chinotimbra Primary School Cont. Page 6 – Online Membership Database Tool Page 7 – Preceptory of Balantrodoch Page 8 – Preceptory of Rosslyn Page 8 – Charity Coordinator – St. Columba Page 9 – Commandry–Good Sir James 0 – Commandry-Good Sir James Cont. Page 11 – Commandry–Good Sir James Cont. Page 12 – Grand Bailiwick Contacts Note: The scroll at the end of the newsletter is suitable for printing, should you so desire.

2019 Obligations Please note that obligation invoices for 2019 were not mailed due to change in officers and other circumstances. If you have not done so, please mail your 2019 obligation to: Chev. Rick Novosad, KTJ Treasurer – Grand Bailiwick of the Scots 705 Otter Court Fairfield, CA 94533

Rosslyn Chapel, Roslin, Midlothian

The Victor March 2019 - Vol 7 Issue 1

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H.E. Dame Patricia Tennyson Bell, GCTJ. GMTJ Grand Bailiff – Grand Bailiwick

Even though we are into the first quarter of 2019, I wish everyone in the Priory of Robert the Bruce a prosperous New Year. Stay safe and healthy. There have been some changes to the Privy Council starting last September. Robin Price resigned as Treasurer and I want to thank him sincerely for helping the Bailiwick proceed through a difficult time. Rick Novosad took over the reins and is learning all aspects of the situation. He is still finding his way through all the paperwork and I would be grateful if the Priors contacted their members asking them to send their oblations to Rick ASAP even though the invoices have not been sent out. As of January 1st, 2019, more changes have been made to the Privy Council.

Nellie Lowry resigned as Supply Officer after many years in that position. Nellie has done a wonderful job and was always so dependable. I will visit with Nellie at the end of March to collect all the regalia which I will bring home and combine with what I already have on file. Then most of the items will be sent to Dan Harrison who has assumed that position. In the meantime, if you need any supplies, please let me know as Dan will not be ready until sometime in April. Mark O’Dell resigned as Deputy Grand Bailiff and I want to thank Mark for his support in the past. Mark Peterson is now the Deputy Grand Bailiff and I know he will do an excellent job. Joe Blaylock is the new Executive Officer and he too will be great in this position. I drive to Sacramento this weekend to transfer quite a lot of material to Joe and go over all his responsibilities. He will take over the postulant part of what I did in the past. I will also give him the Scottish Knights Templar tartan and ties so if you wish to have either of these items, please contact Joe. Two weekends ago I went to Florida to attend a meeting/dinner for the Preceptory of Rosslyn. Neil Johnson, Chancellor of the Priory of Saint Columba attended as well. The purpose of the meeting was to incorporate our members in the Southeast into what will turn out to be newly established preceptories. We had a great discussion and even though it will take a lot of hard work, I think some positive feelings will come out of it. I also went to Sacramento in February to visit with Mark Paterson and Joe Blaylock and this coming weekend I will be in Fairfield, California, visiting to Rick. We are trying to get the new crew up and running. Please keep up the good charity work. Cheryl Cook and Robert Buie are guests at every Privy Council meeting and present their reports and the charitable work you all do is outstanding. Thank you all, Patricia Tennyson Bell – Grand Bailiff


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Priory of Robert the Bruce Donation to Chinotimbra Primary School in Zimbabwe By: Dame Shirley B. Vanderbeck, DTJ In January 2018, I traveled with a group on Vantage Adventures to Africa and visited several countries within the continent, i.e., South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Ghana. If you love to travel and see wild life in its own environment, I heartily recommend this trip to anyone. Our tour guide was British and lives full time in Cape Town. She was absolutely fabulous! I left California with a suitcase full of pens, pencils, reading books, coloring books, paint books, boxes of crayons, boxes of colored pencils, and other such items. I had also included a sack of lollipops for the children. There was hardly enough room for my clothing in the suitcase by the time it was packed. I was more than willing to drag it along, heavily ladened, in anticipation to deliver the goods to the Chinotimba Government Primary School in Zimbabwe.

After landing in Johannesburg, South Africa, we started the trip by touring Johannesburg. Poverty is evident in many places, but a solid economy can be seen in many other sections – the same as we see happening in America. From Johannesburg, we boarded a flight to the Skuska Airport for a bus journey to Kruger National Park. From the air, the landscape of the area was very much like California – arid with lots of chaparral. After embarking on several safari trips in Kruger National Park through the bush over a three-day period and gazing upon the most magnificent animals, i.e., herds of water buffalo, Impala, hippos, elephants, giraffe, and monkeys, we finally were able to spot a male lion and his lionesses. It was absolutely breathtaking to witness them in the wild and not behind a zoo fence. Continued on page 4.


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Priory of Robert the Bruce Donation Continued Donation to Chinotimbra Primary School in Zimbabwe We packed up again and were off to Nelspruit/Kruger International Airport heading to Zambia. The farther north we went, the weather changed a bit. While warm and sunny in Johannesburg and Kruger, it had turned a bit chilly. One morning, we were up at the “crack of dawn” for a jeep ride into the bush for breakfast in the Hwange National Park, and to see animals that come out in the early morning hours to feed. We spent a couple of days at Hwange before packing up again and heading for Victoria Falls. Francis, our bus guide, gave us the “No-Noes” of discussions with local residents and shop owners, i.e., politics, religion, economics, and philosophy. We checked into the fabulous Victoria Falls Hotel and it was as if we had stepped back in time to the 1800s. After settling in and having lunch, we visited the Falls – an absolutely spectacular site. It was every bit as beautiful as our own Niagara Falls. This scene was worth the trip alone. Everyplace was stayed was as if we were at a hotel in the states and the food at all of them was spectacular. Spending a few days at Victoria Falls and attending a Craft Market, we were off to the Chinotimba Government Primary School to meet with the principal and headmistress. We were escorted into a large room where a group of 10-11-12 year olds performed several of their native dances and songs for us. On the north wall were seated about 15-20 girls and boys with special needs. The principal told us about the school, its curriculum; sporting activities; and classroom size. There are 45 teachers and each teacher as a minimum of 45 children in each class or about 2,025 students total in the school. The children all have the same hair cut- short to the head and only the teenagers may begin to grow their hair longer to wear other hair styles, such as dreadlocks. The boys all wear khaki colored pants or shorts and white shirts. Girls wear white blouses with a burgundy colored jumper. Some of the children had no shoes.

Continued on page 5.


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Priory of Robert the Bruce Donation Continued Donation to Chinotimbra Primary School in Zimbabwe After the performance, the children were excused and I was able to present the headmistress and principal with the supplies I had brought with me. They were extremely gracious, grateful, and thanked the Priory of Robert the Bruce – Sovereign Military Order of the Temple of Jerusalem for its donation. Obviously, with over 2,000 students, I could not bring enough books, pens, crayons with me to give to each child. The principal explained that the items would not be distributed to the children – that she would hold them in her office and when a child does well in academics, sports, or other activities, he or she will be given one of the books, box of crayons, etc., as a reward for doing well in school. I was able to give each special needs child a lollipop and the leftovers were then given to the principal for later distribution. It was a marvelous experience and to see the smiles on the children’s faces was my prize.

Now that I had emptied my suitcase from Crayons and coloring books, I can carry home several souvenirs that I had purchased along the way and it was time to say “goodbye” to this beautiful land and its friendly people. Our flight took us back to Johannesburg Airport where we went through customs and immigration. We were security cleared and on our way back to Dulles Airport in Washington, D.C. Each one of us in the group said our goodbyes with the promise to share photographs after getting home. I have attached a couple of photos that I hope you will enjoy, especially the presentation of the school supplies at the Chinotimba Government Primary School.


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Online Membership Database By G. Allen Cummings - Webmaster With permission from the Grand Bailiff, work began the first of the year on initiating three web based applications that will run on our webserver to streamline recordkeeping and provide a repository that never “changes hands”, so to speak, when new officers are appointed. The applications are:

1. Membership Database; applicable to the Grand Bailiwick, Deputy Grand Bailiwick and Executive Officer.

2. Obligation Ledger; applicable to the Brand Bailiwick Treasurer.

3. Application Administration; applicable to the webmaster. It is noted that login credentials and transactions are “salted” 512 bit encryption, same as your bank uses. With regards to eliminating redundancy, when the Treasurer posts entries into the Obligation Ledger, the obligation year is updated in the Membership database thus eliminating redundant maintenance entries in Membership by others. The Membership Database and Obligation Ledger each have export capabilities to facilitate mailing lists, email lists and more. Members Area Changing gears, discussions are on-going about the possibility of having a Members Area on our website that would be the repository for our Roster as well as Special Orders as they are issued. If a member is missing a Special Order, they could download it here. The Members Area, based on a members login credentials, would have a feature that would allow the member to change their demographics as it becomes necessary. The application knows who logged in. Therefore, that person’s information is only available to themselves.


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Preceptory of Balantrodoch By Chev. TJ Smith, KTJ – Preceptor

The Preceptory of Balantrodoch had a delightful end of year. In the 3rd Quarter our members enjoyed a meeting at J Bird Wines in Cambridge, MN where on top of planning and coordinating our future events, we indulged in the festivities. Good mead, live Celtic music, and the annual chili cook off provided a great highlight to our quarterly gathering. Shortly after, one of our members, Dame Nicole Smith, KTJ, left for her deployment to Kuwait in support of Operation Spartan Shield with the Minnesota Army National Guard 34th ID. While there, our Preceptory sent Christmas in a box to Dame Smith for her to distribute to her fellow Soldiers during the holiday season.

Included in this box was an array of ornaments, lights, decorations, cookies, and a fake tree (hard to find a good pine tree in the desert). The year was capped off with our annual Feast of St. John where good conversation, food, and drink was had by our members and honored guests. We are looking forward to seeing everyone at the Investiture this year in April. Slainte! Gus am bi sinn a 'coinneachadh arithist. Chev TJ Smith, KTJ


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Preceptory of Rosslyn Members of our Order from Alabama, Florida, South Carolina and Texas as well as Postulants from Mississippi met for a dinner meeting Saturday, January 19th, at the Seasons 52 Restaurant in Altamonte Springs, Florida. Also in attendance was the Grand Bailiff and the Chancellor of the Priory of St. Columba. This event coincided with the Central Florida Scottish Festival in Winter Springs, Florida. The purpose of the meeting was for initial discussion for re-establishing the Preceptory of Rosslyn in the South and Southeast. However, with those attending, it became apparent that the possibility of 2 or more Preceptories could be possible in the future. Chev. Neil Johnson, KCTJ, Chancellor of the Priory of St. Columba, indicated that he would be happy to help the Preceptory become established in the Southeast which was much appreciated. I would like to thank Mr. Hubert McMillian and his lovely wife, Teresa, for attending. Both are to be invested in Minnesota this spring. At this point, I am excited and am looking forward at the remainder of 2019. Sincerely yours, Chev. G. Allen Cummings, KCTJ Preceptor – Preceptory of Rosslyn Charity Coordinator Request for Saint Columba As a 501.c.3 Nonprofit Organization, the following information is needed when charitable events are completed at any level within the Priory.

1. Event type/name. 2. Date of event. 3. Time spent; type of donation; amount raised. 4. Person/Organization the event is intended for.

It is noted that any personal time, donations of goods, or money raised is important to record. I may be contacted by email at [email protected] or cell phone at (662) 703-0116. Sincerely yours, Chev. Christopher Cummins, KTJ Charity Coordinator for the Priory of St Columba

mailto:[email protected]


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Commandry of the Good Sir James By Chev. Richard E. Strayer, KCTJ - Commander It’s often a challenge for a geographically dispersed group such as ours to come together in one place to make a difference, so in 2018 the Commandery of the Good Sir James, Priory of Robert the Bruce started a new Christmas Tradition by sponsoring a Reverse Advent Calendar campaign as a way to share in doing good works together despite the fact that we are spread apart. Advent is the period of four Sundays and weeks before Christmas (or sometimes from the 1st December to Christmas Day). Advent means 'Coming' in Latin; this is the coming of Jesus into the world. Christians use the four Sundays and weeks of Advent to prepare for and remember the real meaning of Christmas. An Advent Calendar is a special calendar used to count the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Most children look forward to receiving one at the beginning of December because it gets them excited for Santa coming and every surprise that they open on the way is a promise of what’s to come. The idea behind a Reverse Advent Calendar is to encourage each Chevalier or Dame, and their families, to think of others while waiting to celebrate Jesus’ birthday, and at the same time provide a valuable service to those who may be less fortunate. Members of the Commandery were requested to pick out a sturdy basket, box or bag and fill it with food donations and/or personal items, clothing or toys – one item for every day in December leading up to Christmas Day. Then on Christmas Eve when the bags are filled, everyone was asked to take what they had collected to a local food pantry or donation site and drop off their items in the name of the Scottish Knights Templar.

With respect for our faith-based order it was suggested to choose a Christian organization that provides ministry along with support, but any charitable collection point was acceptable. Continued on Page 10.


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Commandry of the Good Sir James – Continued from Page 9. The beauty of the Reverse Advent Calendar is in the simplicity, but also in how it can be customized: those who participated could add one item a day or several items every time they shopped. They could collect 25 items for their whole family or 25 items from each family member. They could focus on food items or practical donations or a combination of both. They were encouraged to create the Reverse Advent Calendar however they and their family chose! Throughout the Advent period suggestions were provided to help participants decide what to add to their baskets; for example, some of the most requested food items from donation centers include:

1. Canned vegetables 2. Canned fruit 3. Canned soup 4. Instant potatoes 5. Spaghetti sauce and pasta 6. Pancake mix 7. Canned meats (tuna, chicken, beef stew, etc) 8. Peanut butter and jelly 9. Macaroni & cheese 10. Cereal 11. Instant Oatmeal 12. Granola bars 13. Biscuit or baking mixes, particularly those that require only water 14. Boxed meals that require only water

Or they could also include practical donations, such as:

1. Deodorant 2. Body wash 3. Toothbrushes 4. Toothpaste 5. Bars of soap 6. Razors 7. Shampoo & conditioner 8. Diapers 9. Baby wipes 10. Toilet paper 11. Laundry detergent 12. New underwear, undershirts and socks are always needed!

Continued on Page 11.


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Commandry of the Good Sir James – Continued from Page 10. During the 25 days leading up to Christmas periodic reminders were also sent out to participants to confirm how many items should be in their boxes or baskets, provide tips for incorporating their donation boxes or baskets into their holiday décor, and encourage them to think about where they would take their donation. For those who didn’t already have a preferred drop-off point, such as a church or local food pantry, links were provide to help search directories online for one nearby: Find a Food Pantry Food Pantries.org Homeless Shelter Directory These reminders were also an opportunity to share interesting information about the history of Advent, to help provide context for the campaign, for example: A LITTLE MORE ABOUT ADVENT Although Advent is the four-week period beginning on the Sunday nearest the feast day of St. Andrew the Apostle (November 30) through the following three Sundays, Advent calendars typically don’t follow that timeframe. Instead, they begin on December 1 and mark the 24 days before Christmas. Originally, the period was a time for converts to Christianity to prepare for baptism, but it's now more commonly associated with the anticipation of the anniversary of Christ’s birth on December 25. Today, most Advent calendars include paper doors that open to reveal an image, Bible verse, small gift or piece of chocolate (or, if you’re really lucky, a tiny bottle of your favorite single malt Scotch whisky!) The tradition dates to the mid-19th century, when German Protestants made chalk marks on doors or lit candles to count the days leading up to Christmas. It goes without saying that donations are needed year round – not just at Christmas. The Commandery is planning to use this Reverse Advent Calendar idea in different forms to facilitate additional donations throughout the coming year as well. But we’ll certainly make the Reverse Advent Calendar an annual tradition! Just before Christmas, participants were left with this final thought, to consider as they dropped-off their donations: Reflection is one of the easiest and most fulfilling ways to prepare our hearts for the epiphany during the Advent season. Reflection is simply focusing on and thinking about the importance of something. A prayer that might have been familiar to our Templar forbears can be found in the earliest surviving Sacramentary from the Holy Sepulcher scriptorium, a special mass sequence for the First Sunday in Advent, Salus eternal. It included stanzas proclaiming to Christ: "Justify us by Your First Coming; Free us by Your Second, So that we, when You judge all things, when the great light has come...May then follow your footsteps wherever they are." Amen!

http://www.findafoodpantry.org/index.php

https://www.foodpantries.org/

https://www.homelessshelterdirectory.org/foodbanks/CAfoodbanks.html


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The Grand Bailiwick of the Scots - Privy Council H.E. Dame Patricia Tennyson Bell, GCTJ, GMTJ Grand Bailiff - Grand Bailiwick 2984 Siskiyou Blvd. Medford, OR 97504 Home: 541-690-1871 / 626-664-3830 [email protected] Chev. Mark Peterson, KTJ Deputy Grand Bailiff - Grand Bailiwick 6506 N Gentry Avenue Fresno, CA 93711 559-439-2947 [email protected] Chev. Joseph Blaylock, KTJ Executive Officer - Grand Bailiwick 8816 Elk Way Elk Grove, CA 95624 Home: 916-687-7388 [email protected] Chev. Richard (Rick) Novosad, KTJ Treasurer - Grand Bailiwick 705 Otter Court Fairfield, CA 92683 Cell: 707-372-3854 [email protected] Chev. Harrison Dan Philbrick, KTJ Supply Officer - Grand Bailiwick 109 Farm Road 1110 Cassville MO 65625 Home: 417-847-2353 [email protected] Dame Anita Scott Philbrick, DTJ Secretary - Grand Bailiwick 109 Farm Rod 1a110 Cassville, MO 65625 Home: 417-847-2352 [email protected]

American Legitee H.E Chev. J. Connall BELL, GCTJ. GMTJ 2984 Siskiyou Blvd. Medford, OR 97504 (626) 664--3912 [email protected] The Grand Bailiwick of the Scots - Priories Dame Cheryl Armstrong Cook, DCTJ Prior - Priory of Robert the Bruce 6691 Park Avenue Garden Grove, CA 92854 Home: 714– 608-3554 [email protected] Chev. Robert C. Buie, GOTJ Prior - Priory of St. Columba 15331 Jeffers Pass NW Prior Lake, MN 55372 Home: 952-440-5510 [email protected] The Grand Bailiwick of the Scots Newsletter – Webmaster Chev. G. Allen Cummings, KCTJ PO Box 6888 Ocean Isle Beach, NC 28469-6888 [email protected]

2019 Obligations - Grand Priory of the Scots · 2019-03-17 · hair longer to wear other hair...

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