At the close of the latest Rowany Festival, I announced that I intended to introduce Silent Heralding to Lochac. As with most Festival decisions, there is instant enthusiasm that falls by the way side when mundane life intervenes. Today I try again in getting this started properly.

This was a project that I felt was good and proper for our Kingdom to undertake, it had not been asked for by people who needed the service. Indeed, I would like to hear from anyone who would benefit from signing at Court, or if anyone knows of people staying away from Court because there isn’t signing available.

In the meantime, there is a role without job description looking for a proactive (more than I) person to undertake the development work to shape the role into what it needs to be and make signing at Court something we can do, or at least work towards.

The successful application should ideally have some understanding of the needs of the signing community. While not required to be fluent in sign language, a willingness to learn would be an advantage. Any experience in project management or development would likewise be useful but not required.

The role, as I see it, is to establish the framework around how we introduce signing at events in Lochac. This will likely start by asking a lot of questions and struggling to get answers. Persistence will be a key aspect of this role.

The first issue I see is one of language – in Australia we have AUSLAN, New Zealand uses NZSL and the US uses ASL. The Society’s Silent Heralding information – http://heraldry.sca.org/signheraldry.html – is all based around ASL but that may not work for us. Do we develop our own dictionary for in-game concepts that don’t translate or do we use what has been developed elsewhere?

Other questions may include badges and/or regalia, do we structure the role like a guild based around volunteers with a demonstrated degree of skill or around a warranted office where we have an application process and a single point of contact in each group? As the role progresses, the number of questions will likely increase faster than the number of answers. Documentation becomes key as it will help develop policy and explain the decisions that are made.

The successful applicant will need to be able to communicate with me regularly and with the and the Society Silent Herald Deputy when necessary. This will involve needing to be contactable via email (subscription to Blazons and other requirements of a herald still apply) and joining appropriate mailing lists. Being able to manage the Lochac Silent Herald Facebook group would be an advantage but social media usage/engagement is not required. When a name is decided and registered, an @lochac.sca.org email address will be established and the ability to monitor and use that account will be required.

If you believe you have the skills, the passion, the experiences, or all three, to take on this badly defined role, please email me at herald@lochac.sca.org outlining your background and why you feel that you can meet the above requirements. Please include some idea of your vision for the role and what you would like to achieve, as this may be more important in the long run.

I would appreciate applications (or at least intention to apply) before Christmas. I will consider any received applications after that time. It is my intention to call for commentary on my intended appointment before 12th Night.

In service to the Kingdom of Lochac, always.

Sorle Maknicoll
Crux Australis Principal Herald