The Thistledown Scottish Society of Tidewater, Inc. FALL 2009 VOLUME 26, ISSUE NUMBER 4 Williamsburg Scottish Festival 2009 Record Attendance, Full Weekend of Celebration ures by Jeanne.” O nce again, the Williamsburg Scot- There were few food vendors, however, tish Festival delivered an outstanding day and the lines for food were very long. of celebrating Scottish American culture The Friday night Balmoral Reception at and history in Hampton Roads. The in- the West Park Hotel was well attended. As credible weather and ideal location helped usual, the food was of the highest quality, this year’s WSF break all past attendance and attendees dressed impressively in records. their finest Highland attire. For the second year in a row, the festival In addition to the Balmoral, there was a was held at the Rockahock Campground in Friday night Ceilidh at the campground. Lanexa, a small town nestled between The Friday and Saturday night Ceilidhs Williamsburg and Richmond. Though a were lively and crowded. Always a crowd little challenging to get to, there was plenty pleaser, Albannach energized the revelers of parking and the grounds are ideal for a with their eclectic and non-traditional pipes festival. & drums. The Honored Clan this year was Clan The headliner this year was Alasdair Fra- Campbell. The Honored Guest was none ser and Natalie Haas. They were just fan- other than our own John A. Campbell. tastic, and anyone hearing them for the John is a founding member of the SST, first time went away awestruck with Alas- and was also instrumental in establishing The Honored Clan this year was Clan Camp- dair’s magical fiddle playing, and Natalie’s the Richmond, Roanoke and Radford High- bell. SST founder John Campbell was the genius on the cello. Just wow. Honored Guest, with his wife Donna. Also performing at the Ceilidhs were land games. John is a charter member of David Ross, Coyote Run, and the Air Force the Clan Campbell Society of North Amer- Heritage Aire Celtic Ensemble. ica, serving as Vir- ginia Commissioner for several years. Again this year, we had a large selection of vendors who were very friendly and accommodating, including our own Randy & Carolyn Bruce selling copies of the Robert the Bruce Trilogies, and Jeanne & Bob Rider, SST Treasurer Jeanne Rider, proprietor of Pixie selling “Pixie Treas- Treasures by Jeanne, was steadily busy selling her wares. Clan Colquhoun in the Parade of Clans. Continued on page 8 PAGE 2 THISTLEDOWN FALL 2009 About the Scottish Society of A Few Words from the President Tidewater, Inc. Samhain math! Happy Celtic New Year! The turning of the Celtic Calendar Wheel T he Scottish Society of Tidewater exists to has brought some changes. Some positive; promote the preservation and study of Scottish cul- some negative. ture, including music, language, art, history, folk- First the positive: Changing our meeting lore, dance, literature, athletics, and all other things venue to The Church of The Ascension distinctively Scottish among interested persons in seems to be working out very well. We have the Hampton Roads, Virginia area and to cooperate lots more space and are not limited by need- with like-minded persons, groups and organizations ing to be out of the building by 9:00. If our here and abroad. program runs long, or folks just want to hang A meeting is held on the first Wednesday of each around and chat, there’s no problem. It has month at the Church of Ascension Community Cen- been suggested that, since there is no charge ter, 4853 Princess Anne Rd., Virginia Beach, VA attached to our use of the church facility, our 23462-4446. Social time begins at 7:00pm, and the members might contribute to the church’s meeting starts at 7:30pm. Anyone interested in Food Pantry. They donate a large number of Scottish culture and history is invited to attend. Rob Lockwood food baskets to needy families each month. P.O. Box 3733, Norfolk, VA 23514-3733 With the holidays coming soon, it would be nice if we each bring a www.tidewaterscots.org non-perishable food item to meetings. We Scots have always been known for our hospitality. Thanks! SST Executive Board Baird Scholarship recipient, Charles Murla, gave us a toe-tapping President: program at our October meeting, showing off the fiddle skills he Rob Lockwood [email protected] honed at the Jink and Diddle Fiddle School this summer. Vice President: John McGlynn [email protected] We were well represented at the Williamsburg Scottish Festival at Secretary: Rockahock. I understand that we enrolled several new members. Marcey Hunter [email protected] Welcome! Thanks to Tricia Young for heading the committee to han- Treasurer: Jeanne Rider [email protected] dle the Society tent duties. Plans for the Christmas Dinner on December 2 are coming along Board of Directors: June Lockwood [email protected] nicely. Thanks to June Lockwood for her help and input. She brings many years of experience in planning dinners and other events for Donna Looney [email protected] other organizations. If you are at all interested in helping on the com- Linda Lucas [email protected] mittee please let me or June know. And don’t forget to bring an item, or two, to donate to the Silent Auction, as well as some yummy food George Phillips [email protected] for the dinner. Terri Woodward [email protected] Now the negative: Unfortunately, we have recently lost two mem- Trish Young [email protected] bers. Charlotte Irish passed away in September. A private family service was held for her. SST Committees I am sure that you all are well aware that our Nessie Ambassador, Webmaster: Jose Andres Hernandez Godoy, transitioned to Tìr nan Òg, the Land Scott MacGregor [email protected] Membership: of Eternal Youth, after a long and very brave battle with cancer. The Marcey Hunter [email protected] Celtic community was well represented at his service by members of Program: the Scottish Society of Tidewater and The Newport News Police The SST Board of Directors Sunshine: Pipes & Drums. In memory of Jose’s interest in robotics and com- June Lockwood [email protected] puters, a scholarship has been set up in his name in the Department Newsletter Editor: of Physics and Computer Science at Christopher Newport University. Marcey Hunter [email protected] If you are interested in making a contribution to the scholarship, please contact Past Society President Dr. Edward Brash at [email protected] for more information. Yours Aye for Scotland, Rob FALL 2009 THISTLEDOWN PAGE 3 The SST Finds a New Home for Monthly Meetings 1st Wednesday of the Month at Ascension A fter many years of meeting monthly at the Virginia Beach Central Library, the SST has se- cured a new meeting place that can better accom- modate our needs. The Church of the Ascension in Virginia Beach has opened its doors to the SST for our monthly meetings, which will once again be held on the 1st Wednesday of the month. “Our members had become accustomed to get- ting together on the 1st Wednesday,” said Presi- dent Rob Lockwood. “And when we ran into scheduling conflicts at the Central Library, our meeting dates got somewhat jumbled. Sometimes we’d meeting on the 1st Wednesday, sometimes it was other days of the month. I’m afraid our attendance suffered. And when we learned that the library could not accommodate our Christmas Ceilidh this year, we decided it was time to find a new spot.” The facilities at Ascension are ideal. The space is large enough to accommodate us comfortably, and there is a wonderful and efficiently laid out kitchen, which will help to make our Christmas Ceilidhs extra special. The Church of the Ascension is located at 4853 Princess Anne Rd., Virginia Beach, VA 23462-4446. See you there on the 1st Wednesdays of the month! Ceud Mile Failte! "One Hundred Thousand Welcomes" to New SST Members! Cheryl A. Brown Carrie McCabe & Brian Gordon 5609 Anthony Rd. 1133 Magnolia Ave. Virginia Beach, VA 23455 Norfolk VA 757-460-3059 757-332-1692 [email protected] [email protected] Clan Lamont [email protected] Clan McLeod & Clan Gordon Matt Hogendobler 2209 N. Lakeside Dr. James E. & Emily McCarson Virginia Beach, VA 23454 208 Alberta Dr., Newport News 23602 757-481-1144 757-833-3954 [email protected] [email protected] Clan Kennedy Clan MacPherson FALL 2009 THISTLEDOWN PAGE 4 Jose Andre MacHernan: Celtic Warrior, Scholar, Friend July 8, 1995 - September 30, 2009 by Lynnette Fitch Brash José really liked), toured a bagpipe fac- n the spring of 2004, Debbie Kurtz tory, visited Culloden battlefield, and thor- fromi the Make-a-Wish Foundation was oughly enjoyed themselves. Upon their planning a send-off party for a boy in our return, Javier gave a presentation to the area with cancer. This young man’s name SST at one of the monthly meetings, was José Andrés Hernandez Godoy, and which included some animated Scottish his wish was to make a trip to Scotland to films José had made, and told everyone search for Nessie. José Andrés had been about their voyage. José Andrés, who fascinated with the Loch Ness monster could not be there due to his cancer treat- since the age of four, and, in turn, all ments, prepared a Nessie PowerPoint things Scottish. Make-a-Wish was send- presentation nonetheless to fulfill what he ing José and his father Javier, mother felt his responsibilities were as Nessie Laura, and sister Ana-Paula to Scotland Ambassador. It is really wonderful with on the hunt for Nessie. many pictures from their trip.