Table of Contents
Crones Counsel 2014 will Convene in St. George, Utah
A Message from Susan Ann, President/Crone Mother
We’re looking for a new name . . .
A Note from the Treasurer re: Crones Counsel XXI-Asilomar
Crones Counsel 2014 will Convene in St. George, Utah
We will meet November 5-9, 2014 in sunny St. George, Utah at the Best Western Plus Abbey Inn. We will be centrally located in St. George, close to Zion’s National Park, Snow Canyon, Tuacahn, and Bryce National Park and the Grand Canyon. Flights fly directly into St. George from Las Vegas, Denver, and Salt Lake City. The hotel is beautiful, the accommodations are superb, and it will all happen for the right price. Get complete information now!
And, a big “thank you” goes to every woman who helped find a site. We now have a list of places to explore in coming years. Keep the energy coming . . . you have all been incredibly helpful.
A Message from Susan Ann, President/Crone Mother
You are incredible women. I am excited to be the Crone “Mother” of your organization. Yes! And, as a result of your enthusiasm, we have a site for our next gathering. We will gather in St. George, Utah next November. Surrounded by beauty, you and your crone sisters will bask in the glory of the southwest landscape.
The new Mother Board consists of me, Carol Friedrich, Joyce Perata, and two new members Janet Morrissey and Susan Annette Van Frank. These two women are superb. They come to us with commitment, huge energy, and creative ideas that will further the mission and vision of Crones Counsel. We are hoping to have another member or two in the next couple of months.
With grateful hearts we acknowledge the leadership of Annie Lehto, Pat Casner, and Sandy Eno. Their energy and expertise is considerable and we recognize their sizeable contributions to Crones Counsel.
This newsletter will be designed to keep each of you informed of our work and to relay important information throughout the year. You will receive a newsletter every month except January and July when the CroneTimes is published with articles and stories contributed by our membership. Thank you to Suzanne Gruba for producing this newsletter and to Marta Quest and Kianna Bader for the CroneTimes.
Magic is afoot. We are looking forward to an extraordinary and prosperous year.
The MotherBoard is in the process of developing a directory of all the small and large circles. We would like a contact person, email address, phone number, and location of the meeting. In updating the website this information would be included with your agreement. This information could be helpful for first time attendee, assisting her in finding a local circle. Also, the MotherBoard would have a contact person from which to transmit and receive information. Your cooperation would be greatly appreciated. Please feel free to contact Janet Morrissey at jm928@dc.rr.com or Susan Ann Stauffer at sastauffer@bajabb.com with any questions or suggestions.
We’re looking for a new name . . .
Your newly-formed Crones Counsel Board of Directors is looking for another way to describe the work of those sustaining Crones Counsel. Being somewhat unhappy with being designated as the “Board of Directors,” (although we will still need this designation for our 501-c3 status) we’re asking you to help us come up with another way to identify the “Board.”
In the first years of Counsel, Shauna Adix, our founding mother and magnificent wordsmith, used the acronym CROG – Counsel for Responsible Oversight and Governance – to title the board. After her death, CROG became “The Board.” During the last Gathering, the title “MotherBoard” and “Counsel Mothers” were suggested. What do you think? How could we title the board that would better describe who we are and the work we do? Please send your comments and suggestions to Susan Ann at sastauffer@bajabb.com
The Autumn Equinox, Midfall, Samhain/Halloween are ripening times for the Crone. The dark season is upon us, the season of diminished light. It is the time we experience both the festival of life and the drama of death as the Earth dresses up for her final hurrah and gives up Her bounty. In this time of shadow, we might be inclined to explore the darkness inside of us, stirring the cauldron of our heart’s deep desires. At the same time, we might lay out tables for feasting and festing and light the hearth fires to warm our bones. Read more about Samhain, the Autumn Equinox Song, a poem called Season of the Crone as well as a blessing.
Layne Redmond passed away on October 28, 2013. Redmond was an American drummer, frame drum expert, writer, teacher, historian, and mythologist. She dedicated her lifetime to teaching women frame drumming and advocating for the Sacred Feminine. Many of us know her as the author of “When Women Were Drummers.” The book details a lost history of a time when women were the primary percussionists in the ancient world and also explains why they are not today. She was a very powerful woman.
An excerpt from Layne:
“I wanted to find out when we first could hear in the womb. And from studying fetal development, we first hear sounds about six months of age. I realized that the drum also represents that first sound that you ever experience. It’s sort of the popular thing right now to say that the first sound we hear is our mother’s heartbeat. It’s not. It’s the gush of blood through our mother’s arteries. I’ve got all these recordings from inside the womb. It’s blood; the first sound that we ever experience is the vibration of blood pulsing.”
A Note from the Treasurer re: Crones Counsel XXI-Asilomar
All attendees at our recent Gathering at Asilomar were given an update on the financial status of Crones Counsel. The costs incurred in order to create a Crones Counsel gathering were explained as well as the current Asilomar costs. This was important so that our membership knows how the monies are expended. A final accounting for the Gathering is as follows:
Asilomar was wonderful in negotiating the final costs of our contract. The contract penalty was reduced from the potential $7,000 to $1,800. Asilomar has expressed a desire for us to come back and are willing to work with us as a smaller group with our budget in mind. It is nice to know they can be an option for us. As a result, the net loss for CC-XXI at Asilomar was $2,265.00. See below for the summary of the finances at the 2013 Gathering.
Summary of 2013 Finances
Final – 109 registrants
| Registrations/Income | $22, 820 |
| Site Expenses | -14,278 |
| Event Overhead | – 7,098 |
| Gain (loss) | -$2,025 |
| Operations (as if of 10/1/13) | -3,500 |
| Donations | 2,400 |
| Net Loss for CC-XXI | – $2,265 |
Our goal was to break even but we did not as we had a lower turnout than expected and many women stayed off site. This result (the $2,265 net loss) came about but was less than feared because of the generous donations by crones’ members and the credits issued by Asilomar.
Respectfully,
Joyce Perata, Treasurer