Request for comment from TRM Martino and Ariel

Unto the Good People of Calontir do Martino and Ariel send Greetings

The following proposal regarding a Society Youth program was sent to Us recently. We ask that you take a moment to read it and let Us know your opinion of this idea.

Thank you for taking the time to help guide Us.

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Subject: Introducing the SCA Youth and Family Achievement Program

Greetings to the most noble Royal families in the Known World and Their Kingdom Seneschals,

The following missive is an introduction to the new Youth and Family Achievement Program (YAFA.) that the SCA Inc. intends on making available to any Kingdom that would like to use it. The goal is to have it ready for all Kingdoms before the Summer of 2014 so it is key that we start to spread the word and generate the same kind of excitement about the program that we all have here. If Your Kingdom has decided to make use of the program could you please forward the following to Your Kingdom Chroniclers for print in Your newsletters. Please feel free to distribute it in any forum and suggest that it be announced in courts, posted on youth lists and kingdom lists and posted on websites.

Thank you so much for Your time and please feel free to contact me if You have any questions,

Duchess Rustique, Co-lead YAFA..

Announcing the arrival of the Youth and Family Achievement Program (YAFA.).

From the 2010 SCA Census of the membership one of the key questions was about declining membership — when asked this question the 4th most cited reason was families were finding it difficult to attend events with children and that there was nothing for the children to do. The Youth and Family Achievement Program (YAFA.) is the SCA Inc.’s response to the Survey results. A team was pulled together to create the YAFA. program and since June 2012 they have been working diligently on providing a solution and program forSCA families to use.

The vision for the YAFA. program is to encourage active participation by families with children and teens in the study of a variety of medieval subjects and activities, sharing their experiences and accomplishments with others, and create ownership and investment in the Society. The goal is to have an energetic society of honorable citizens developed from within. This program will guide and encourage young people and their families in seeking opportunities for involvement in the SCA.

YAFA.’s mission is to create opportunities for youth-protected activities and achievements designed to retain and support participants and their families through education while respecting, protecting, and fostering the cultural climate of individual Kingdoms. The YAFA.Program is based in a foundation of chivalry, the arts, and service to help encourage values important to the Society. Those youth participants completing their individually chosen areas of study will be eligible to wear tokens of achievement.

The goal is to make the program available to all SCA Kingdoms before the Summer of 2014 so the Society encourages you to read the link below on important FAQ’s and please let us know if you have any additional questions.

The YAFA. team can be contacted at: yafa@sca.org

Link to the FAQ: http://sca.org/YAFA-FAQ.pdf