Midsummer in the Sierras, June 19 - 22
Midsummer, the main AFA gathering of the year, will be held at beautiful Camp Norge near the northern California hamlet of Alta. This is a "family camp" with lots of activities for our children, their parents and grandparents.
Steve McNallen will give presentations throughout the three days, and will conduct an Odin blot by firelight. He and Sheila will bring us up to date on all of the AFA news, including the new Military Family Support Program and the Hammer Project. We will have many of our Folkbuilders with us, including the Burkes from the Northwest. Julia and Johnny Hulsey, Folkbuilders for Tennessee and Kentucky, will each conduct a blot in completion of their requirements for the AFA Clergy Program. On Saturday afternoon, we're all invited to a lovely wedding in our mountain meadow - Scott Ackland and Cynthia Boys are coming all the way from Minnesota with their wedding party!
We have several guest speakers who will be doing presentations and readings in Old Norse. Along with nightly campfires with storytelling, songs night hikes, and star gazing with telescopes, we are featuring a Saturday evening concert with The Blarney Band (www.blarneyband.com.)
Specifically for our families, we'll go on a rune walk, do runic crafts & games, learn about our heritage, have fun with team-building and environmental education activities, and a have a lively "Competition of the Clans."
Campsites are available at a very modest cost. All meals are provided with our small registration fee. For those who don't want to "rough-it," there are still a few private rooms and dorms available. Plan your family's or kindred's summer vacation around Midsummer in the Sierras, only a little more than an hour from either the Sacramento or Reno airports.
Midsummer in the Sierras is limited to AFA members and trusted friends. Write to us at afa@runestone.org for a flyer and registration form!
Asatru Military Family Support Program
When we approached Judy Floyd, our Texas Folkbuilder, about our ideas for helping service members and their families, she knew exactly what was needed. Judy has one son currently in the Army and a son-in-law who has done multiple tours in Iraq.
Soldiers, families, veterans...This new AFA program is now ready to serve the families of heathen men and women serving in our armed forces. Our thanks go out to Judy, and to Rind Bragisdottir and Mary Antonelli who have designed and developed our website and forums. There is even a section for children who want to express their thoughts and to meet others who share the experience of a parent in the military. Our site, www.hammerproject.org, is already popular, having gotten over 1,300 hits in the first few days of its existence. We invite you to drop in often to read the news items, helpful links and revealing blog entries. This is an AFA sponsored program, though we are eager to cooperate with other organizations and individuals to carry out our mission!
Hammer Project
Within the main AMFSP program, we have a special focus to get Thor's hammer approved by the Department of Veterans' Affairs as a symbol on the headstones of Asatru military personnel. The AFA video, Quest for the Hammer, explains the historical use of this symbol to honor warrior's graves. We appreciate the help and support of Selena Fox, who headed up a successful campaign to get the Wiccan pentacle proved by the VA. Part of our effort includes a petition that can be signed by anyone who supports our cause, regardless of their affiliation. Please go to http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/hammerproject and add your name to those of the 1,800 or so people who have already signed this document.
New-to-Asatru-Hall
With our expanding organization, we find that many of our members are new not only to the AFA, but to our religion, as well! In order to serve these new members well, we are putting more resources into our Folkbuilding program. But that's not all - we created a new group for our fledgling AFA members, the "New to Asatru Hall." This is a place to receive guidance and learn the basics of Asatru. Folkbuilder Piparskeggr and Kim Welch from the Clergy program are the guides and moderators for this group. If you hesitated joining the AFA because you lack experience or knowledge, this new program is for you!
Membership
When the Asatru Folk Assembly became a membership organization in 1994, the cost of membership was $25 per year. For that, members received a membership card, invitations to events, and eventually, an invitation to receive Bearclaw and to participate on our former Yahoo group, known as the afalist.
It is now 15 years later. The cost of membership is still $25 per year. For that you now get a membership card, an AFA logo lapel pin, invitations to our events, free downloads, a monthly newsletter for our AFA children, a bi-monthly newsletter The Voice, access to online forums and our afamembers Yahoo group, possibility of enrolling in our clergy course, discounts on selected merchandise, and more...
Why wait to join? Click here!
Folkbuilders
The head of our Folkbuilder program, Rick Oberg, stays in touch with our representatives worldwide. In the past few months, we've made many improvements to our program and have welcomed the following new Folkbuilders:
Matt Reardon - New York State
Paul Guhring - New York City
Dayve Himmel - District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia
Paul Christensen - Utah & Idaho
Dennis Boltenhouse - Ohio
Woody James - North Carolina
Christopher Witecki - Canada
Sherri Cripe - Michigan
