| The Claymore
Scottish America's E-Newsletter
December, 2012
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| A Call For Volunteers |
 Dear COSCA Friends & Colleagues, This year has been quite a remarkable one for COSCA in terms of our organization's development and growth. We hope that we have been able to touch all of you with a service or a tidbit of useful information or even some inspiration during the course of this last year. Keep an eye out for more opportunities, information and service in 2013.
COSCA will continue to grow and develop its programs and services throughout the coming year. As we all know, there is a huge array of issues on the Scottish American horizon coming our way. We look forward to helping you make sense of them all - and occasionally we even hope to favorably influence their outcome in your favor!
A Call For Volunteers.
Before you move along and enjoy the rest of our newsletter, there is a wee matter that requires just a bit of your attention: COSCA needs volunteers.
As COSCA continues to expand to better serve the Scottish American community, we have managed to churn up a corresponding need to develop our base of active task volunteers, project managers and leaders. COSCA is an all volunteer organization at present, and we have a wide variety of ways that you can chip in and be part of a really fun and important growing organization.
If you would like more information about what, exactly, COSCA does and intends to do, check out our 2012 - 2014 Strategic Plan here. We are proud of our 2012 - 2014 Strategic Plan and we are excited to continue implementing and improving our programs. The Strategic Plan should answer most of your initial questions about what COSCA is all about. If you have additional questions or, better yet, if you would like to join us by volunteering, shoot us an email at COSCAinfo@gmail.com.
I hope we hear from some of you. COSCA is a great way to become active in the Scottish American community in very unique and exciting ways and to meet and work with some of the most extraordinary Scottish Americans and Scots that you could ever imagine.
Enjoy your December 2012 edition of The Claymore!
Yours aye,
Susan L. McIntosh, President
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Online Clan Leader Workshop: Join us for our second Clan Leader Boot Camp Workshop
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Got Members? Want More?
What: Online Workshop: Growing and Retaining Your Organization's Membership
When: January 26, 2013 1:30pm - 3:00pm EST
Topic: Clan Sinclair will report the results of their recent survey of which membership strategies are working and which are not working for American clan organizations. We will explore some of those ideas and a few others with some experts on the topic all to help you reach and retain more active clan organization members.
SPECIAL TREAT: Lord Andrew Morrison, 3rd Viscount Dunrossil and also President of The Society of Scottish Armigers (SSA) will present an intro to the fascinating, not well understood but extremely important subject of Scottish Heraldry and some background on the SSA mission and activities.
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WATCH THIS and BE HAPPY:
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Danny MacAskill talks & rides in the USA.
We have featured Danny MacAskill before in this spot. What he does is called "trials" riding. You might agree that it is more like artistry on two wheels. The most inspiring thing is Danny's joy and exhuberance about what he does. It is infectious - what an ambassador for Scottish youth. Thanks Scotland, for making this guy.
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Working On A New Website For Your Clan?
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Try a customized Clan Tartan Theme for WordPress:
Pretty slick.
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A Wicked Cool Thing:
Scottish Diaspora Tapestry Project 2012 - 2014
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A project to involve communities around the world in the celebration of Scottish heritage and culture.
Scots have migrated all over the world and have often had a profound impact on the areas where they settled. The Scottish Diaspora Tapestry project will see 25 such communities documenting their Scottish connections on a series of embroidered panels. Their combined stories will pay homage to the incredible determination and courage of Scots over the centuries.
Led by the team behind the magnificent Battle of Prestonpans Tapestry, the Scottish Diaspora Tapestry is to be created by volunteers in communities across the globe. It will be assembled and displayed in Scotland as part of the 2014 Homecoming celebrations.
Get Involved! There are so many ways for you to be a part of the Scottish Diaspora Tapestry Project. Visit the website at http://www.scottishdiasporatapestry.org/index and click on "Getting Started" . Send your own story to the Project. Sign up for some stitching! Get your local schools and communities involved. You're a Scot - Be Creative! |
Learn Gaelic Now!
It hasn't been this easy since the 15th Century.
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We always hear, during our various 'ain't it awful' sessions, that there just isn't any good and easy way to learn Scottish gaelic.
BOLLOCKS!!*
Here are three online links for you to try - Scottish Gaelic is all over the internet - go find it and get started today. No excuses.
1. FionaMackenzie.org: Fiona J. Mackenzie's podcasts are the most beautiful way that we have run across to get a handle on online gaelic. Listening to Fiona's gaelic lesson podcast is like learning a language in heaven. It's heaven because of the music that lines the background of all of Fiona's lessons. Go to FionaMackenzie.org and click on 'podcasts'. Listen to the current chapter or start at the beginning by clicking on the 'archive' link.
Make sure to follow Fiona on Twitter @GaelicSinger as you will catch her occasional gaelic tweets (complete with handy phonetic spelling for we idiots).
2. LearnGaelic.net: A one stop online shop for anyone wanting to learn Scottish gaelic. You will find audio, video and written instruction here. And, amazingly, there is a toll free telephone number you can call with questions: 1-800-171-2994. Follow this group on Twitter now at @LearnGaelicNet. By the next edition of The Claymore, we should all be counting to twenty in Scots gaelic. It wouldn't hurt to at least learn the days of the week either. |
Struileag: A Massive Diaspora Project |
While we are all worrying about what to do during the summer of 2014, may we direct your attention to some phenomenal work going on right now and events planned for the autumn of 2014, to take place not in Stirling, but in the northern highlands of Scotland. Yes, the north - that'll be Inverness for you borders types.
One word: Struileag: Massive diaspora project reaching out to Gaels and their descendants the world over to create an international arts project that will stream worldwide! This project is something to watch out for. Struileag's website is still being built, but check out the Struileag Facebook page and follow them on Twitter (@Struileag).
For a summary of the project in Struileag's own words: click here. The project lies in the capable and very creative hands of Jim Sutherland. Jim is the musical genius that brought you the Pageant at the 2009 Gathering and Julie Fowlis' music in the Disney/Pixar blockbuster "Brave". Jim and company are busy as Christmas elves collecting stories of the Scottish Diaspora across the globe.
We spoke with Mr. Sutherland recently and he assured us that the stories would be collected, organized and among other very cool things, would become part of a giant production to air live at Inverness in October 2014 in association with the National Mod. This live musical and artistic extravaganza will be streamed live across the globe to involve as many children of the Gael as humanly and technologically possible.
Check in with Struileag to find out what they are all about. You will find great highland banter and learning gems on the Facebook page. Looking forward to the website. If anybody can pull this off, it looks like Jim Sutherland and the Struileag crew can. They have some remarkably creative ideas under way. Follow this one and get involved if you can.
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Scotland The World Over - A Crackin' Short Film
*Thanks to the St. Andrews Society of Washington D.C. for posting this |
'Scotland the World Over' is a short film celebrating Scotland's global reach by showing images of people with Saltires from all over the world. Between two of Scotland's most famous dates, St Andrew's Day 2011 and Burns Night 2012, Blipfoto teamed up with Scotland.org and invited anyone, anywhere in the world to take a photo of themselves with a Saltire and share it on Blipfoto.com. Using the entries, Blipfoto created an amazing stop-motion film - 'Scotland the World Over'
The film, which already has tens of thousands of views online, is a social media collaboration involving more than 1,500 Scots and Scots at heart from 32 countries around the globe, using 715 images with a Saltire in the centre of the frame, taken between St Andrew's Day 2011 and Burns Night 2012. Scotland the World Over was nominated for the prestigious "Best Digital Campaign" at Scotland's PRide Awards on December 6th 2012.
This rocks. Very nice work Scotland.org. Thank you. Watch it. Show it at your Burns Suppers!
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Hang On - The New COSCA Website Is Coming Soon!
|  The digital reindeer at COSCA are busily concocting a brand new website for our exciting and growing organization. We aren't quite ready yet, but when we are, you will be the first to know. We can't wait to share our new site with you all. You will find fun, new and informative pages and lots of great pictures and always a laugh or two.
So stay tuned and never, never, never give up. We'll be online shortly. |
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About COSCA
Council Of Scottish Clans & Associations
COSCA was founded in 1976 by Dr. Herbert MacNeil and others for the purpose of bringing Scottish clan societies together. The initial meeting was held at the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games in Linville, NC and the organization continues to honor this tradition by gathering on the mountain annually. Today COSCA welcomes all kinds of Scottish American organizations as well as interested individuals.
COSCA's primary purpose is to preserve and promote the customs, traditions, and heritage of the Scottish people. We currently serve as a clearing house for Scottish American activities throughout the US. Through our many member clans and organizations, COSCA represents thousands of American Scots across the nation in furtherance of our mission. COSCA is also an active participant in The Scottish Coalition USA, a collective of several organizations united to serve the Scottish-American community through research, long-term planning, and promotion of Scottish heritage.
Council of Scottish Clans & Associations
P. O. Box 427 Pinehurst NC 28370
coscainfo@gmail.com
www.cosca.net
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