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For the Barony of All Vermont,
‘Tis Always the Season to Give!

BY KRIS ROWLEY

season of giving and sharing. Whether the

giving is to family and friends or a favorite
charity, we all seem to open our hearts and our
pocketbooks at this time of year.

However, there are some organizations that
consider giving to be a year—round activity.

One such organization is the Barony of All Ver-
mont, a nonprofit organization that raises money
for other nonprofit organizations in Vermont and
some surrounding counties of New Hampshire.
The B_arony supports diversity in membership;
welcoming gay, lesbian, straight, bi and transgen-
der individuals. We are a part of an international
organization called the Imperial Court System
(ICS) that includes groups from all across Canada,
the United States, and Mexico. The court system
has been in existence for more than 40 years, and
has raised several hundred thousand dollars to
give to nonprofit organizations that, in turn, help
individual communities. 7

The public side of the organization is based on
“camp fun.” Monarchs are voted in by the member-
ship and reign for one year. Depending on whether a
group is an Imperial Court or a Barony, the Monarch
titles are Empress and Emperor, or Baroness and
Baron, respectively. The members start out as Lords
and Ladies, and progress up the ladder according to
their contributions of time and effort. Each rank has
a set of requirements‘ that needs to be met to achieve
the rank. Members may be as active as they choose
to be. It is all in fun. g

The organizations we choose as beneficiaries
are as diverse as our membership, from children-
related organizations to those serving people
living with HIV/AIDS and breast cancer. Our pri-
mary purpose is to raise money. Our secondary
purpose is to demonstrate to the general public
that diversity is not something to fear. Most of our
fundraising is done ‘by producing drag shows.

There are usually three formal events a year.
The biggest event is our Adornment, which is held
in August. In this event, the reigning Monarch(s)
step down and celebrate their reign with other
court members from all across the country. The
new Monarch(s) are presented and crowned at
the end of the evening to begin their yearlong
reign.

The Monar_ch’s Ball, another formal event,
was held in September at the Holiday Inn in Rut-
land, hosted by Baron VI, His Most Regal High-
ness Tantalus. The beneficiary for this event
was SafeSpace, a domestic violence prevention
organization based in Burlington. It was a gala
evening with much glitter and glam. There were
drag queens and kings from Connecticut, Massa-
chusetts, Rhode Island, New York and Vermont in
attendance. There was a silent auction_ that ran
the entire evening, a Chinese auction, and a 50/50
rajfle. There was also a surprise “marriage” pro-
posal that all were witness to! One never knows
what may happen at an event. By the end of the
evening, the Barony had raised enough money to
give Safespace $983.34. «

T he Holiday Season is upon us. It is the

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Baron I & ll of VT, Kristoff and Empress 13 of NYC, Panzi

The next fundraiser was far less formal and a
“frightful” evening! The Monsters Ball 11 was held
at the American Legion Hall in White River Junc-
tion at the end of October. The beneficiary for this
event was the Rutland Humane Society. As may
be noted, the Barony tries to take care of ALL
members of our community, even the four-legged
ones. There was a costume contest that was de-
cided by contestants trying to coax the audience
members to put dollar bills in their trick or treat
bag. By the end of a fun-filled evening of horror, a
total of $732.40 had been raised for the Humane
Society. '

The Barony keeps 20 percent of the money
raised from each event to cover operating expens-
es such as promotion, advertising, printing of fly-
ers and so on. Individual‘ members do not receive
any money for what they do. So, when you come
to a Barony event, you can be sure that any money
you donate goes directly to the beneficiary.

On behalf of the members of the Barony of All
Vermont, we wish everyone a very safe, healthy and
happy Holiday Season! V

a The Barony of All Vermont will host a Leather

and Lace show at the Holiday Inn in South
Burlington on January 13, 2007. Tickets are $10
at the door.

5 The Barony of All Vermont is looking for *

new members! If what you have read sounds
like fun and something you would like to
be involved with, please Contact us at www.
baronyofallvermontorg or Kris at cro1025261@
ao|.com. To find out more about the Imperial
Court System go to www.impcourt.org.

5 Kris Rowley is President, Board of Directors of '

the Barony of All Vermont, and Baron I and ll.
To learn more, see www.baronyofallvermont.
org.

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