Changing Breeds Coordinator Election 2011

[Founder]

In no particular order, here are the candidates' applications:

Your Full Name – Rebecca Irene Cook
Your email address – tanimakia@yahoo.com
Home chronicle (Location and Chronicle name, please no abbreviations) – Providence
RI, Hidden Flame/Dark Rhodes
Position sought – Changing Breed Coordinator

References
Brian Goudie – current Changing Breed Coordinator

Games Supporting:
Hidden Flame – Rhode Island
Rage Across the Cape – Cape Cod
Brandywine Garou – Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia Garou - Philadelphia, PA
Lux Tenebras – Northern, CA
River of Shadows – Amador, CA

Your OWbN, Gaming, and Administrative Background
Gaming & OWBN
I started gaming playing D&D in 1997 and joined my first LARP in 1998. The LARP
I joined was a Vampire game that eventually split into the two games that became
Sacramento by Night and Stockton by Night. I continued to play on and off at both of
those games, as well as Always Comes Evening (San Francisco, CA) and Wasting the
Dawn (Oakland, CA) until 2004, when my husband was transferred to the Groton, CT
Submarine Base and we moved across the country.

I joined Hidden Flame after my first Non-Klaive in September of 2004. Over the last
6 years I have been a player, Narrator, AST, and HST. I have been Uktena TN/Sub-
Coord for the last three years and Assistant Changing Breed Coord since June of this
year. During that time I have prepared the Uktena packet, which was passed, and have
worked on an update for the packet that will be ready shortly after elections as well as
assisting with an update of the Wendigo packet. I am currently working on a resource
guide for Auspice gifts. With much assistance from Marc Berman, currently HST of
Rage Across the Cape, at the time my AST, I prepared the Wyrm Drug plot that was
passed by Council in 2008. I ran the semi-finale with Brian Goudie at Non-Klaive this
year, wherein our intrepid heroes discovered that they did not bring enough backup and
will be returning to finish, probably at Beltane 2011.

Administrative Background
I grew up in a law office. Both of my parents are attorneys and I started working for
them when I was five years old, stamping and sealing envelopes for a penny each. While
I was in high school I worked for them doing database management and entry as well
as backup reception work. After high school I worked for them as a Bookkeeper and
Administrative Assistant, doing everything from hiring and training staff to drafting legal
briefs, to managing the office computer network. I took over as Office Manager in 1999
and remained in that position until I married my husband and moved to Connecticut in
2004.

In Connecticut I worked as Technical Support for a multi-site medical provider from
2004 to 2007. During that time I completed an Associates degree in Computer Science.
I transferred to University of Connecticut in 2008 where I am pursuing a Bachelors
degree in History with a Minor in Middle Eastern Studies, which I will complete in May
2011 with Honors certification (requiring a thesis paper and extra course work). I am co-
currently working on a Masters degree in Judaic Studies, which I will complete in May
2012. I have maintained Honors status in this program while being involved extensively
with GOWbN and managing a family including multiple teenaged foster children.

Personal Statement
The last few years have been an interesting and frequently trying time for the Garou
portion of OWbN. I feel we have been starting to come into our own as part of the Org as
we have more new games joining, including games on the West Coast and, recently, even
one in Brazil. At the same time we have dealt with the same issues as the rest of the Org
with White Wolf’s changing attitudes and requirements which we have struggled to meet.
We have recently started facing issues with how to handle satellite games. We have faced
and are still facing the largest continuous issue that any organization of LARPs must
face, how to coordinate a shared world while not losing the individual flavor that brings
our players back game after game.

As first a Storyteller, then as part of Brian’s team, I have watched these issues unfold
and have participated in coming up with some of the solutions. The Uktena packet I
produced in 2008, using the model provided by Sarah Klien, was part of the first group of
Garou packets updated to match White Wolf’s standards after issues forced us to pull all
packets down and re-work them into compliance. I have been involved in several major
Org plots, both as a player and an ST. And, despite all the issues that are undeniably
there waiting to be dealt with, overall I have been happy with what I have seen and been
part of. I have made friendships that will surely outlast games. I have witnessed scenes
that are still talked about years later. I have seen a group of friends all intent on making
something bigger than any one of us or even any one of our games.

I believe we are right now in a time of change. Garou in OWBN has gone from being a
small handful of games to approximately ten percent of the games in the Org. We now
have a major event for each season, each held in a different part of the U.S., as well as
numerous mini-events all over the country. We have PCs that have been in play for ten
years or more, and we are growing all the time. We also have begun to form necessary
and vital relationships with the Vampire and other genre games in the org, relationships
that need to continue and grow.

With change comes rough edges, growing pains. This last year we have seen the results
of some of these growing pains, seen places where we need improvement. I believe that
I can help some of these improvements come into being. I want to work on finding a
way to standardize the status of satellite games in a way that encourages games to try out

new genres but with a standardize path for those satellite games to become Org games
in their own right and with clear accountability during their transition periods. I want
to see through the passage of the last few packets that our team, under Brian, has been
working hard to create and revise now that White Wolf has finally given the standards we
are using approval. I want to work with the STs of all of our Garou games to find a way
to put aside past regional prejudices and issues so that we can work together to make the
Org better.

We have also recently noticed an issue with player held national positions being held by
PCs that are shelved. While the preference should always be for these positions to be held
by PCs, a system needs to be put in place so that if the PC holding the position is shelved
it can revert to national control until a replacement can be named.

None of the things I want can be done alone. In the past, the Garou Coord team has
been set up as a mirror to the way the Camarilla and Sabbat parts of the Org operate,
with one person leading, a couple of direct assistants, and then one person assigned to
each tribe. While this structure works well for the larger parts of the Org where there are
enough people to provide every position with ample coverage, I am no longer convinced
that it is the best structure for the Garou portion of the Org while we are in this stage
of our growth. If I am elected, the first thing I will be doing is asking for ideas on how
to structure a new team that meets the needs we have now and for everyone who is
interested in contributing to a team to tell me what they are best at. I have a few ideas on
how I might structure a new team, but I do not believe it is appropriate to finalize plans
on a structure before I know what skills and time people are willing and able to bring to
the table.

Finally, in order to move forward I believe that we need some continuity. In the past
when someone new has been elected to the position of Garou Coord there has all to
frequently been angry words and hurt feelings that have prevented smooth transitions.
This is something that I will do everything in my power to avoid. I respect everything
Brian has done for the Org and if I am elected he will remain a key member of my team.
Regardless of who else chooses to run and who is ultimately elected, I do not believe
there is anyone in this Org that I am not prepared to work with. In the end what matters to
me is that the Garou portion of this Org continues to grow stronger and better, not who’s
name success becomes attached to.

Thank you for taking the time to review my application. If there are any questions please
email me directly at tanimakia@yahoo.com as I am not currently on Council list.

[Founder]

Leonard "Lee" Helding
lhelding@gmail.com
Chicago: New Moon Rising
Chicago: New Moon Rising (Chicago, IL)
Gary: Forged in Blood (Gary, IN)
Shadows of the Jewel (Willow Springs, IL)
City of Springs (Springfield, MA)
Sins in the Valley (Winchester, VA)
Lux Tenbras (Auburn, CA)
River of Shadows (Amador, CA)

History:
I first joined One World By Night in 2003, as a player in The Chaos
Within (Decatur, IL). Despite being new to the rules and systems of
LARP, I quickly mastered the basics, and by 2006, was regularly
attending Chicago: Dark Requiem, where I eventually took the position of
Prince. In that same year, I joined Chicago: New Moon Rising, and
within one year, had become fluent enough in the genre to assume
Alpha-ship of the Sept.

In the four years since then, I have portrayed PCs in multiple chronicles
spanning a range of genres, becoming well versed in Vampire (Camarilla,
Sabbat, Anarch), Werewolf (Western Concordiate, Hengeyokai, Ronin,
Fera/Changing Breeds), and Mage (Traditions and Technocracy) and the
ways in which the differing creature types and societies work together
to create and enhance the World of Darkness. Having had the opportunity
to visit multiple chronicles across the country, including Capitol
Rage, Wyld Prophets, Under an Eerie Moon, Brandywine: Garou on the
Rocks, Reclamation: Philly Garou, Gary: Forged in Blood, Shadows of the
Jewel, Long Night, and Capitol City Cauldron; as well as having played
in two other World of Darkness organizations—The Garou Nation and
Ashes--I have a comfortable familiarity with a variety of house rules,
genre interpretations, storytelling styles, and governance systems, as
well as experience in negotiating the pitfalls that comes from vastly
different viewpoints on each. All of these experiences have served both
to enrich my experience as a role player, and to develop my skills as
AST of Chicago: New Moon Rising.

During my three year tenure on the staff of C:NMR, I have, in addition to
running two games per month, worked as an ST and administrator on three
event games: Midwinter 2010, the Philadelphia Winter Event 2010, and
C:NMR Summer Event 2009. I was one of the developing minds behind the
creation of the People’s Republic of Gaia. Additionally, between 2007
and 2010, I have served on the staffs of Chicago: Growing Darkness (an
independent Sabbat LARP), started Chicago: Shadow Rising (an independent
Sabbat LARP running since July of 2009, and the founding HST of
Blackspear (a Fera LARP running since April of 2010, and planning to
apply to OWbN following elections this year).

Personal Statement:

As a player, a Storyteller, and an Administrator; I strongly believe that
one should always endeavor to help any game they are a part of grow into
something more than it was at the beginning. This can occur through
encouraging costuming, praising excellent roleplay, providing
interesting and challenging plotlines which promote character and
chronicle development, and helping players learn more about the game
they are participating in. Even from an Administrative standpoint;
ensuring that books and sheets are clean, organized, and consistent
allows for fair play and proper record keeping in accordance to the
Organization’s Bylaws. These are things I have brought to the
Chronicles I have been on Staff for in the past. These are the ways I
have helped said Chronicles to grow and become more, better if you will,
than they were when I first joined them.

With my application to the position of the Changing Breeds Coordinator; I
would like to bring these standards and practices to the Changing Breeds
Genre as a whole. I would like to help the Office of CBC grow and
become more with my history added to the already long existence of One
World by Night. I intend to accomplish this through the appointment of a
strong team of Sub-Coordinators, and also by encouraging individual
Chronicles to work together to better define the world in which they not
only play in, but are supposed to share with each other. In addition, I
would like to see OWbN as a whole start to focus more on growth; both
in the form of meta-plot development, and in actual players and
chronicles.

With over a dozen Chronicles either belonging to the Garou Genre, or with
membership therein, it becomes increasingly important that the world
which the players experience is one rich with Characters and Plot. This
occurs only if the Storytellers and Coordinator’s Office work in tandem
in order to ensure than the “World” is richly detailed and creatively
varied; in this way, everyone has a chance to develop and experience the
best the World of Darkness has to offer. The regular maintenance and
upkeep of the packets is one small step in this direction. Each year
brings forth new players and new characters coming to or falling from
greatness, plotlines that cause monumental changes to individual Septs
or even whole areas; and all of this reduces the relevance of the old
packets. For the members of OWbN to be kept informed, we must provide
them with the knowledge necessary to handle situations appropriately;
this is relevant on an In Character level for Player Character
interaction with each other and the Meta-Plot of our shared universe,
and also Out of Character for the benefit of Storytellers all across the
Organization.

This is one small thing that I share with you as an example of my plans for
the upcoming year, if I do get elected as the Changing Breeds
Coordinator. I believe that I can do this job justice and give it the
respect and responsibility that it is due. I have excellent
organizational skills; I have a very long history with the Organization,
both Werewolf and Vampire, and am very familiar with the
responsibilities due to a Coordinator Office; and I have a desire to
bring creative and developing Plots to the Changing Breeds Games all
over. My hope is that one year from now I will be able to look at what
has been accomplished and see that the Garou side of One World by night
has changed, has grown, and has become more than it is today.

[Founder]

If there are questions you would like to see us ask of the candidates, please post them here. We will forward them along accordingly and get back to you. We are considering the option of a roundtable discussion next game which can include a talk about candidates for a few positions, but namely this one.

[Sponsored content]