Pagan Community Notes is a series focused on news originating from within the Pagan community. Reinforcing the idea that what happens to and within our organizations, groups, and events is news, and news-worthy. My hope is that more individuals, especially those working within Pagan organizations, get into the habit of sharing their news with the world. So let’s get started!

 Solar Cross Temple Organizes For Oklahoma: In the wake of the massive and deadly tornado that struck Oklahoma on Monday, the pan-Pagan/Magickal organization Solar Cross Temple is partnering with a local Pagan and a consortium of activist organizations to raise money for those affected.

Debris covers the ground in Moore, Oklahoma. Photograph by Brett Deering/Getty.

“Solar Cross Temple is organizing to help Oklahoma. We are working with Marcia Carter Tillison, a Pagan in Norman OK, and with OpOK, a consortium of Occupy, Food Not Bombs and other activist groups working together to get supplies and help with on the ground clean up efforts in Moore. Marcia has on the ground experience in disaster relief from her work in Haiti and is someone I trust.

OpOK needs supplies to help people keep the rains that have followed the tornado off of what goods they have. They need supplies to help with clean up and salvage. To this end, Solar Cross is now taking donations for this project.”

You can find more information about donating, and what the needs are, at T. Thorn Coyle’s blog. If you know of other Pagan-initiated efforts to help Oklahoma, please let us know in the comments. May all those affected find safety, shelter, and the means to rebuild.

Looking for Pagan Responses to the UK Census: Vivianne Crowley, a Jungian psychologist, and faculty at Cherry Hill Seminary, has been invited to present a paper on Pagan responses to the 2011 UK census, which released religious data on modern Pagans in December of last year. Crowley is hoping to get collect as many UK Pagan responses via an online survey form in order to look at why there is a disparity between actual census counts and educated estimates that are often far larger.

Vivianne Crowley

“I’ve been invited by the British Sociological Association’s Sociology of Religion group to give a paper next month on Pagan responses to the UK Census 2011. There is a big difference of course between the survey numbers and those quote for number of Pagans in the UK and I’m trying to tease out some of the reasons. One might be that numbers have been inflated of course. The other might be that Pagans for various reasons were under-reported. I wonder if you’d be kind enough, if you completed the Census, to answer the survey.”

You can find the survey link, here. A responses are anonymous. This could be important work, as many people have guessed the number of Pagans in the UK to be in the hundreds of thousands, while the 2011 census data placed modern Pagans at around 80,000 (which is a large increase from 2001, but not near the estimates). So if you’ve taken the UK census in 2011 and you’re a Pagan, please help out.

Mythic Pagan Band Hits Fundraising Goal: The American mythic-Pagan band Woodland announced yesterday that they successfully raised their $10,000 dollar Kickstarter goal to fund the completion of the band’s upcoming 3rd album “Secrets Told.”

Woodland Co-Founders, Emilio and Kelly Miller-Lopez

“Our first CD since SEASONS IN ELFLAND: SHADOWS in 2010, SECRETS TOLD delves deep into new regions of inspiration and ancient landscapes of legend. Rich with romantic Mediterranean and classical themes and imbued with the mythos and folklore of Southern Europe, our music and lyrical poetry have incarnated within new songs and new instrumentation. The music of SECRETS TOLD is exotic and evocative, rhythmic and romantic, sensual and mysterious.”

The new album is due out on July 26th, and a new incarnation of the lineup featuring acclaimed ethereal cellist Adam Hurst and former Cirque du Soleil drummer, Jarrod Kaplan will be a headlining performer at the 2013 Faerieworlds Festival this Summer. There’s still about a week left in the fundraising drive, and the band says they’ll introduce stretch funding goals for those who donate, so don’t miss out! Check out the promo trailer for the fundraiser/new album, here.

In Other Pagan Community News:

• Kathy Swords-Capen and James P. Walley review the Houston Pagan Conference that took place in Houston, Texas on May 18th (and which I reported on previously). Quote: “I was fortunate enough to attend this event, and pleased to be asked to review it.  If this kind of amazing event can be put on by a group of ten people, what kind of event would it be if we had more leaders in the Houston pagan community step up and take part, take action?”
• Erynn Rowan Laurie, author of “A Circle of Stones,” is a finalist in the poetry category of the Bi Writers Association Bi Book Awards. Laurie will be traveling to New York for the ceremony in June where she will read a selection from her nominated poetry collection “Fireflies at Absolute Zero.” Congratulations, and good luck! 
• Estelle Daniels’ interviews with Pagan elders continues at PNC-Minnesota, this time with Rick of Rick’s Cafe, a fixture at many midwest Pagan festivals. Quote: “I started going to Pagan festivals in ’89—went to at least one festival every year since then in Wisconsin—some years two. Then I’ve attended two or three more every year in my local area, in Missouri. The ones in Missouri are more weekend get-togethers run by college students. So that’s at least 23 week long festivals, and 20-25 more for weekend festivals. Then I have also been to many private festivals with friends, these were a meeting of old friends who are magickally inclined. Maybe 8 or 10 of us—close friends getting together to camp and spend time. Many many festivals.”
• At PaganSquare, Byron Ballard discusses the difference between a Pagan conference and a Pagan festival. Quote: “I loved it. I love to go to conferences and read papers that no one will seriously judge and talk to smart people about this wyrd thing we call religion.  It makes me happy. It challenges me mentally. It’s a good thing. But those festivals…they are good things, too.”
•  The Centre For Pagan Studies‘ campaign to raise funds for a blue memorial plaque at the home of Doreen Valiente has been successful, and the commemoration ceremony will take place on June 21st. Quote: “At midday on the Summer Solstice, supporters and guests will meet at Brighton’s Old Steine for an open ritual celebrating both the solstice and the life of Valiente. The Pentacle Drummers will then lead a procession to Tyson Place, where there will be live music from Beck Sian and Paul Mitchell, and dancing by the Hunter’s Moon Morris and Nina McGhee.”

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!