HWYL - Welsh National Gymanfa Ganu Association

WINTER 2011-2012 VOL 22, NO.2
NAFOW 2012: SCRANTON, PA
Featuring the 81 st National Gymanfa Ganu, the North
American Festival of Wales will be held August 30
through September 3 at the Hilton Scranton & Convention
Center, 100 Adams Ave., Scranton, Pennsylvania.
FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS
The OPENING CONCERT, on Thursday evening, will
feature famous Welsh folk singer and past president of
Plaid Cymry, Dafydd Iwan.
The GRAND BANQUET, Friday
evening, co-sponsored by the
National Welsh-American Foundation,
will honor recipients of the
NWAF Heritage Medallion. Entertainment
will be provided by internationally-acclaimed
Welsh singer,
Iris Williams, accompanied by piano,
drums and string bass.
The GRAND CONCERT, Saturday
evening, will be held at nearby
Elm Park Methodist Church,
Côr Godre’r Garth, a mixed-voice
choir from Pontypridd performing.
The concert will feature the North
American premiere of Requiem, an
original work by conductor Eilir
Owen Griffiths.
SEMINARS, during the day on Friday and Saturday,
will feature cultural topics, language classes, Welsh films
and special events.
The WORSHIP SERVICE on Sunday morning will
include Scripture reading, hymn singing and preaching in
both Welsh and English.
The 81 st NATIONAL GYMANFA GANU, centerpiece
of the festival with hymn singing in Welsh and English,
will be held in two sessions Sunday afternoon and evening
at the Elm Park Methodist Church. Gareth Hughes Jones
from Caernarfon will conduct.
For OPEN MIC NIGHT, Friday evening, Dafydd Iwan
will be Master of Ceremonies.
PUB NIGHT will take place on Saturday.
Late-night INFORMAL SINGING, a highlight of these
festivals, will be held each evening following the scheduled
events.
The TEA ROOM is open daily, offering Welsh tea and
inFAMOUS Welsh cakes and a chance to socialize with
old friends and meet new ones.
The MARKETPLACE, open daily, includes vendors
from Wales and across North America, selling Welsh and
WELSH NORTH AMERICAN ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER
other Celtic items: clothing, jewelry, books, music, tours,
educational packages and the like.
The 2012 NAFOW EISTEDDFOD offers competitions
in singing and recitation. The David G. Morris Memorial
Award winner competes at the National Eisteddfod in
Wales the following year. Obtain Eisteddfod entry forms on
line at www.nafow.org or by contacting WNAA’s Executive
Secretary at IHQ@theWNAA.org, at 607-279-7402 or
at P O Box 1054, Trumansburg, NY 14886.
Experience America’s first electrified
city with TOURS by coach or
on foot. Visit the Steamtown
National Historic Site, descend 300
feet into the Lackawanna Coal Mine
and more. Look for tour information
and sign-up in the Registration
Materials.
RESERVE NOW!
Group rate for singles, doubles,
triples or quads, $119/night, plus
taxes. Register by phone: 1-800-
445-8667 (1-800- HILTONS) and
provide the hotel name, HILTON
SCRANTON, and the group name,
NORTH AMERICAN FESTIVAL
OF WALES, or the group code,
WALES, for the NAFOW block.
Register soon! The block cut-off date is August 8, 2012, or
whenever the block is sold out.
The overflow hotel is the historic Radisson Lackawanna
Station Hotel across the street from the Hilton. The
procedure for registering at the Radisson will be described
in the Spring issue of HWYL.
For on-line booking, go to www.NAFOW.org.
When you stay at the Festival hotel, you will be where
the “action” is, and you will be helping WNAA meet its
contractual obligation to fill the room block reserved for
all Festival attendees. If you have any difficulty with reservations
at either hotel, contact president@theWNAA.org
for assistance.
REGISTRATION MATERIALS for NAFOW will be
available on line SOON at www.NAFOW.org and will
be sent to WNAA members who receive HWYL by
Standard Mail.
EISTEDDFOD ENTRY FORMS are available on line
at www.nafow.org or from WNAA International
Headquarters, P O Box 1054, Trumansburg, NY 14886
phone 1-607-279-7402, email IHQ@theWNAA.org

WINTER 2011-2012 HWYL – PAGE 2 VOL 22. NO. 2
WNAA BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2011-2012
President: Hywel Davies, Maryland
Vice President: Robert Roser, Virginia
Secretary: Judith Brougham, Kansas
Treasurer: David R. Allen, New York
Past President: AdaMae Lewis, Iowa
US EAST US WEST
Kim Corbin, Wisconsin Susanna Adkins, California
Richard Donohoe, South Will L. Fanning, California
Carolina Janet Figini, Oregon
Lincoln Hartford, Wisconsin Kay Gavin, Minnesota
George Horwatt, Gerri Baker Parry,
Pennsylvania Washington
Barbara Jones, Illinois Ceri Shaw, Oregon
Jeanne Jones Jindra, Ohio CANADA
Pat Kwasigroch, Illinois Myfanwy Bajaj, Ontario
Barbara Leedy, Michigan Gaabriel Beckett, Oregon
Nancy E. Wright, New York Beth Phillips Brown,
WALES California
Bryan Jones, Conwy Torry Watkins, New Jersey
Lezlie Wood, Ontario
BOARD ASSISTANTS: Mona Everett, Wisconsin; Beth
Landmesser, Pennsylvania; Joan Owen Mandry, Ohio;
Mary Mergenthal, Minnesota; Alan Upshall, Washington
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY: Megan Williams
P O Box 1054, Trumansburg, NY 14886, Ph. 607-279-7402
Email IHQ@theWNAA.org
MISSION
The Welsh North American Association strives to preserve,
develop and promote our Welsh cultural heritage and
traditions, including the Welsh National Gymanfa Ganu, and
to do all things necessary and appropriate to accomplish
these goals
HWYL is published quarterly by the
Welsh North American Association.
Direct comments or inquiries to editor@theWNAA.org
WNAA NAMES NEW
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY
The Welsh North American Association, formerly
WNGGA, has named Dr. Megan Williams its new Executive
Secretary. Dr. Williams will replace Dr. Stacy Evans
who is retiring. Dr. Williams will be not only the youngest
person to serve in that capacity but also the first woman to
assume that responsibility. Dr. Williams was born in New
York City and baptized at the Welsh Congregational
Church of New York. She is the daughter of David and
Janet Allen. Janet is a native of New Tredegar, South
Wales.
Dr. Williams received her BA from SUNY Geneseo and
holds both an MA and PhD from the University of Bangor
in North Wales. She is married to Siôn Williams who is a
native of Gwynedd. They
have two sons, Dafydd and
Dylan. Megan and Siôn
were married in Criccieth
where they lived until two
years ago when they
emigrated to Trumansburg,
New York. Siôn
works as an associate for
Ochs Consulting, LLC, an
agricultural seed sales and
consulting business.
As is the custom for
WNAA, the headquarters
of the Association follows
the Executive Secretary Dr. Megan Williams
and, early in 2012, it was relocated from Granville,
Ohio, to Trumansburg, New York.
AdaMae Lewis, immediate Past President of WNAA,
chaired the Selection Committee that unanimously recommended
Dr. Williams to the Board. She said the Association
was fortunate to have a number of extremely well
qualified candidates apply for the job. The committee felt
that Dr. Williams had a unique set of qualifications that is
a perfect match for WNAA. Dr. Williams’ last job in
Wales was at the Celtic Royal Hotel in Caernarfon where
she was the events and conference coordinator. She has
also organized two tours of Wales for Welsh Americans.
Her PhD dissertation studied the economic impact of the
Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways on Gwynedd. As
part of her studies, Dr. Williams spent a great deal of time
at the railway which depends heavily on volunteer labor
for its operations. WNAA also depends largely on
volunteers for its success. Dr. Evans will work with Dr.
Williams for the first quarter of 2012, and then Dr.
Williams will assume responsibility for the administrative
work of the Association.
Hywel Davies, President of WNAA, said that the Association
is truly fortunate to find someone of Dr. Williams’
caliber to manage its headquarters. The 2012 North American
Festival of Wales will be held in Scranton, PA, and
promises to be a truly important festival. Having lived in
North Wales for seven years and having learned Welsh as
a child, Megan can converse easily in Welsh. This will
enhance the liaison between the Festival and the many
Welsh people who come from Wales every year.
Dr. Williams told Hwyl that she is excited about her
new position. She has been a full-time mom for the past
several years and was beginning to look for a part-time
position. This opportunity will combine her love of
working with people with her passion for Wales and
Welsh culture. She said she looks forward to working with
the members of the WNAA Board and helping to make
Scranton one of the greatest festivals in the Association’s
history. �

WINTER 2011-2012 HWYL – PAGE 3 VOL 22. NO. 2
DAFYDD IWAN RETURNS!
In 2012, Dafydd Iwan celebrates
50 years as a singer, and
he will appear August 30 at the
Opening Concert of the Scranton
NAFOW as part of his tour
to mark the occasion. Dafydd
has been at the forefront of the
Welsh music and political
scene since the heady days of
the 60s which saw the resurgence
of the Welsh language
and Welsh culture generally. His songs have told the
story of this resurgence, as well as being a vital part
of it, but Dafydd’s strength as a singer-songwriter is
that he tells this story with wit and humor as well as
with great feeling and passion. And that passion
remains unabated.
Dafydd was born in Carmarthenshire, one of four
brothers, and now lives with his wife Bethan and
youngest sons Caio and Celt near Caernarfon. He is a
director of SAIN, the leading Welsh record company
which he co-founded in 1969. He has composed
around 300 songs, and all his recorded tracks will be
released as a box-set in 2012.
He is a Fellow of both Bangor and Aberystwyth
Universities, and was awarded a Doctorate by the
University of Wales and made an honorary member
of the Gorsedd of Bards for his services to the Welsh
language and music in Wales. He was President of
Plaid Cymru from 2003 to 2010.�
NAFOW ACCOMPANISTS
SELECTED
During the fall of 2011, a number of applicants for the
position of NAFOW Accompanist were evaluated by a
committee composed of Alan Upshall, Mari Morgan,
Nancy Wright and Alan Thomas (the former NAFOW
Accompanist.) During the evaluation process, the
candidates were notified that WNAA was interested in
forming a pool of accompanists to participate in the
NAFOW on a rotating basis to be determined. Three candidates
were selected who, along with Alan Thomas, will
form a pool of four. All four have agreed to the arrangement.
In addition to Alan, who hails from Ottawa, Ontario, the
accompanists are Mary Ellen Clinard of Middletown,
Ohio, David Enlow of New York City, and Steve Jensen
of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Look for the announcement of
the 2012 NAFOW Accompanist in future editions of
HWYL.
eHWYL
If you received a print version of HWYL, that means
we don’t have your email address. If you do not have
email, you will continue to receive HWYL by mail, as
long as we can depend on the US Postal Service. If you
send your email address to IHQ@thewnaa.org you will
have access to the newsletter in a more timely fashion
and in glorious COLOR!!!
IRIS WILLIAMS WILL REGALE
GRAND BANQUET
Iris Williams has come a long way, but then she’s had to
make a longer journey than most of us. This does not only
mean the trip from her home in Wales to New York, but
life’s journey, which has taken her from a children’s
orphanage in Wales to an international career as a singer of
huge distinction.
Iris left school at fifteen to work in a glove factory in the
valleys of Wales, not exactly a flying start in life, but she
had a love which turned into a passion, which turned into a
career: music! Iris could sing, and she spent many hours
in Wales singing in church choirs. Eventually, with the
help of her music teacher, she achieved a scholarship to
the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama where she
returned in 1996 to be honored as a Fellow of the College.
Iris has appeared in several television specials and a
BBC-TV series and with many choirs and orchestras. She
has received many prestigious awards, including an OBE
(Order of the British Empire) from Queen Elizabeth II in
2004 for her contributions in the field of music and for her
service to charitable institutions around the world.
In 2006 Iris was admitted to the Gorsedd of Bards at the
National Eisteddfod, and in 2008 she was given the
William R Hopkins Award, the highest honor presented by
the St. David’s Society of New York, for her contributions
in the field of music and charitable work and for
helping to promote Wales in America.
In June 2009, Iris was one of the featured artists in the
two-week-long celebration of Wales in Washington, D.C.
In addition to two panel
discussions, one with then
First Minister Rhodri Morgan,
Iris performed a 90minute
concert in the Native
American Museum Theater of
the Smithsonian Institution.
On Friday, August 31, at the
Grand Banquet of the 2012
North American Festival of
Wales in Scranton, Iris Williams
will entertain, accompanied
by piano, string bass
and drums.�

WINTER 2011-2012 HWYL – PAGE 4 VOL 22. NO. 2
THE GRAND CONCERT: MIXED
VOICE CHOIR FROM PONTYPRIDD
For the first time since Chicago 2008, NAFOW will host
a mixed voice choir from South Wales, under the direction
of the same conductor, Eilir Owen Griffiths. Côr Godre’r
Garth was founded in 1974 with the aim of boosting the
Welsh language in an area which was rediscovering its
Welsh identity. Welsh speakers had moved to the
Pontypridd area from all parts of Wales, and the musically
minded of those came together under Wil Morus Jones’s
leadership.
The choir won first prize at the National Eisteddfod in its
first attempt at Carmarthen in 1974 and continues to enjoy
competing at the National Eisteddfod, winning first prize
in five of the last six years in the competition for choirs
with more than 45 voices.�
Conductor Eilir Owen Griffiths and accompanist Branwen Evans
Conductor Eilir Owen-Griffiths’ enthusiasm is contagious.
Eilir, who lives on the outskirts of Cardiff with his
wife and toddler son, has conducted Côr Godre’r Garth
since 2002. He is a Music Tutor and Cultural Organizer at
the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, Carmarthen.
He is also the Artistic Director of the Trinity St. David
Arts Festival, which has the Stuart Burrows International
Voice Award as its main event.
Eilir has established himself as one of Wales’ most
dynamic conductors and has won many of the top
competition prizes with his choirs, Côr CF1, which
electrified the concert audience in Chicago, Côr Godre’r
Garth and Côr y Drindod Dewi Sant.
Last June his three choirs united to perform the
première of his exciting Requiem, with Bryn Terfel and
Wynne Evans as soloists. At NAFOW 2012, Requiem will
be presented for the first time to an American audience,
appropriately, in Scranton’s Elm Park Methodist Church
near the Festival hotels. The choir will also present special
music at both sessions of the 81 st Welsh National Gymanfa
Ganu at Elm Park Methodist Church.�
GYMANFA GANU CONDUCTOR
Gareth Hughes Jones, a core staff
member at Welsh Heritage Week
nearly every year since 1989, will
conduct both sessions of the 81 st
Welsh National Gymanfa Ganu
Sunday afternoon and evening at the
Scranton Festival. Gareth is an accomplished
musician of considerable
repute, who conducted the
acclaimed Côr Meibion Caernarfon
(Caernarfon Male Choir) for many Gareth Hughes Jones
years, appearing with them at the
1988 National Gymanfa Ganu in Baltimore. A former
producer for SAIN Records and a school music teacher he
is currently Administrator of the William Mathias College
of Music.�

WINTER 2011-2012 HWYL – PAGE 5 VOL 22. NO. 1
SCRANTON SEMINARS
The seminars shown here will be rounded out by perennial
favorites: Welsh Language classes, Ysgol Gân,
Welsh folk dancing and Tax Considerations.
DR. BILL JONES SEMINARS
1. Finding the Forgotten Margaret Evans Roberts
(1833-1921): Pioneer Welsh-American writer and women's
rights campaigner
Entirely forgotten today, Carmarthenshire-born Margaret
Evans Roberts was widely regarded as one of the most
gifted Welsh language writers of either sex in America and
Wales in her time. A lecturer, writer, phrenologist, women’s
rights and temperance campaigner, she came to the
U.S. in 1862 and lived for various
periods in Iowa and Scranton before
she returned to Wales in the final years
of her life. Dr. Jones will talk about
Margaret E. Roberts’ life and writings
and why he thinks this pioneering
Welsh-American woman deserves
greater recognition in the history of
Wales and the U.S.
2. “The Largest Real Welsh Community in the
World?” The Welsh in Scranton, Pennsylvania in the
late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries
In 1910, Scranton’s Welsh-American newspaper The
Druid insisted that the forthcoming investiture of the
Prince of Wales in 1911 ought to be held not in Cardiff or
Caernarfon but in Scranton itself. “We are the largest real
Welsh community in the World,” it said. Dr. Jones, the
author of Wales and America: Scranton and the Welsh will
talk about “Welsh” Scranton during its heyday and, in
particular, Welsh involvement in the anthracite industry,
the flourishing Welsh-language cultural and religious life
that first characterized the area and the processes of
cultural and linguistic change that followed.
Dr. Bill Jones is a Reader in History at the School of
History, Archaeology and Religion at Cardiff University
where he teaches modern Welsh, British and Migration
History, in English and Welsh. He is also Co-Director of
the Cardiff Centre for Welsh American Studies.�
DARRIS WILLIAMS SEMINARS
1. David Thomas & the Howell Family of Gellilwca
Fawr-Begin Tracing your Family History
A common surname should not prevent you from investigating
your family history. Come learn basic principles
and records for discovering your own family history in
Wales and the United States.
2. Welsh Family History Sources Online
2012 may be the greatest year yet for publishing Welsh
historical records online. Learn what has been indexed and
published online and what to expect in the future.
3. Touring Wales Online: 18 th – 19 th
Century Travel Accounts
Understanding the context that your
ancestor lived in will guide you to a
better understanding of what has made
your family who they are. Learn how to
locate travel accounts of early tourists to
Wales for insight into how our ancestors
lived.
4. Get Free Help with your Family History
Many resources provide free access to records and
guidance on where to look next for information about your
ancestry. This class will identify the free and nearly free
sources that will help you be successful.
Darris Williams has been a reference consultant in the
Family History Library and the Family History Department
at Brigham Young University, and he is currently a
community manager for FamilySearch.org.�
JAMES P. CASSARINO SEMINAR
The Welsh Hymn Singing Tradition and the Gymanfa
Ganu in America
An authority on Welsh-American
musical traditions, Prof. Cassarino
will talk about the hymn singing
traditions of the Welsh-American
community since the 18 th century
including singing schools, the establishment
of the cymanfa ganu movement
in the 19 th century and the eventual
creation of the WNGGA.
James P. Cassarino is Associate
Professor and Chair of the music department at Green
Mountain College in Poultney, VT, where he also serves
as director of the Welsh Heritage Program.�
GEORGE HORWATT SEMINAR
Revival: Heaven-Inspired Holiness or Man-Made Hoax
The Impact of the 1904-05 Revival on the Wyoming Valley
As Moses was attracted to a
burning bush to be called for an
inspired purpose, some two-dozen
centuries later in South Wales, 26year-old
Evan Roberts experienced
something similar. He called it “a
bonfire on ice” and 100,000 lives
throughout Wales were transformed
by the Holy Spirit revealed through
this simple man. George Horwatt
will present detailed accounts of
Roberts and the impact of his revival on the Welsh in
Pennsylvania.
George C. Horwatt, a past president of the St. David’s
Society of Wyoming Valley, is the founder and president
of The Welsh Cultural Endeavor of Northeastern Pennsylvania.�

WINTER 2011-2012 HWYL – PAGE 6 VOL 22, NO. 2
YEAR-END GIVING
WNAA is grateful to all who have
given generously to the Association
since the Cleveland Festival.
Memorials and donations will be
listed in the Scranton program book.
Don & Janet Briggs,
Tarpon Springs, FL
David R. Brush, Charlottesville, VA
Lynn Christopher, Springfield, VA
Evan E. Davis, Oak Hill, OH
Hywel M. Davis, Bethesda, MD
Richard C. Davis, Charlotte, NC
Robert Dean Davis, Morristown, TN
Stephen E. Davis, Nashville, TN
Ladelle C. Dilli, Fort Morgan, CO
Richard Donohoe, Charleston, SC
Will & Donna Fanning, Orange, CA
Mildred Fetherlin, Plano, TX
William T. Flemming, Rio, WI
Kathryn M. & Gwen A. Foulkes,
Rock Island, IL
Sandra Groom, Pomfret, CT
Charlotte P. Henderson,
Washington, ME
David Henkel, Santa Fe, NM
Dr. Selma Hughes, Richardson, TX
Byron L. John, St. Cloud, MN
Berwyn E. Jones, Lincoln, NE
David E. Jones, Washington, DC
Ellen L. Jones, Arlington, VA
Ellis Jones, Saint Peter, MN
Evan H. & Pamela J. Jones,
Columbus, OH
Lillian M. Jones, Westchester, IL
Betty Keeler, Peabody, MA
Esther E. Koblenz, Silver Spring, MD
Beth D. Landmesser, Bear Creek, PA
AdaMae Lewis. Ames. IA
Harry F. & Carolyn Lincoln,
North Bethesda, MD
Peter David Maynard, Reading, PA
Joyce McCullough, Conesville, IA
Nancy Jane Stapp McCurdy,
West Des Moines, IA
Ottawa Welsh Society, Ottawa, ON
Dr. Frieda Owen, Parkersburg, WV
Bonnie Lou Owens, Grand Island, NE
Jane Elaine Page, Eastlake, OH
Helen Jones Peterson, Mankato, MN
William B. Price, Centreville, MD
I. Mary Prytherch, Albany, NY
Doris Raudenbush, Newmarket, NH
Elaine J. Reichert, Glen Ellyn, IL
Edward Richards, Allentown, PA
Robert H. Roser, Jr., Stafford, VA
Mary Matthew Ross, Columbus, OH
Sandra J. Stanicek, Aurora, IL
Nan Stevens, Allentown, PA
Dr. Ralph & Marjorie Tayloe,
Dubuque, IA
Nancy N. Thayer, Vero Beach, FL
Welsh League of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ
Welsh Society of Western New England,
Farmington, CT
Margaret West, Washington, DC
WNAA notes, with sorrow, the passing of
Owen Jones, Toronto, ON
Maurine Ryan, Coupewille, WA
Richard N. Strang, Dayton, OH
“Hedd, perffaith hedd”