The St. Paul Freifechter is completely volunteer run – from the Board of Directors to its Instructors, every person volunteers their time, passion, and energy towards the mission of the organization.
Our Board of Directors also double as our Company Officers – President, Secretary, and Treasurer. These 3 people are tasked with managing all of the back end “Businessy” type stuff that help “Keep the lights on” and “Steer the ship” so that the St. Paul Freifechter can accomplish it’s mission.
Our instructors are skilled not only in instruction and coaching but also in researching and interpreting the source texts we draw from. Though often they work as a team, each instructor brings their own style and approach to the sessions they lead and do their best to ensure the learning environments are safe, supportive, and constructive for all who attend.
Scott MacDonald (He/Him) – Founder, President, and Lead Instructor
Scott started studying HEMA in 2015 with the interest in “Learning the Art”. In the spring of 2016, he founded the St. Paul Freifechter as a modest study group specifically focused on the works of Joachim Meyer.
Since then, he has earned the rank of Fechter from the Meyer Friefechter Guild in both Longsword and Dussack, developed and taught the ICe-IT method of analyzing and breaking down the components and techniques within Meyer’s drills, taught workshops on the Meyer Square, and been a guest instructor at other clubs and large HEMA events in the midwestern US.
Ashley Liberg (She/Her) – Secretary and Instructor
Ashley Lieberg has been involved in martial arts of various kinds from the time she was 10, has been a HEMA practitioner since 2017, and earned her Fechter rank in Longsword with the Meyer Freifechter Guild in 2023.
She also studied abroad in Japan, speaks Japanese, and has a degree in Entertainment Design.
Taylor Hodne (He/Him) – Treasurer
I joined St. Paul Freifechter in 2022 and began my journey studying Joachim Meyer’s material under Scott MacDonald. At St. Paul Freifechter, the Study Group style of learning and “come as you are” structure resonated with what I was looking for.
In 2023, I got my first taste of the competitive side of HEMA in the Beginners Longsword Icebreaker Tournament. That experience gave me a greater connection to the broader community and sent me into the deep end of learning as much as possible. I strongly value interacting with the other organizations in the community, which inspired me to volunteer for the Board of Directors role of Treasurer with St. Paul Freifechter Non-Profit Organization. I was elected and took over the Treasurer role at the beginning of 2024.
I bring my professional engineering and project management experience to the role and I am excited to use my background to help grow our organization and our community as a whole.
Faith MacGregor (She/Her) – Instructor
Faith enlisted in the Army in 2002, and served 15 years in combat arms and intelligence. Her first foray into martial arts began there with training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. She later studied Olympic style saber fencing, pursuing her love of swords and history. She joined the St. Paul Freifechter in 2021. Focusing on the longsword and dagger. She achieved Fechter rank in the Meyer Freifechter Guild in 2023 and began instructing soon thereafter. She has a long history of teaching, from the military to 20 years as a certified rock climbing instructor.
She has continued to widen her studies to include Dussack, Staff, Sword and Buckler and Viking Axe/Sword and shield. She hopes to one day publish a manual on Viking combat techniques. When she’s not fencing, she works in cyber security and writes historical fiction novels. She loves stories and enriches her lessons with appropriate quotes from shows and books often.