The Mystic Community Google Group is an electronic mailing list/listserv, a place where subscribers can share musical or Mystic-relevant events, advertise activities that promote getting to know each other better, and help one another out. It provides an informal way for the broader Mystic community to keep connected on a regular basis, regardless of whether members are signed up to sing.

As of July 2024, MCGG had 355 members. The usefulness of the list grows with the number of members on it.

How is the Google Group different from the Mystic Community Member Directory?

The Member Directory and the MCGG are distinct entities.

• The Member Directory, located in the Members section of the website https://mysticchorale.org/my-seasons/, contains a listing of all the members of Mystic Chorale, with the exception of those who have opted out. It is meant to serve as a means for individuals to connect privately (e.g., for finding rides to rehearsals and concerts).
• The Mystic Community Google Group is a forum for communication with many people at once. Anyone who subscribes can communicate with all others who subscribe via emails that are public to the whole group.

Note: The Chorale will never sell or otherwise distribute members’ email addresses.

How to join and post to MCGG

Enrollment in MCGG is not automatic for Mystic Chorale members, but joining is a simple process. To join and get set up, follow these steps:

1. Send an email asking to be added to MCGG to mystic-community+owner@googlegroups.com. Include a sentence about yourself such as “I am a new Alto who discovered Mystic through a friend,” which will help the Moderator determine yours is not a phishing or spam message.
2. You will receive a message from the Moderator that you’ve been enrolled.

3. You have options for how you receive MCGG messages. You can change your setting at any time.

• • ALL EMAIL: Your default subscription will be set to “All-email” which means you receive each posting by others as it is sent.
  • DIGEST: If the volume of emails starts to feel excessive, you can modify your subscription to the “Digest” setting, which collects postings over a 24-hour period and sends them to you just once daily.
  • ABRIDGED: Another option is to set your subscription to “Abridged” which is even more compact (Note: this setting requires you to have a Google account.)
  • NO EMAIL: If you choose this option, you can only access the Group via the Internet and will not receive any messages at all from the group. (Note: this setting requires you to have a Google account.)

4. You’re ready to post! Send messages to the group by writing to: mystic-community@googlegroups.com

Guidelines on posting to the Mystic Community Google Group

Guidelines are designed to maintain a balance between creating and maintaining a caring MCGG community and limiting the message volume and content for subscribers.

To make your posts work well for all members, please follow these guidelines:

DO’s

• Limit your posts to the following categories:
  • Announcements (e.g., “Here’s a link to a great concert on Friday”) These may include musical or Mystic-relevant events, services, personal activities.
  • Invitations (e.g., “Lunar eclipse viewing from Robbins Farm”) Events that support a cause are allowed if you are attending it and you are inviting others to join you.
  • Offers (e.g., “My kids have outgrown their stroller – anyone need one?”)
  • Questions/requests for help (e.g., “Seeking a babysitter”) These may be searches for jobs, housing, recommendations for local services.
• Use a brief and descriptive subject heading for your message (e.g., for an invitation to attend a movie write, “Wonder Woman at 8 pm Friday” instead of “Movie”)
• Carefully consider your use of REPLY vs REPLY ALL:
  • When replying to someone else’s post, think about whether your answer is relevant for ALL members or just for the person who posted.
    • • When replying only to the person who posted, please do so off-list (replying only via the sender’s email) rather than to the whole group. For example, a request for a recommendation might be answered individually. In this case, click on “REPLY” and you will see that only the poster’s email is in your “To” address window.
      • When a response is likely to be of interest to a substantial portion of the group, click on “REPLY ALL.” You will see that Mystic Community appears in your “To” window. Please use REPLY ALL judiciously to limit the number of irrelevant messages going out to the larger community.
    • If you employ the shortcut of starting a new thread by doing REPLY ALL to a prior message in order to enter the correct email address quickly, be sure to fully delete the prior message if it’s not relevant. And make sure to update the subject line. This etiquette will prevent much annoyance and confusion among subscribers.
  • Be concise: Respect others’ time and attention by keeping your posting as brief as possible, sticking to the basics of Who, What, When and Where.
  • Provide links as needed. You may find it useful to provide links to information that is already on the Internet with a short personal statement of why an event is special to you.

  DON’Ts   

  Please

  • Do not include attachments. Images are rarely essential for communication in MCGG postings. Consider providing a link instead or offer to send the pictures / attachments individually to anyone who writes back and expresses interest. Copy and paste the essential facts from posters, etc. into the body of the message.
  • Do not post solicitations, jokes, photos, warnings, health advice, personal beliefs or political opinions/messages.
  • Do not argue or attempt persuasion. Avoid “pile on” situations where many people feel obliged to add their opinion.
  • Do not malign others. Treat as you would want to be treated. If you feel misunderstood or misrepresented, please don’t offer an elaborate defense on the List. (Correcting a substantive typo or error is acceptable.)
  • Do not post “for a friend” or forward postings that are from other listservs unless you are personally involved. For example, if you are helping resettle an immigrant family, it’s fine to see if anyone in Mystic has apartment leads or spare furniture since it’s your personal activity. But if it’s just a good cause that you happened to find out about, or if your friend is doing this without your participation beyond the role of publicizing it, then it is not Mystic-relevant and is therefore not appropriate for the MCGG.

  How to get off the MCGG list

  If you wish to unsubscribe, simply send a blank email to:

  mystic-community+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.

  If you would like to let us know why you are unsubscribing, you may communicate with the list moderators at mystic-community+owner@googlegroups.com . You might also write to us and see if we can help you problem-solve before you quit, if it is because of a complaint.

  
  Who to contact regarding questions or problems

  If you have technical problems, questions about whether your post fits the Guidelines above, or concerns about the appropriateness of other members’ posts, send an email to mystic-community+owner@googlegroups.com .