BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
ORDER OF THE ARROW
“...The most reliable name in Ittawamba News” December 2011 Issue 3
INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Ittawamba University
2
Winterfest
2
Ordeals Info
3
Clint’s Spotlight
3
Adviser’s Corner
3
Officer Directory
4
Ittawamba Lodge #235 - West Tenn. Area Council #559– Secretary: Ryan Burlesci
The 2012 National Order of the Arrow Conference (NOAC) will be one of your most memorable Scouting experiences. It will be held at Michigan State University from July 30 through August 4, 2012 and is projected to be one of the largest in the Order’s history with more than 8,000 Arrowmen in
attendance. NOAC will feature a number of unique events, including national competitions for ceremonies, drum, and dance; evening shows; the OA history museum; and awesome recreation competitions such as soccer, basketball, and ultimate Frisbee.. Highlights such as the Founder’s Day festivities including the Founder’s Day Parade, the Grand Hodag, and the interRegion dodge ball battle are some of the exciting events at NOAC.
Arrowmen can participate in service projects, high adventure opportunities, leadership training, American Indian Activities training, and much more. While enjoying the various activities, Scouts will have a great time meeting new brothers and sharing their experiences with people from around the nation. Our lodge will send a contingent to NOAC 2012 and you won’t want to miss out. To sign up, contact the lodge chief. Visit www.event.oa-bsa.org for more information and to learn about NOAC 2012.
The 2012 Conclave is already being planned! Conclave is April 20th-22nd at Camp Skymont in Altamont, TN. For the first time in some time we are having a theme. Voted on at the Council of Chiefs was "The end of the world" theme. This might be the last Conclave we ever have! Here are the prices as of now for Conclave: Early Bird Fee: $33 Regular Fee: $38 Walk On Fee (Late): $48 More information will be given at the beginning of next year. Information will be posted on the section website oasection6.org as well as the Lodge website at ittawamba.org.
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By: Douglas Burgess
EVENTS TO REMEMBER 2012 OA Winter Banquet
Jan 7
Callouts @ Winterfest Jan 28 Section 6 CoC
Jan 27-29
LEC
Feb 26
NLATS/NLS
Mar 2-4
Ordeal # 1
Mar 16-10
Conclave
April 20-22
Spring Beaver Day Ordeal # 2 NOAC
May 12
May 18-20 Jul 29-Aug 4
On the morning of November 12th, 2011, several Scouts from Ittawamba Lodge congregated in the hallowed halls of Alexander Elementary School in Jackson for a full day of exciting classes. This event was the annual LLDC, otherwise known as Ittawamba University. This event brought Arrowmen and Scouts alike together for a day of education on all things Scouting and OA, including topics such as becoming an OA officer, running fun Chapter meetings, motivating members and leaders, and changing tradition. These classes were taught by the current and future Lodge officers as well as diligent volunteers from Ittawamba Lodge. The instructors were great and really knew what they were doing. (Special thanks to Mr. Michael Rodgers, a PC expert teaching in a room full of Macs!) After a great lunch provided by the always-heavenly Heavenly Ham, it was back to classes and then on to graduation. After great speeches by Clint Beilke and Mr. Ed Ward, all of the participants went home feeling well-educated and hopefully with the incentive to serve their Lodge well. Everyone in attendance learned a lot and had a great time in doing so. What does this mean? This means Ittawamba Lodge is well on its way to having a future full of Lodge and Chapter officers — and even regular Arrowmen — fully trained to benefit the Lodge to the best of their abilities. All in a day’s work for the OA.
Want to have an impact on your Council and Lodge? Do you want to be a part of something big? Really big? If you answered yes to either one of these questions, then the Council-Wide Call-Out @WinterFest is where you belong on January 28th, 2012. Contact your 2012 Lodge Chief to be part of the Call-Out team: lodgechief@ittawamba.org Facebook.com/ ittawambalodge235
twitter.com/ ittawamba235 Visit the council website at wtacbsa.org for more information on Winterfest.
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Over the past year, the officers, advisers, and committees of the chapters and lodge developed and executed a collective plan that has resulted in a year of great success. Our lodge finished 2nd overall in the Quest for the Golden Arrow at the Section Conclave. Our Brotherhood conversion for the year was nearly 60%, twice the National standard. We inducted over 120 new Ordeal members to our Brotherhood of Cheerful Service. Members of our lodge provided over 5,500 hours of service to Scouting and their local communities. Our Jim Cheatham lodge provided support for the tornado victims in Alabama. Our lodge provided Lodge Adviser over $10,000 of financial support to the West Tennessee Area Council. While these are just a few of the numerous accomplishments, it would not have been possible without the sup-
Ordeals- March 16-18
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port and participation of each and every lodge member. When looking back on the past year, a quote comes to mind. “Teamwork divides the task and multiplies the success.” – Author Unknown The accomplishments of our past are merely a benchmark for the future. Our lodge continues to grow and extend our service to community and Scouting. The future is looking bright. Let us all make a firm commitment to exemplary service so that we can make the bright vision ahead become a reality! Yours in service,
Jim Cheatham
2009-2011 Lodge Adviser
&
May 18-20
The 2012 Ordeals will be taking place at Camp Mack Morris on March 16-18, and May 18-20. The staff is already making plans to revamp every aspect of Ordeals from the Registration Process to the Brotherhood Hike to the evening activities after Saturday night supper. If you are interested in serving as an Elangomat or in any other leadership capacity, please contact Ryan Burlesci or fill out the interest survey at ittawamba.org. We look forward to seeing everyone there as we bring in new members as well as seeing familiar faces.
Fellow Brothers, As the year comes to a close and we look back on the good memories of 2011, I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for the honor and privilege it has been to serve you as Ittawamba Lodge Chief for 2010 and 2011. A lot has happened in that two year span, but for now, I would like to tell you about a couple of really good things that happened in the year of 2011, in particular. With approximately 363 members in our Lodge, we gave the council about -5,500 hours this year alone. That means that for every member, we gave about 13 hours. It also means that in addition to our annual gift to the Council of $10,000, our Lodge gave $41,525 in service. And for Quality Lodge, this year alone, our Lodge has a 60% brotherhood conversion rate! That is 30% more than needed for Quality Lodge. But why stop there? Why not take the extra step and give 1,000 more hours? Or 2,000? Why not reach 75% brotherhood conversion rate? And grow membership to 380? As we go into next year, I challenge you, no, I dare you to go beyond. Do more than is needed. Work harder than is possible. Go through your Brotherhood. Attend your monthly roundtables. Be more than just a member. Be an active brother in our Order. In Brotherhood of Cheerful Service,
Clint McCoy Beilke
2010-2011 Lodge Chief
Clint Beilke Lodge Chief
WEST TENN. AREA COUNCIL BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA 1995 Hollywood Drive Jackson, TN 38305
NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE PAID
CURRENT RESIDENT OR:
JACKSON, TN
2011 CHAPTER LEADERSHIP IRON HORSE ChiefVice-ChiefSecretary-
Nick Varnick Will Brown Nick Kilzer SHILOH
ChiefVice-ChiefSecretary-
Shannon Gaffney Chris Schwartz Jake Hollows GUNAXIN
ChiefVice-Chief-
Douglas Burgess Cody Willis OKTIBBEHA
ChiefVice-ChiefSecretary-
Issac Smith David Steele Dakota White Okeena
ChiefVice-Chief-
2011 LODGE OFFICER DIRECTORY
LODGE CHIEF Clint Beilke First Vice-Chief Will Brantley Second Vice-Chief Nick Varnick LODGE SECRETARY Ryan Burlesci LODGE TREASURER Travis Geisel LODGE ADVISER Jim Cheatham
Justin Richardson Ryan Mingle
Facebook.com/ittawambalodgelodge235
2012 Supplemental OA Unit Election Instructions/Guidelines By Joe Craven, 2012 Lodge Adviser As we transition to a 1st Ordeal Weekend in March, there may be Scouts who have not yet completed their eligibility requirements (i.e. First Class rank, or 15 days and nights of camping) prior to the January election result deadline. These Scouts who become eligible for nomination after the January election results were submitted, can be nominated for inclusion in a supplemental election if the Unit decides to hold one. National Policy does not allow for more than one election per year, so the following guidelines must be followed for any supplemental election you may hold. 1. The supplemental election is ONLY for Scouts who were not eligible for nomination in the original election. No Scout who previously stood for election during this yearly cycle may be included in the supplemental election. If that Scout failed to receive enough votes in the original election they wait until next year, just like always. 2. Only one Adult may be nominated from each Scout Troop or Varsity Team per year, and only when a unit election is held. So the supplemental election is not an opportunity to nominate a second adult. The only instance where an adult nomination will be accepted with the supplemental election results is in the case where no adult nomination was previously submitted for this yearly cycle. Except for the special guidelines listed above, all the same policies and procedures apply to this supplemental election that would apply to any other annual unit election. Dates to remember: Unit Election results due to Chapter Adviser by January 18th. Supplemental Election results (if held) due to Chapter Adviser by March 30th. NOTE: These supplemental election instructions/guidelines are only valid for the spring 2012 Ordeal cycle. For calendar year 2013, ALL unit elections will be due in January so inform your young Scouts to plan the completion of their eligibility requirements accordingly. And a sneak peek at their goals from the January edition of Ittawamba Leaves.
Vice Chief of Activities– Travis Geisel
Travis Geisel
Vice Chief of Service– Dylan West
Dylan West
Nick Varnick
Lodge Chief– Nick Varnick
Secretary– Douglas Burgess Treasurer– Seth Underhill Douglas Burgess
Seth Underhill
From Nick’s Goals: Maintain an active planning process that guides the lodge program and supports the council strategic plan…...
From Douglass’ Goals: 2011 has been a great year for Ittawamba, and I expect the same of 2012! With major events like Conclave and NOAC on the way, to make it unforgettable, I plan to…..