• Vision

    Vision

    The Order of the Arrow......is not an end unto itself, but is for a higher purpose. Individuals are inducted into the Order of the Arrow “not so much for what you have done, but for what you are expected to do.” Taking that Obligation of the Order requires a promise, on one’s honor, “to be unselfish in service and devotion to the welfare of others.” Read More
  • Membership

    Membership

    Becoming Inducted into the OAScouts are elected to the Order by their fellow unit members. The induction ceremony, called the Ordeal, is the first step toward full membership. During the experience, candidates maintain silence, receive small amounts of food, and give service. The completion of the tasks taught lessons about brotherhood, cheerfulness, and service – the three principles of the Order of the Arrow. Read More
  • Nawakwa

    Nawakwa

    Lodge #3Each local Boy Scout council is encouraged to have an Order of the Arrow lodge. The OA lodge helps the local council provide a quality Scouting program through recognition of Scouting spirit and performance, development of youth leadership and service, promotion of Scout camping and outdoor programs, and enhancement of membership tenure. Read More
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Upcoming Events


Date: June 2-4 (Camp T. Brady Saunders)


Date: April 28-30

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About the OA

  • Organization
  • Eligibility
  • Purpose of the OA

Lodge

Each local Boy Scout council is encouraged to have an Order of the Arrow lodge. Each lodge is granted a charter from the National Council, BSA, upon annual application. The OA lodge helps the local council provide a quality Scouting program through recognition of Scouting spirit and performance, development of youth leadership and service, promotion of Scout camping and outdoor programs, and enhancement of membership tenure.

Sections

An Order of the Arrow section consists of lodges within a geographic area of the region. Once every year, representatives of lodges in the section come together for a conclave to share in fellowship, skills, and training. A section is lead by three youth officers, the Section Chief, Section Vice-Chief, and Section Secretary, who are advised by an adult Section Adviser and professional Section Staff Adviser. All of the elected section chiefs are invited form the conference committee for a national Order of the Arrow event, which is held under the guidance of the national Order of the Arrow Committee.

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Membership: For information on who is eligible and the requirements to join the Order of the Arrow. Please see the Guide to Unit Elections and Pages 18-19 of the Guide for Officers and Advisers.

 

Induction

The induction ceremony, called the Ordeal, is the first step toward full membership. During the experience, candidates maintain silence, receive small amounts of food, work on camp improvement projects, and are required to sleep alone, apart from other campers. The entire experience is designed to teach significant values.

For the details on the induction process please see the Guide to Inductions.

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The Order of the Arrow was created to serve as a useful purpose: to cause the Scout Oath and Law to spring into action in all parts of the nation. To this day, we are dedicated to this high purpose. The Order is a thing of the individual rather than a thing of the masses; the ideals of brotherhood, cheerfulness, and service spring to life in each of us. The Order is a thing of the outdoors; from life in the wilds comes a precious ingredient that our country needs to survive-self-reliance. One of the Order’s greatest achievements is, and will continue to be, the strengthening of the Scouting movement as an outdoor experience.

 The Order of the Arrow was founded during the summer of 1915 at Treasure Island, the Philadelphia Council Scout camp. The camp was located on a 50-acre wooded island located on the Delaware River between New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and historical records show that it was an early camping ground for the Lenni Lanape, or Delaware, Indians. During that summer, E. Urner Goodman was selected to serve as camp director, and Carroll A. Edison was appointed assistant director. Together, these men decided that they wanted to create an honor society as a definite form of recognition for those Scouts in their camp who best exemplified the spirit of the Scout Oath and Law in their daily lives. Since the Delaware Valley was rich in Indian tradition, it seemed only natural to base this society, this brotherhood of honor campers, on the legends and traditions of the Delaware Indians. Thus the foundation was laid for the Order of the Arrow.

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Past Chiefs/Advisors

Lodge Advisors

Term Lodge Adviser
01/47 - 12/49 George P. Freeman *
01/50 - 12/52 Paul Rosenberg *
01/53 - 12/53 Harry E. Mangle *
01/54 - 12/56 *
01/57 - 12/57 Jim Jordan *
01/58 - 12/59 *
01/60 - 12/61 Gene J. Sowdel *
01/62 - 08/63 John Jordan *
09/63 - 09/68 Robert B. Alvis
09/68 - 09/71 Asel T. Johnson
09/71 - 09/72 Robert M. Shackelford
09/72 - 11/75 William Harris
11/75 - 11/77 Oscar M. Thompson
11/77 - 09/82 Mack T. Ruffin, III
09/82 - 09/86 William G. McKim
09/86 - 09/92 Roy W. Page
09/92 - 06/13 Mack T. Ruffin, III
06/12 - 06/19 Mike Lynch
06/19 - Present Gary Gibbs
* The Lodge Advisers prior to September 1963 were professional Scouters.

Lodge Chiefs

Term Lodge Chief
01/47 - 12/47 James Barber
01/48 - 12/48 Eugene Dobbins
01/49 - 04/50 Philip J. Snider, Jr.
05/50 - 12/50 Alvin Ildas
01/51 - 12/53 Dante Santacroce
01/54 - 02/54 John Pennington
03/54 - 12/54 Billy Hoerter
01/55 - 12/55 Eddie Keck
01/56 - 12/56 Don Davies
01/57 - 12/57 Charles Pollok
01/58 - 12/58 Joseph C. Gentry
01/59 - 12/59 Ward Hatch
01/60 - 12/60 James Anderson
01/61 - 09/61 William F. C. Skinner
09/61 - 09/62 Richard M. Nolting, III
09/62 - 09/63 Tommy Woodall
09/63 - 09/64 Alan Seville
09/64 - 09/65 Stephen E. Lickey
09/65 - 09/66 Joe Nicholas
09/66 - 09/67 George C. Nolting
09/67 - 05/69 James L. Duesberry
05/69 - 09/69 Richard Morton
09/69 - 09/70 Robert Keenan
09/70 - 09/71 Bernard Niemeir
09/71 - 09/72 Manuel Vasquez
09/72 - 11/73 Jack E. Gaylord, Jr.
11/73 - 11/74 David S. Lowman, Jr.
11/74 - 11/75 Don W. Sawyer
11/75 - 11/76 Scott A. Bennett
11/76 - 06/78 Mark Cordle
06/78 - 06/79 P.S. Theodore Costin
06/79 - 06/81 Martin J. Barbie, III
06/81 - 06/82 M. Jeffery Abernathy
06/82 - 06/83 John L. Gill
06/83 - 06/84 Jimmy F. Carr
06/84 - 06/85 Owen M. Taylor
06/85 - 06-86 Mark A. Gill
06/86 - 09/88 Steve M. Billcheck, III
09/88 - 09/89 W. Scott Street, IV
09/89 - 09/90 Aaron S. Dotson
09/90 - 06/92 Joseph J. Feher, IV
06/92 - 06/93 Henry R. Broaddus
06/93 - 06/94 Philip R. Victor
06/94 - 06/95 Chad J. Schnell
06/95 - 06/96 Christopher J. Hues
06/96 - 06/97 D. Spencer Chase
06/97 - 06/98 Daniel B. R. Maxey
06/98 - 06/99 William J. Wright
06/99 - 06/00 George W. Zuban, Jr.
06/00 - 06/01 William C. Ray
06/01 - 06/02 George W. Zuban, Jr.
06/02 - 06/03 Christopher M. Leech
06/03 - 06/04 Kyle W. Konrad
06/04 - 06/05 Matthew R. Beach
06/05 - 06/07 Joseph R. Orr
06/06 - 06/07 William G. Swingle
06/08 - 06/09 Nicholas A. Harman
06/09 - 06/10 Owen W. Gallogly
06/10 - 06/11 Christopher M. Bonelli
06/11 - 06/12 R. Allen Crump, III
06/12 - 06/13 Marc J. Reiner
06/13 - 06/14 Alan W. Lloyd
06/14 - 06/15 Keegan M. McNulty
06/15 - 06/16 Ryan McNeilly
06/16 - 06/17 Trey Lyle
06-17 - 06/18 Kyle Hoffmann
06/18 - 06/19 Preston Wright
06/19 - 01/21 Josh Lyle
01/21 - Present Tyler Fowden
* Note that some terms are atypical due to adjustments made in the lodge year.