| How
do I become a member the Order of the Arrow, and once elected what happens next?
Ta Tsu Hwa #138 holds Unit Elections on an annual
basis. Our Election period runs from January to April.
During that time Chapters Chiefs and Advisers call each Troop
and Varsity Team in their respective Districts (Chapters) and
schedules an election. Unit Elections must be held by an official
Order of the Arrow Election Team (Troops and Teams may not hold their
own election) of which the majority must be from outside of the unit
that is holding an election. Typically the only Arrowmen
involved in the election from the Unit are the OA Troop/Team
Representative and the Scoutmaster/Coach. Election procedures are
set by the National OA Committee and outlined in the Guide for
Officers and Advisers. Once you have been elected you have
one year from the closing date of the Lodge Unit Elections (April 15th)
to attend an Ordeal. If you attend Summer Camp you will be
recognized at a Call-Out Ceremony. However, a Call-Out Ceremony is
not required for you to attend an Ordeal. It is simply a form of
public recognition for the honor your fellow Scouts have bestowed upon
you. The next step is to procure an Event Registration
Form,
available either at the Donald W. Reynolds Scout Resource Center or from
the Lodge Web Site. www.tatsuhwa.org.
You will have two opportunities to attend an Ordeal, Fall and Spring
(dates on the Event Form or the Lodge Calendar). If you do
not attend an Ordeal within the one year period, you must be re-elected
by your Troop or Team. We highly encourage you to attend at
the first opportunity, the Fall Ordeal, so that you may start
participating in OA activities as soon as possible. We have also
found that sometimes those who wait for the Spring Ordeal are more
likely to have other conflicts and miss out on the opportunity to become
a member of the Order of the Arrow altogether.
What are the nomination requirements for The
Golden Arrow, Vigil, or the Founders Award and how do I nominate a candidate?
The Golden Arrow Award is bestowed on
deserving Arrowmen by the Lodge. The requirement is simply
outstanding or noteworthy service to the OA at the Chapter or Lodge
level. There are no age, length of service, or OA membership
designation requirements. As with all three of these awards,
anyone may nominate an Arrowman, and nomination forms are
available at the Donald W. Reynolds Scout Service Center or at the Lodge
Web Site. The Vigil Honor nomination requirements are set by the
National OA Committee and are outlined in the OA Handbook and
the Guide for Officers and Advisers (please refer to them for
more specific information). Basically an Arrowman should have
shown "distinguished service" to the OA at the Chapter or
Lodge level and must have been a Brotherhood member for a period of two
years or more. Annually a Vigil Selection Committee, represented
by Ordeal, Brotherhood, and Vigil youth members vote on candidates
to receive the Vigil Honor. Based on Lodge size, there is a quota
of how many Vigil members may be elected. In all instances there
must be at least one youth Vigil to have an Adult Vigil and at least 50%
of those elected must be candidates under the age of 21. The
selection procedures are set by the National OA Committee and candidates must be approved by the National OA Office
before the Vigil Honor can be bestowed upon a individual. The
Founder's Award is presented as recognition to those who have given outstanding
service to the Lodge and demonstrate to their fellow
Arrowmen that they memorialize in their every day life the spirit of
achievement as described by the founder of the Order of the Arrow, E.
Urner Goodman. Lodges may petition the National OA Committee to
present up to four awards annually, based on Lodge membership numbers.
If the Lodge presents more than one award , one must be to a youth under
the age of 21. A selection committee of the Lodge Key 3, with the
approval of the Council Scout Executive, decide the Founder's
recipient(s) from the nominations received
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