This page contains answers to common questions handled by our support staff, along with some tips
and tricks that we have found useful and presented here as questions.
- How do I join OA?
- Call Out and Ordeal questions
- Why bring a Med Form to events?
- Can I leave events early?
- Who is our troop's OA Representative?
- I didn't get a SmokeSignal newsletter?
- OA Lodge Merchandise
- OA Lodge Flap Primer
- Pronounce Ni-Sanak-Tani?
- Braves of Decorah?
- Annual Dues
- Crew 381
- Running for Lodge Offices
- Vigil Honor Nominations
Otherwise, check the National OA Site: www.oa-bsa.org,
or contact our Lodge Chief or Adviser.
See the OA
facts sheet from BSA National. OA is the only current
organization where candidates for membership are selected by nonmembers as
well as members. Elections are usually held between February and April,
with the Call Out recognition during the spring district camporee. Youth
are selected by an election in the troop, performed by a trained election team
from our Lodge. Adults are nominated for what they can do for the
lodge, after the unit successfully elects a youth. Once a youth is
elected, or an adult's nomination is accepted, they have 12 months to perform
their Ordeal, or they will have to be re-elected or re-nominated.
If you've already been elected and completed your Ordeal, you can transfer
your membership to our Lodge by contacting the Lodge Adviser or
VC-Administration.
If you're a past member of a lodge and want to get back active, you need to
be registered with a Scouting unit, and pay this year's NST Lodge Annual Dues. You
need not pay the interim years.
Just like your registered unit, we need to have contact information and
treatment permission. A copy of the same form that is on file with your registered
unit will do, or have your parent/guardian fill out and sign the necessary
(non physician) sections of the new Annual
Health and Medical Form as they drop you off at the event (this HAS TO BE YOUR
parent/guardian). If you have a temporary concern or condition, you
should inform the registration table when you arrive.
Without a current form on file with the Lodge, you won't be allowed to
participate.
If you have prescription medicines, they should be surrendered at the
registration table upon arrival IN THEIR PROPERLY LABELED CONTAINER, and
picked up upon departure (same procedures and exceptions as summer
camp). Our medical officer will ensure they're dispensed as ordered
during the event.
Just like summer camp, you need a signed note from your parents to leave an
event with someone else. The event Registrar must know who is at the
event AT ALL TIMES.
Certain events (e.g., Ordeal) require end-to-end event attendance. {A
special allowance can be made for LDS Candidates and others that cannot stay
until Sunday, but we need to know in advance.} Otherwise, you can leave early, or temporarily depart an event, by signing out
with the Registrar in the presence of your parent/guardian. If you plan
to not attend the complete event, make sure you explain the details to the
Registrar upon initial arrival so we can plan for getting you to your pickup
point at the appropriate time, and to not log you to a group during your
absence.
Find out more about OA
Troop Representatives from the National OA site.
Each troop should have an OA Representative to our Lodge. If you
don't know who it is, ask your Scoutmaster. Better yet, volunteer!
Troop adults appreciate having a youth provide OA information into their troop
as it makes one less thing for them to keep track of!
This is a "Position of Responsibility" that counts towards Star,
Life and Eagle ranks, on top of helping your troops' Arrowmen stay involved in
Lodge events and assisting the Lodge Election Team.
The SmokeSignal is only mailed to current members about every other month.
We do mail the "annual banquet and renewal" issue to
recently-expired members, as a way of getting them information on their
status.
Check the top line of your address label for the last paid year of your
membership. If it doesn't agree with what you think it should be,
contact the Lodge Adviser or VC-Administration.
My troop isn't attending Camp Decorah, but is attending another BSA
summer camp facility; can I be Called Out there? Yes, with prior
arrangement. First, you must be elected by an NST Elections Team.
Next, your Election's paperwork has to be specifically certified by the NST
VC-Administration for Out-of-Council Call-Out, and, finally, a copy of the
election results provided to the host Lodge. Similarly, an
Out-of-Council troop attending Camp Decorah can participate in the NST
Call-Out/Recognition ceremony at the close of your camp week through the same
procedure. You can only attend the Ordeal held by the Lodge you were
elected into.
Do I have to be called out to attend Ordeal? No, but you must have
been ELECTED within the past 12 months of the Ordeal date. If you cannot
attend an Ordeal within 12 months of your election, you will have to be
reelected. Once elected, we'll send you an invitation letter for the
Ordeals scheduled until you are no longer eligible.
What do I bring to the Ordeal? Your invitation letter will explain
the equipment and attire for you to bring. If it's not on the list,
please don't bring it.
If you have any other questions, contact the Lodge Adviser or VC-Administration.
Show your pride in Ni-Sanak-Tani! Our Trading Post is set up at all
OA events. You can also find basic NST items at the Scout Office and the
Summer Camp Trading Post. If you want something special, contact our
VC-Finance.
ARTISTS: We need patch designs. Whether it's for the normal lodge
flap, a T-shirt, or for NOAC or Jamboree patches, we're always on the lookout for
rough designs for our personalized items; contact our VC-Finance. The
patch company artist can clean up your design and descriptions. Lodge
Flaps need to have our name (NST), our totem (canoe), the
"<---WWW----<<<<", the OA Logo or Arrowhead, and the
Fleur-de-lis. Event flaps also need the name of the event and the year.
To wear a Lodge Flap signifies that you are an ACTIVE (paid-up) member
of THAT Lodge. At many OA events, Arrowmen socialize by exchanging Flaps,
or Flap Sets. (Unlike Jamboree, adults and youth CAN directly trade, since youth are
older.) You're welcome to trade using any Lodge/Council -issued patch but your uniform can
only have the one that pertains to YOUR Lodge of registration.
What types of Lodge Flaps does NST have? Since January, 2008, our Lodge uses
a common Green border
color ("merrow"). We also have Black border trading issues that are not appropriate
for uniform wear. Our Lodge contingents to
National events have a unique silver-edged
Flap Set
(pocket flap and a matching 'temporary' pocket cover); in this case, NST
Members can wear the lower part under the same guidelines as a temporary
camporee patch.
We previously used the border
color to signify the membership level: Red/Ordeal,
Blue/Brotherhood, and White/Vigil
Honor, but this has been discontinued, per National policy. {An NST Brotherhood member could wear either Red
or Blue NST flap, but hasn't earned the right
to wear a White NST flap.} If
earned, a member can continue to wear those discontinued flaps.
If a Lodge #381 Arrowman earned their membership under the Braves of
Decorah, they may wear that 'BoD' version, instead of having to wear one of
the newer 'Ni-Sanak-Tani' versions.
en - ess - tee <grin> . Ni-Sanak-Tani is pronounced
"Knee - SHA Nock - Dah KNEE" in Hocąk,
the language of the Ho-Chunk
Nation. Ni = Three; Sanak = Gather; Tani = River... meaning
"the place where three rivers meet". This was voted most
appropriate (see next FAQ entry), due to the geography at Decorah's Peak, where
Chief One Eye Decorah survived a brutal attack by a neighboring tribe, then floated
down the Mississippi River to Prairie du Chien, WI, for help from another clan of
his own Winnebagos. This
peak is just north west of Camp Decorah and overlooks the Black River, with the
bluffs of the Mississippi River only a short distance away.
The Braves of Decorah ("BoD") was the original name of our
Lodge. The Order of the Arrow in the Gateway Area Council grew out of a
local honor campers society, the Braves of DeCorah. While serving on the staff
of Camp Ammon in 1946, several Braves of DeCorah
members were forced to remove their emblem, while Order of the Arrow members
were permitted to wear their insignias.
This incident prompted them to look into the national
campers' brotherhood and led to the chartering of the Braves of DeCorah as
an Order of the Arrow Lodge. In the fall of 1947 a charter was granted to the
Braves of Decorah Lodge 381.
In the early 1990's, the members voted to change the name to
improve relations with the Ho-Chunk Nation. After several months of
research, Ni-Sanak-Tani was chosen, meaning "the place where three
rivers meet" (Mississippi, Black, & La Crosse rivers), although there are
technically seven rivers that flow through our area (adding the Buffalo, Trempealeau, and Kickapoo
rivers in Wisconsin, and the Root in Minnesota. }
Why are the Dues different for adults?
National OA raised the annual lodge member fee by 50% effective for
2005. As a way to help our families and youth, the Lodge Executive
Committee voted to retain the $10 youth dues, but raise the adults
annual dues to $15. Adults are anyone that is 21 years old, or over, as
of 1/1 of that year. This is also to recognize that adults typically
have more money-earning power (a.k.a. jobs) than youth.
Similarly, our Ordeal fees are $5 higher for adults, too.
What is Crew 381 and why are they asking me to
register with them?
Crew 381 is the Ni-Sanak-Tani Venturing umbrella unit, mainly for our travel
arrangements to section and national events. Since you have to be an OA
member, females under 21 years old are not eligible to join this venturing
crew.
"Members of the OA may be official dues-paying (and, in the case of
youth, voting) members of only one lodge, that being the lodge chartered to
the council where they reside and have their principal Scouting
Registration." (OA Handbook, p. 47, 2000 revision.)
If you received this invitation, you no longer have a 'principal Scouting
Registration' with the Gateway Area Council and any unit. You are being
offered the opportunity to become a member of our Lodge Crew as a way to
maintain that important registration, and your membership in our Lodge.
This is only open to Lodge members that are no longer affiliated with a
traditional unit. We'd prefer that you continue to be a member and a
resource for your regular, or past, Scouting unit.
How do I become an NST Officer or Committee
Chair/Member?
To be an Officer or Committee Chair, you must be under 21 years old.
At the person's 21st birthday, they can no longer serve in a youth
position. For that reason, those age 20 are unable to serve a full term
and are discouraged from running for a position.
Officers are elected by the youth members in attendance at our fall
election meeting (2010: Rendezvous weekend, 8/27). To run for
the office of lodge chief, you must submit a letter explaining your interests and commitment
to the Supreme Chief of the Fire (Council Executive), at least 2 weeks prior
to the voting meeting. (This is recommended for the other vice-chief
positions, as well, but isn't mandatory.)
Committee Chairs are appointed by the Key-3 (Lodge Chief, Lodge Adviser,
Lodge Staff Adviser, or their Chapter counterparts) annually from those serving on, or having an interest in,
that committee.
Lodge Officers and Committee Chairs are expected to personally attend most lodge
functions, especially the regular Lodge Executive Committee (LEC) meetings. If
they cannot attend, they must ensure that their position's responsibilities
are covered by someone other than another VC.
Chapter Officers and Committee Chairs are expected to personally attend
most chapter functions, especially the regular Chapter Committee meetings, as
well as be a good example by participating in lodge functions as possible.
All currently-registered members of Ni-Sanak-Tani with 2 years as a
Brotherhood member are automatically considered for the annual Vigil Honor
selection. The Committee doesn't know everyone in the Lodge, so if
another member would like to nominate a
worthy individual, the Committee would appreciate the background information
as it considers those worthy of the honor.
Selection annually occurs each spring, with the Call Out at an appropriate
venue, and the Vigil Ceremony itself falling in late August.
