Greetings brothers,
I hope this email finds you well and that all of you have had a wonderful summer break! Earlier in the month at the 2016 Section Officers Seminar in Alabama, Section Secretary Stuart Park and I experienced a very productive conference with the other leaders from all across the Southern Region.
This weekend allowed us to really look towards the future of our Section and see what others do differently. While at SOS, many important updates for lodges were announced and I have outlined some of those below.
NOAC 2018
The 2018 National Order of the Arrow Conference will be at Indiana University, the site of NEXT. You can expect information to be first available to lodges around June 2017. Also, we are happy to let you know that NOAC will return to the two year cycle (the following one will be in 2020). It is planned for all rooms to have A/C and food quality will be improved.
OAHA
OA High Adventure registration is now open for 2017 so please be sure to promote and sign up. Our very own Travis Broadhurst is serving as the OAHA Youth Coordinator for the Southern Region. Way to go, Travis!
Operation Arrow
There are now limited spots for adults to staff Operation Arrow. It will not be in the main 3 programs but most likely as aerial sports staff. Space is extremely limited for adults so they should register online soon. In addition to this, a special scholarship has been established to assist youth Arrowmen who will be serving on staff. More information can be found here: http://event.oa-bsa.org/events/jambo2017/#scholarship
Link
A new program, simply called “Link”, has been established for the Section. It is an enhanced version of the previous program known as the “Lodge Assistance Program” (LAP). More information on this will be released soon.
ReliefCorps: Operation Louisiana Relief
The Southern Region has relaunched the ReliefCorps effort to help those in need after historic flooding in Louisiana. You can find more information here: http://southern.oa-bsa.org/2016/08/18/reliefcorps-2016-operation-louisiana-relief/
National Awards
National award petitions are due in December and this year, we encourage all of our lodges to consider applying. You can locate the petitions and information on all awards here: http://www.sr5.org/awards-and-recognition/
Lodge Visitation
With lodge events starting to get back into full swing, we would like to come out and have fellowship with your Arrowmen! The Section Officers are currently developing a visitation calendar so if you would like us to come out, please let us know. Also, we encourage all of you to reach out to your neighboring lodges in the Section and consider sending officers to another lodge’s event. This is a great way to tighten the bonds of brotherhood between our lodges as well as an amazing way to learn what others do differently!
Until we meet again, remember to always keep the Arrow aimed high! Please do not ever hesitate to contact me if you have any questions, comments, or concerns. WWW
In the Spirit,
Matthew Watson | SR-5 Section Chief