Wisumahi

Hi, This is one of the most interesting topics related the OA and one of the most abused. First and foremost it would be appropriate to say that using the material culture of a local tribe is a process fraught with trouble. For example, if you are in California, the clothing is likely to be none at all or very inappropriate sacred ceremonial clothing. Other regions have similar problems for Scouts. It is also the case that many tribes have not been well researched and there are no appropriate resources available. Now, let's address powwows: the clothing used at powwows is DANCE

Hi, Jeffrey, One of the oldest still in existence is the Tribe of Tahquitz, Long Beach Area Council, Long Beach California. Most of the early societies converted to Order of the Arrow lodges. In Southern California, the Tribe of Siwinis, serving both LA Area Council and Arrowhead Area Council, passed into oblivion and those councils started OA lodges named Siwinis (252, still in existance) and Wisumahi (478, now merged), respectively. There was a second Tribe of Tahquitz that served the Riverside County Council; it, too, became an OA Lodge, Tahquitz (127, now merged). The

Hi, again, I am delighted to hear that you are headed for NOAC: it is a great event! You may find, though, that Ceremonies tend to deal with how lines are delivered, etc., and do not focus on the accuracy of outfits. For that aspect, you must look mostly to AIA. There are also workshops on headdresses, beadwork, quillwork, and numerous other topics that may interest you. There are also classes galore! If you do come to the staff powwow (Gathering of Nations), you will see some excellent outfits. I will be in an Old Time Sioux outfit, but there will be outfits from many c

Hi, Hillis, You are truly on track to become an avid American Indian hobbyist. Are you going to NOAC? If so, you will have many opportunities to enhance your education in this area. AIA at NOAC is filled with classes and activities that will be of great help to you. There are singing classes in which you can learn either southern or northern. And you can meet Scouts from your area. I believe you are located in the SE; if so, you should look into attending the Carolina Indian Seminar and/or the Tiak Lodge Indian Seminar. Both of these are normally held around January and Februar

Hi, I joined the Boy Scouts in 1953 and my troop had no communal gear other than flags, flag poles, and cooking equipment. Each Scout was expected to have his own gear: back in those days equipment from World War II was in abundance. We all just visited a local, well-stocked war surplus store and got our gear. Each Scout got a shelter-half, one half of an Army or Marine puptent. I think our SM brought along a spare in case we had an odd number of Scouts, but you could make a lean-to type shelter if you did not want to have a whole puptent. Other equipment we had were US-issued

Hi, emb021! We wrote: ""(2) On the pocket I sewed a Philmont "Dollar" patch with 5 segments." "I was an Explorer in the 50's and earned all the patches that requiered earning. " Did you earn those segments? There were requirements for them. Personally, I would have gotten a 1950s Explorer shirt off eBay, rather then using a Venturing shirt. I have gotten several that way. "" Yes, I earned all all but two segments, Philmont Horseman and Frontiersman. At any rate I earned only have 5 and they are the ones on my shirt. I still have my old Philmont Program Hand Bo

Hi, Gang! Well, I decided awhile back to completely ignore the UP and make a retro-uni from some modern parts. So, I took a Venturing uni shirt, removed the Venturing patch over the right pocket and began adding patches. Here is the list: (1) Over the right pocket I sewed on a 50's Explorers patch. (2) On the pocket I sewed a Philmont "Dollar" patch with 5 segments. (3) On the pocket flap I sewed on a Wisumahi Lodge 478 S2 patch. (4) On the button I hung a 1950's OA ribbon with a 1950's Vigil triangle pin. (5) On the right sleeve I sewed on a CAW patch and a National Standa

Gents, I hardly know where to start. I have read much of what B-P wrote what has been writen about him. Further, I have spent considerable time at B-P House in London and absorbing much of what is there, a wonderful experience. Here is an online list of the many books B-P wrote and he was a prolific writer: http://www.scouting.milestones.btinternet.co.uk/bpbooks.htm Let me point out a few: Reconnaissance and Scouting; this was written in the late 1800's and it is more than coincidental that Boy Scouts got its name based on military Scouting. B-P was a proponent o

Hi, I think we sometimes forget that what Baden-Powell attempted to create was a paramilitary organization for middle and lower class boys. The very name, "scouts", is derived from the military function of persons whose job it was to sneak into enemy territory and get information for military planners. His experience in SA led him to believe that the men who were not officers, i.e., did not come from the upper classes, had insufficient background to prepare them for military duty in the sorts of places where the British Army did its work, the colonies in Africa and Asia. That is, t

John, you wrote: "It's way too much to expect perfect altruism (especially from me), thus plenty of adult recognition is a tool in the box for retaining Scouters." And I am fully on board. We cannot RECOGNIZE Scouters too much. They are wonderful folks who are devoted to helping young men along a pretty rocky path to a useful and fulfilling adulthood. I think we should take every opportunity to recognize the men and women who go the extra mile for our youth. Every opportunity and then some! However, let's do it in a dignified and adult-appropriate manner. I love the example

Oops--I forgot one: on the right sleeve below your troop number, you put your position patch. Sorry, Wisumahi

Hi, I earned my Eagle in 1956 and we had no Eagle Project. You had to earn 21 merit badges--and they were different than the required ones today--had been a Life Scout for 6 months, served your troop as a leader, and served your community in a variety of ways. I cannot remember if this was a BSA requirement, but in our troop one had to present letters from various community leaders indicating one's standing. One had to be from one's school's principal. I think the Eagle Project was a wonderful addition to the Eagle requirements. Wisumahi

Hi, fellow Scouts! Sorry for being so late in getting to this...too much rain here in Northern California! I was a Boy Scout from 1953 to 1956--at which point I became an Explorer--and I have to tell you that our uniforms were much less adorned than those of today. On the left sleeve we wore a city strip, a state strip and our unit's numbers; on our right sleeve we wore just our circular black and red patrol emblem--and up to 6 mbs on the long sleeve. On, under, or over our left pocket we wore service stars and attendance awards, our rank, and our AOL. Over our right pocket could

"I have always felt it inappropriate to critize others for their choices as to what knots they wear. We may not know what their reasons are, and it might NOT be for show or to brag." Hi, emb021! I guess I was not clear: I am not critical of the adults who wear all those myriad of knots. I am critical of the BSA for creating the opportunity. I think the BSA encourages an inappropriate display of awards on adults by having such awards in knot form. I also think it diminishes the importance of one of the most important things a Scout can achieve, the award of Eagle Scout. Tha

Hi, John-in-KC! Thanks for the kind words. However, we may be in the very small minority. I have so many examples of what I believe to be over-awarding and going too far in the OA/Scouting. In my lodge (and many others) one is give beads of various colors for attending events. These are then strung on a necklace that one wears to OA events. In addition, things like pouches are added when one attains Vigil. I cannot express properly how foolish I think a 50 year-old looks wearing a necklace with all sorts of beads and fuu-fuus on in it. I mean, seriously, is that truly behavior that

Hi, MV Scouter, You wrote, "Vigil Honors for youth only? Does that include the Founders Award also? What about the Disinquished Service Award--for youth only too? " I guess I was not clear enough. I have been advocating eliminating all knots, save those earned as a Boy. I felt that Scouting is becoming excessively adult-award-and-display oriented. I did not say that we should eliminate adult awards, just the ostentatious display of those awards on the left chest. I actually feel that more appropriate awards for adults ARE the Founders' Award and the DSA. Further, you wrot

"Lest you forget, there is also the youth religious award knot." John, Mea Culpa! Thanks for reminding me. They were not available when I was a Scout and,so, were not on my horizon. And, yes, they, too, would fit what I think is appropriate: awards earned as a Scout. In Brotherhood, Wisumahi

Hola, Cary, que tal? "If they have a knot for most everything else, then why "knot" Vigil?" Actually, what I said was that I would do the opposite: eliminate most of the knots entirely. What I think would be more appropriate is to have Eagle, Silver Award, Arrow of Light, and, possibly, the heroism-related awards as the only knots. All the others, as far as I can tell, are for adults and I see little reason to have so many adult-oriented awards on BOY SCOUT uniforms. I think adults should get their satisfaction from seeing fine young boys turn into fine young men as a resul

Hi, Cary, One question: does not having a knot make you less proud? And a few comments: (1) The two are so very different. Eagle comes mainly as a result of one's own efforts. Vigil is entirely in the hands of other folks who judge one's contributions. (2) I earned my Eagle in 1956 and was honored with Vigil in 1959; I value both, but Eagle represented such a wonderful learning experience that I hold it in higher regard. (3) One item I have also pondered recently is whether Vigil should be like Eagle and just presented to youth? Adults would be given a different

Brothers, I would head the opposite direction and eliminate nearly all the knots! Sometimes, when I go to an event and see all those knots, I think that Boy Scouts should be called Adult Scouts. After all, nost are earned as an adult! My opinion is that we should have knots representing Eagle, Silver Award and one or two more that are truly significant to what one earned as BOY. An adult can be proud of his acheivements as an adult and take great pride in helping to make men grow up to be fine adults without having to display all sorts of ribbons on his chest. There is a pe

Hi, Here is the latest update on NOAC 2006: http://www.oa-bsa.org/bulletin/nb-q3-05.pdf There will be a NOAC 2006 website after November at http://noac.oa-bsa.org. According the the update, you will be able to register at that site. I hope this helps. In Brotherhood, Wisumahi

Brothers, emb021 wrote: "Someone at OA National said basically there is no need for one, as we do the same sort of things at NOAC. Sorry, but as a member of AIA (American Indian Activities) staff both at Indian Summer and the past NOAC (when we incorporated a lot of the craft stuff we did at IS), I can say there is NO comparison" And that is the truth: there is nothing on the National level like AIA at NOAC or like Indian Summer if we do not specifically schedule that type of activity. Beyond that, did you know that the most well attended (and, presumably popular) activities at NOA

Hi, The NOAC Staff Leaders have now started discussions re program, staffing, budgets, etc. But so far there have been no official announcements made. My best advice is to keep a daily watch on this site: http://www.live.oa-bsa.org/events/n2004/live/thumorn/noac2006.htm I would hazard a guess that we should hear something by mid-November. In Brotherhood, Wisumahi

Hi, If you check out my "e-name", you will see that my OA career is related to Cahuilla...all the way back to the 50's. In that distant era I was a member of Wisumahi Lodge #478, one of the lodges that merged to form Cahuilla. To boot, I am now a member of Ut In Selica! NOAC 2006 is on the horizon and I hope all you Westerners are planning to be there. Last year Wiatava had a huge contingent that was very impressive. I can still see all those "yellow gearheads" lining up for the Founders' Day Show: it seemed like there were thousands! And let me put in a word for my spec

I was tapped out in 1954 and it was a memorable ceremony. The OA Tap Out Team faced each Scout at the campfire circle and Allowat Sakima, the final member of the team, did the tap out. In later years, I had the pleasure of being Allowat Sakima and was advised to not tap with excessive force. I believe that Lodge Advisors can play a vital role in making certain that there is no hazing or gratuitous "violence" in doing the Tap Out. I also believe that the Tap Out Ceremony is much more impressive and has a more lasting image than a Calling Out Ceremony. Let's not make Scouting so bland t