In celebration of a new year, let’s take a look back on everything that has happened in Section G16 in these past 12 months!
The first event of the section was the annual Council of Chiefs meeting in January, where the new section officers, lodge chiefs, and Conclave Vice Chiefs had a meeting to make decisions regarding the entire section. Soon after this, the conclave theme was announced: Ridin’ with the Brotherhood!
In January, Wauna La-Mon’tay met at Camp Meriwether for their first lodge event, the Wauna Inductions and Ceremonies Conference (WICC). At this weekend event, trainings, workshops, and activities help to prepare Arrowmen for the approaching induction season, covering ceremonies, being an elangomat, induction staff, and running unit elections. You can view the WICC recap here. Tsisqan Lodge also had their Workshop Weekend to teach Scouts important outdoor skills and activities in February. It was held at Camp Baker with the theme “Those Who Love the Woods and Camping.” The event provided a number of interesting classes, such as how to cook while backpacking, and many hours of service were given to Camp Baker that weekend! Check out the recap for the weekend here.
In March, Wauna La-Mon’tay Lodge had their fashion-themed “Runway Rendezvous” fellowship at Camp Meriwether, with many fun and exciting activities. Chapters partook in a fashion show by decorating blazers for their chiefs, and enjoyed rock climbing, rifle shooting, obsidian knife and whistle making, and much more! The weekend ended with an awards show, recognizing individuals who had great contributions to the lodge and calling out the 2024 Vigil Honor candidates! Check out the Rendezvous recap for more details. In April, Lo La’Qam Geela Lodge had their Spring Fellowship at Camp Latgawa, with a great Hawaiian theme! Participants enjoyed a nice pool, hula hoop dancing, and ended with a feast featuring roasted pig! Many guests from other lodges had a blast there as well, including some section officers. For more info, you can see the full event recap. Everyone is looking forward to Lo La’Qam Geela’s next Spring Fellowship in 2025!
A week later, Arrowmen of Section G16 travelled to Camp Arnold in Tacoma for the National Leadership Seminar (NLS) and Developing Youth Leadership Conference (DYLC). Many youth and adults from our lodges learned important and advanced leadership concepts, as well as engaged in activities to become the future leaders of our section and the Order of the Arrow as a whole. See what else happened at NLS here! The same weekend, Tsisqan Lodge had a service event for Camp Baker, providing almost 400 hours of service with over 50 Arrowmen volunteers! You can view the service recap for more information.
May, June and July were a flurry of induction weekends, bringing more Scouts & Scouters into the amazing program that the OA is! The lodges welcomed hundreds of new Arrowmen in addition to the many who earned their Brotherhood Honor as well! Thousands of hours of service were given to the local Scout camps, including Camp Baker, Camp McLoughlin, Camp Baldwin, Camp Pioneer, Camp Melakwa, and Camp Meriwether.
Directly following Tsisqan’s Melakwa Induction in July was the National Order of the Arrow Conference (NOAC), the best that Scouting and the OA has to offer! Nearly 200 Arrowmen from our section travelled to the University of Colorado Boulder for a week of fun, learning, and fellowship. Participants were shown how to “Seek New Heights” through the engaging activities, interesting classes, fun festivals, and inspiring evening shows. In addition, there was a section-wide gathering with an exclusive patch. All in all, NOAC was an amazing week for everyone! If you want to know about everything that happened at NOAC, check out our NOAC recap.
Then there’s the highlight of Section G16 every year: Conclave at Camp Baker! This year’s theme was Ridin’ with the Brotherhood, a cowboy style event with many themed activities and fun! Arrowmen enjoyed rifle shooting, climbing, cotton candy, inflatable obstacle course, in addition to the great classes that were taught. Everyone, whether competing in the Conclave-wide game or savoring the amazing food, had a blast. Conclave was the embodiment of cheerful and brotherly fellowship! To see the Conclave review, see the event recap!
After conclave, there were several inductions that took place: Wauna La-Mon’tay Lodge had one at Camp Lewis, and Lo La’Qam Geela had two that took place: one at Verheyden’s Ranch and another at Camp McLoughlin. Over 350 hours of service were given to these camps in cheerful service while welcoming more brothers into our order! More info can be found in the fall inductions recap.
Then each lodge had a time for awesome brotherhood and food! Wauna La-Mon’tay Lodge had their medieval themed Fall Summit: Arrowmen took part in candle making, trebuchet building, chainmail bracelets, tomahawk throwing, and much more at Camp Meriwether. The lodge also elected their 2025 officers! See the Fall Summit recap for the full story. A week later, Tsisqan Lodge met at Camp Baker for their Annual Fellowship with a Clue-based spin as they played games, won prizes, and solved a murder mystery! In addition, they celebrated their 80th anniversary as a lodge, and selected the new officers that will lead the lodge for the next year! View the Fall Fellowship review to find out what else happened. Finally, in November Lo La’Qam Geela had their Fall Fellowship at Camp McLoughlin in commemoration of their 30th anniversary, marked by a Mardi Gras theme with mask making, parade float making, Jeopardy, and more! They also provided useful service to the camp, and inducted more members into Brotherhood Honor. Don’t forget to view the full event recap as well!
All three lodges in our section performed very well with their inductions, member activation, and service to local parks and camps! Here’s the combined statistics from the whole section, and great job making a successful year!
On a national level, the Boy Scouts of America announced in the spring their rebrand as Scouting America, a way to reflect their ongoing commitment to providing a quality program to everyone. Accordingly, the national Order of the Arrow committee has announced a new mission and purpose, and also introduced the first-ever OA vision over the summer!
What a year it has been! There are some major changes coming up soon, but these past 12 months have also had so many memorable moments. Thank you for being with us this year, sharing these memories, and cheers to 2025!