News Headlines

New Vigil Members in Onondaga Lodge

The 2006 new vigil members are: Kevin Frank, Keith Grimes, Brett Holubeck, Zach Puperi, Chris Tallman, Erik Willis.  Vigil is the highest honor that can be obtained in the Order of the Arrow.  Congratulations to all of these new Vigil Members! 

Dance & Drum Performances

The lodge has received a few requests for Dance & Drum Performances from Cub Packs around the area.  In order to put on these performances, the Chairman needs dedicated members who are willing to sing and drum.  The performances may occur on week nights, so if you would like to help, please be sure your schedule is mostly clear.  If you would like to help, then please email the Dance Chairman as soon as possible. 

If you are a member of a pack, troop, or other group that is interested in scheduling a dance & drum performance, please visit the Performance Page.

Vigil Candidates Announced

The 2005 Vigil Candidates were just recently announced at the lodge Winter Banquet on December 19th.  The Onondaga Lodge Vigil Committee selected seven Arrowmen from the vigil list of nominees as Vigil Candidates.  Vigil is the highest honor that can be obtained in the Order of the arrow.  The candidates include: Zach Thuring, Ben Cross, Paul Starcher, Rob Jones, John Fair, Roger Criss, and Sean McCabe.  These candidates will have the opertunity to participate in the lodge Vigil weekend which will be held in the spring of 2005.

2005 Lodge Calendar Posted

The 2005 Lodge Calendar has been posted online.  All of the dates for the events have been confirmed with the council office.  The date for the 2005 Winter Banquet is undecided, however, check back next fall when the date will most likely be available.  Remember, all fellowships are held at Sandscrest, and all ordeals are held at Fort Steuben Scout Reservation.

New and Updated Forms

Several of the older forms for the lodge have been updated, and a few others have been added.  To view these forms, go to the Resources > Forms & Publications.  Please fill out the Member Registration Form and remember to pay your dues for the 2005 year.

New Section Website

As most of you know, section C-5A has changed to Section C-4A.  Along with the change came a new website and domain.  To find the new site, go on-line to www.oa-c4a.org.  The site includes new features such as a gallery of Conclave images and many resources.

Fall Fellowship Pictures Available

Pictures from this year's Fall Fellowship are available.  While these pictures are currently on a different server, they will soon be moved to a faster one.  Please be patient, as the current server is slow at loading them...All pictures taken by Chris Tallman.  They can be found here.

Lodge Officer Elections Changed

During the October 24th lodge meeting of 2004, a motion was made to change the election date for Lodge officers to occur during the Fall Fellowship instead on the Summer Ordeal.  Adam Hoffman stated that ordeals were full of new members who do not necessarily know the different candidates for office.  Adam requested that the elections be moved to the Fall Fellowship so that new members had time to meet the candidates and get a feel for their leadership skills.  The motion was voted on and passed.  Look forward to the 2005 lodge officer elections at the next Fall Fellowship.

Troop Representative

In our Lodge, Troop Representatives play a crucial role.  They distribute information to our members about up-coming lodge events, act as a liaison between the OA and their Troops, as well as collect OA dues from their troop.  Troop Representatives also become voting members on our Lodge’s Executive Committee, allowing their troop to have input as to what the lodge does. If you are a Troop Representative already, or wish to become one, then please fill out the OA Troop Representative Registration form.

Associate Lodge Newsletter Editor 

Onondaga is looking for an Associate Lodge Newsletter editor.  This position will be a training position for the future newsletter editor at the start of the next lodge year.  Zach Thuring is the current Smoke Signal's Editor.  He will be passing the job on to someone new at the beginning of the year.  To volunteer for this position, you must have a good understanding of Microsoft Publisher or be willing to learn how to use it.  Contact Zach Thuring if you are interested.

Help Wanted

Onondaga Lodge’s administration is looking for Arrowmen to fill the position of Lodge Chairman of the Troop Representative Program.

He is responsible for contacting Troop Representatives and other responsibilities as assigned by the lodge chief.  Contact Zach Thuring if you are interested.