The Order of the Arrow (OA) was founded in 1915 by E. Urner Goodman and Carrol A. Edson, as a society honoring those Scouts who best exemplified the Scout Oath and Law. By 1948, over two-thirds of the Boy Scouts of America’s councils had OA lodges. It was also during that year that the program became an official part of Scouting. Today, with 180,000 members registered, the OA still plays an integral role by promoting the outdoor program and the excellence of Scouting.

The Chilantakoba Lodge, from the Southeast Louisiana Council recently held its Annual Fall Fellowship, themed “James Bond: Quantum of Fellowship,” at Camp V-Bar on December 2-4.

A lodge fellowship (previously known as a pow-wow) is a competitive event between the chapters of an Order of the Arrow lodge. Chapters can be scored in a variety of categories, from ceremony competitions and canoe races to overall participation. On the schedule for Chilantakoba’s weekend was glow-in-the-dark games, capture the flag, extreme dodgeball, training sessions and more.

Let the Games Begin

After the morning training sessions and a quick lunch, Arrowmen headed down to Lake Morning Glory for the lodge canoe races. The chapters chose their 3 best paddlers, while the staff prepared the event.

Within minutes, the chapters’ teams were paddling through the courses that the fellowship chairman, Glenn Gilyot planned out. In the final race, the Apeli Chapter conquered their slippery opponents in a close, neck-to-neck finish.

That night, Arrowmen gathered for an incomparable session of capture the flag. Two teams of 12 were sent off with glowing flags into the depths of Camp V-Bar with one goal: success. Several hours later, the champions of the event, carrying their success in the form of the opponent’s flag, finished the event with a final sprint to the safe zone.

For those Scouts not exhausted by capture the flag, chapters found out who had skills in nearly three hours of lights-out dodge-ball. As the Chilantakoba Lodge had purchased special glowing harnesses for its dodgeballs, each ball was a fury of light as it was thrown around. One by one the 6 chapters were eliminated and the final victor, the Cataouatche Chapter, won the night!