9:00 am to 4:00 pm - Colonneh Summit: All Arrowmen are invited to attend Lodge Leadership Development known as the Colonneh Summit, a lodge training event designed for all Arrowmen to gain better knowledge on how to get more out of the OA and learn how to use the resources of the lodge to benefit the units and Arrowmen in Sam Houston Area Council.  This event will help to develop the Arrowmen in Colonneh Lodge by giving them the resources and skills to be successful cheerful servants not only at the unit level but at the chapter and lodge level as well.  This event will be a great opportunity for chapters to grow and build a strong foundation for 2021. 

4:00 pm - Lodge Executive Committee Meeting 

The Lodge Executive Committee (LEC) is the steering committee of the lodge and is responsible for executing the annual program of the lodge and is open to all Arrowmen. The first  Lodge Executive Committee of 2021 will be held at 4:00 pm. The Lodge Executive Committee (LEC) —a key group—consists of the 2021 youth-serving as lodge officers (including the immediate past lodge chief), vice chiefs and their advisers, operating committee chairs and their advisers, area chiefs, the staff adviser, chapter chiefs, chapter advisers, the lodge adviser, and lodge staff adviser. The LEC committee meets to share reports, promote lodge events, approve the lodge budget and calendar, and to let the Arrowmen decide the plan for Colonneh Lodge. Learn more at oa.shac.org/lec.

5:30 pm - Lodge Banquet

Arrowmen gather for a night of celebration at the Lodge Banquet. Together, Arrowmen share an appreciation for the outgoing officers, recognize the Chapter of the Year, bestow awards on outstanding Arrowmen and celebrate the past year’s accomplishments. The evening will be filled with fun and excitement as we kick off the new year with the induction of the 2021 officers and advisers! 

Brotherhood Ceremony

A Brotherhood Walk and Ceremony will be held following the Lodge Banquet.  The Brotherhood Walk is only open to Arrowmen who are already attending the Lodge Banquet. After six months of service as an Ordeal member and after fulfilling certain requirements, a member may take part in the Brotherhood ceremony, which places further emphasis on the ideals of Scouting and the Order. Learn more at oa.shac.org/brotherhood.

Camping

Arrowmen have the option to camp during the weekend with their chapter. This will keep Arrowmen from having to travel early on Saturday morning or drive home late on Saturday night. 

Arrowman Achievement Award

Dabney Kennedy, former Colonneh Lodge adviser, created the Arrowman Achievement Award to recognize those youth Arrowmen who do service to the lodge and chapter. The requirements for this award include attendance at chapter meetings and being part of ceremonial teams.

Application for Arrowman Achievement Award

Clan Sashes

Service clan sash: The service clan sash requires that an Arrowman do a number of hours of service in his chapter, for his council, and for council camps. Service comes in a variety of forms, and a member of the service clan should exemplify a spirit or service. The service clan sash is a white arrow imposed on a green background.


Elangomat clan sash: Serving as a guide to a new member of the Order of the Arrow is one of the most important services an Arrowman can perform, and the Elangomat clan recognizes those who have done this at least three times. In addition, a member of the Elangomat clan has guided at least 50% of the candidates he is assigned through the ordeal, and through sealing their membership in the Brotherhood. They have also served on staff for an ordeal. The Elagomat clan sash is a white arrow imposed on a blue background.

Ceremony clan sash: The ceremony clan recognizes those Arrowmen who provide service to their chapters and to the lodge, by serving in the lodge’s ceremonies year-round. To become a member of the ceremony clan, an Arrowman must participate in each primary ceremony in the Order or the Arrow – Arrow of Light, pre-ordeal, ordeal, and brotherhood. The service clan sash is a white arrow imposed on a black background.

Dance clan sash: Our continuation of the spirit of our Native American heritage is an important element underlying the spirit of the Order of the Arrow, and the dance clan sash recognizes those individuals who have supported the Native American events program in Colonneh Lodge. Whether in traditional Native American dancing or in singing, these individuals have grown in their knowledge of the Native American culture. The service clan sash is a white arrow imposed on a red background.

Camp promotions clan sash: When founding the Order, Dr. Goodman saw the promotion of summer camp and camping as an important objective for the Order and for lodges. The camp promotions clan sash recognizes those individuals who have done camp promotion visits to local units, as well as creating a working display for camping promotions in their district. The service clan sash is a white arrow imposed on a blue background.

Application for Clan Sashes

Founder's Award

The Founder’s Award is reserved for Arrowmen who demonstrate to fellow Arrowmen that he or she memorializes in his or her everyday life the spirit of achievement as described by founder E. Urner Goodman and cofounder Carroll A. Edson. Introduced at the 1981 National Order of the Arrow Conference, the Founder's Award was created to honor and recognize those Arrowmen who have given outstanding service to their lodge. A list of all Colonneh Lodge Founder's Award recipients is available here. Nominations for the Founder's Award are due in November.

Nomination Form

James E. West

Each year, Colonneh Lodge presents the James E. West Fellowship to several individuals by making of $1,000 given in their name to the Sam Houston Area Council’s Endowment Fund to support Scouting for future generations. To date, Colonneh Lodge has donated over $30,000 to the Council Endowment fund. A list of all James E. West awards presented by Colonneh Lodge is available here. Nominations are due in November.

Nomination Form

Numbered Certificate

​The Colonneh Lodge Numbered certificate is presented to outstanding youth or adults who have performed above and beyond the call of duty in service to Scouting, the community and the lodge. The recognition is a matted and framed numbered certificate and was created in late 1967 by Dabney Kennedy to recognize outstanding leadership in service and the spirit of achievement beyond the Vigil Honor. In 1980, the national director of the OA visited the Colonneh Lodge Pow Wow and was impressed with the type of awards that we presented to recognize our Arrowmen for service above and beyond. He was specifically interested in the numbered certificate program. This interest sparked the creation of the national Founder's Award with Colonneh Lodge's assistance in the development through the efforts of national committee member - Dabney Kennedy. A list of all Colonneh Numbered Certificate recipients is available here. Nominations for the Numbered Certificate are due in November.

Nomination Form

Ralph Rivera Memorial Award

This award was established in honor of Ralph Rivera, a fallen Vigil Honor member and an adopted son of a Pawnee Family. Ralph spent his teenage years as a member of Post 486 in the old Central District, and as an adult, served as Scoutmaster for Troop 583 in the Denver Harbor Area providing a scouting program for boys in his neighborhood.

Ralph was also very involved with his district, serving in many different callings. As a member of Colonneh Lodge, he promoted the Native American Way to all that were interested. His knowledge of Indian songs, dance styles and regalia made him a valuable resource to our lodge. Many of our dance teams, ceremony teams and individual dancers benefited from his knowledge of these things. His teachings are still handed down to Colonneh Lodge members today.

The award is presented annually at the OA banquet to the chapter that best exemplifies the Native American spirit in drumming, singing, dance, ceremonies and service to our community, council and lodge.

Chapter of the Year

The Virgil L. Smith Chapter of the Year award is presented annually at the OA banquet to a chapter that continues to go above and beyond the expectations for a chapter in Colonneh Lodge, and sets the benchmark for chapter operations and delivering the program to their area of service. Applications will be available soon.

Journey To Excellence

The Journey To Excellence is a recognition program adopted by BSA and the Order of the Arrow as a way to measure performance. Each chapter has the opportunity to achieve one of three different levels of recognition: Bronze, Silver, and Gold. Points are received in five categories: finance, membership, program, council service, and leadership and governance. Membership impact and brotherhood conversion are both required items to qualify for Journey to Excellence.

Unit Award of Excellence

The Order of the Arrow Unit of Excellence Award seeks to identify those units, and the leaders within them, who excel at incorporating the OA into their annual planning. This award is intended to provide a tool for lodges to recognize, incentivize, and operationalize unit-level participation in Order of the Arrow programs.