I was never a member of the Order of the Arrow as a youth member of the Boy Scouts. I did become one after I became a scoutmaster. I became an Ordeal member after attending a conclave with two Boy Scouts of Troop 68 in (I think) 1986. A few years later I became a Brotherhood member.
I have only been active with the Naguonabe Lodge of the Order of the Arrow when the Scouts of Troop 68 have been active. After all, this is a youth organization where adults act as advisors so I seldom went to any OA functions on my own. I served as the transpiration guy many times over the decades. I have also tried to attend as many Ordeal call-out ceremonies as I was able when Troop 68 Scouts were elected.
In recent years I have tried to attend at least one lodge activity during the year even if there are no Scouts from Troop 68 who decide to attend. I do urge them to go to conclaves and activities but I have not been very successful is that endeavor. It might be due to the fact that Troop 68 has not held many Order of the Arrow elections in the last several years which in turn means we do not have many OA members at the moment. In fact, the troop currently only has one Scout who is an OA member.
During the past month I have had two OA adult advisors asking me questions about my tenure in the Order of the Arrow. I told them I have not been that active due to the reasons listed above. They seem to think it is time for me to be nominated to become a Vigil member, the highest level in the Order of the Arrow. Becoming a Vigil member is not something I have given much thought to since I am usually only as active as the Scouts in the troop, but they seem to think that my tenure in Scouting and service work in the community make me qualified for the honor.
Will it happen someday? Maybe, I guess. The troop is planning to hold an Order of the Arrow election this winter so maybe it will become time to become active to the organization once again. Time will tell.
