The fascinating background of the Tutelo Lodge S62 flap

When the remaining needs for my Kecoughtan Lodge collection became scarce and expensive I started collecting Wahunsenakah and Chanco Lodge emblems. When the same thing happened with those collections I added nearby Blue Heron Lodge as my next area of interest. Then I was encouraged by my friends Joe Klos and Mike McCaughan to pursue other Virginia OA lodge issues and took that bait like a hungry catfish, not fully realizing that I was expanding my list of needs from about 1,000 to over 2,300.

But adding new lodges to my collection has really helped me gain a broader appreciation for the history of the Order of the Arrow in Virginia as I learn more about the background of issues from Lodges I have never focused on before.

A perfect example is a recent addition to my collection pictured above, the Tutelo Lodge S-62 flap that was issued in 2004 to recognize the amazing achievements of their Arrowmen at prior National Order of the Arrow Conferences. The central feature of the design is a volleyball with three crossed arrows that have the years ’98, ’00, and ’02 superimposed upon the arrowheads.  When I was getting ready to slip this patch into a protective sleeve with a labeled descriptive card and then into my Tutelo Lodge album I noticed some letters and numbers ghosted into the black tips of the feathers that hang from the bottom of the flap. Curious to know their meaning, I consulted via email a longtime trading friend and member of Tutelo Lodge, Arvid Englund.  When I saw Arvid’s comprehensive answer I knew I had found the right expert:

The Letters are the initials of the dancers from the Lodge that made it into the top ten in their style at NOAC and got to dance on stage in front of all the NOAC participants during the AIA show. CB is Chris Bryant (lucky number 57) 5th place Northern Traditional Style in 1996(?), ME is my brother, Micah Englund— 2nd place Northern Traditional in 1998, JB is Johannes Bosch, Top Ten (we think 7th) Grass Dance in 2000, BG is Brandon Gregory, 5th place Northern Traditional in 2002 (Then was National Champion in 2004).

The “3 Peat” is not actually about the Dancers, it refers to Tutelos 3 consecutive National Championships in Volleyball… Of which I am the only Arrowmen to play on all three teams, and the 4th time where we were runner up in 2004 🙂

Learning the background of this patch gave me insight into achievements of Tutelo Arrowmen that occurred over a decade ago that I would otherwise never have appreciated. It’s a perfect example of how the hobby of collecting Scout emblems has a much deeper background and purpose beyond simply checking off another item from your needs list. If you stop and learn about your acquisitions you’ll be far richer for the experience.