I don’t know how it works at OA Section Conclaves elsewhere around the country, but here in SR-7B (eastern and central North Carolina), it is customary to have a special Vigil Breakfast, followed by a rededication, early on Saturday morning. For years I have said if I were in charge this would become the Vigil brunch, allowing the Vigil brothers to sleep in, followed by a siesta. I was only partly joking.

In addition to having to get up in the dark and trudge to a breakfast long before others are awake, and often only a few hours after the patch trading has finally wound down, this creates logistical and staffing challenges. The six lodges in our section bring about 1000 brothers to conclave every year. Camp facilities are stretched to their limits. The cook crew already has a challenge in feeding this many people. Having to serve a breakfast for about 200 at 6am (and plenty of hot coffee!), while meeting the expectations that it be something “special”, can quickly become and irksome task.
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Popularity: 3% [?]

1973 Dixie Fellowshp Patch

Effective in 1973, the BSA reorganized its structure from 12 Areas into six regions.     This meant changes for OA areas nationwide. Area fellowships became section conclaves.   The lodges of the old Area 6-B were reunited with their brothers from Muscogee 221 and Unali’yi 236, forming section SE-3B.     This put all of South Carolina together again for the first time in over 20 years.   They would not be separated again.

Atta Kulla Kulla hosted the 21st Dixie Fellowship, the 1973 SE-3B Conclave, at Camp Old Indian.     The conclave patch’s basic design employs the traditional color scheme used on Atta Kulla Kulla’s earliest and all their Ordeal flaps .

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Popularity: 27% [?]

1972 Dixie Fellowship Patch

Itibapishe Iti Hollo 188 hosted the twentieth Dixie Fellowship, the 1972 Area 6-B Fellowship, at Camp John J. Barnhardt.     This was also the final Area 6-B fellowship.     In 1973 the six region structure would be in place.

There has been some disagreement through the years over what the totem of Itibapishe Iti Hollo is.     Blue Book names the beaver as the lodge totem, which is not correct at this time according to the lodge’s by laws.     An American Indian chief was commonly shown on the lodge’s patches.       A fancy dancer is the central design element on this patch.

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Popularity: 19% [?]

2009 marked a big change in the alignment of W-1C.   When the new designations came out, W-1C lost two lodges and became W-1E.   Gone are the two lodges that are home based in Idaho, and that makes W-1E conform to the old borders of 11-C.

The conclave this year was held at Camp Fife (Grand Columbia Council), which is in the shadow of Mount Rainier.   The first time in awhile that a council camp was used as a conclave site.   It was a great weekend with plenty of sunshine and decent temperatures. (It did get down to below 32 degrees Saturday Night, which caused frost on my windshield.)

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Popularity: 11% [?]

Ok, so I am a little late with this post.   2009 saw the change of W-1A into W-1S and with it some advisorship changes.   I became the Merchandising advisor for the section.   What that entails is that the Trading Post, On-Line Trading post, Merchandise marketing and anything that is not food or program materials come under my leadership (of course I have a Conclave Vice Chief that works with me).

The conclave this year was well attended with over 450 Arrowmen from Oregon, Washington, California, Colorado and Idaho in attendance.   The conclave was held at Camp Baker (Oregon Trail Council) on the central Oregon Coast.   Food was outstanding and the fellowship was superb.   The shows was spectacular thanks to Paul Collett and crew.

Since we had a new designation, I went all out to exploit it.   Thus almost all the patches made for this year have Charter Member on them.   We stuck with what the previous advisor had done and issued 4 pocket patches.   Red Border for Participants, Blue Border for Staff, Gold Mylar for Auction Donation and Black Border for the Collector’s set.   The amount made decreases with each batch with only 120 made of the black border.

There were 4 jacket patches made this year.   The regular Charter Member Jacket Patch (150 Made) was the most common.       All of these had less than 30 made.   The Special Edition Jacket Patch (14 Made), The Patron Jacket Patch (30 Made) and the Guardian Jacket Patch (6 Made).   The special edition was by special collector’s lottery only (Yes I got one).   The Patron Jacket Patch required a $300.00 donation in cash and/or memorabilia (I got one of those too) and the Guardian required spending $1000.00 at the auction (I did not get this one).   All of the patches are pictured in this article.   I still have some of the participant, staff and auction patches available, along with the Charter Member Jacket Patch.

Next years conclave is scheduled to be held at Camp Rilea (Oregon National Guard), near the mouth of the Columbia River.

Popularity: 12% [?]

1971 Dixie Fellowship Patch

Eswau Huppeday 560 hosted the nineteenth Dixie Fellowship, the 1971 Area 6-B Fellowship.

Eswau Huppeday has been known for unusual and flashy patches.       While this one is certainly unusually shaped, especially for the early 1970s, the color scheme is atypically subdued.       The patch appears to represent a cotton boll.       The lodge’s totem, the crossed musket and tomahawk appear in the center of the patch.

A mug and neckerchief were also produced for this event. I do not presently have images of these pieces.

Thanks to Jason Spangler (www.santeeswapper.com) for supplying the images for the Area Z and Dixie Fellowship patches used on this blog.

Popularity: 12% [?]

1970 Dixie Fellowship Patch

Catawba lodge hosted the eighteenth Dixie Fellowship, the 1970 Area 6-B Fellowship.   This was the first official meeting of these lodges in two years.   There were no area fellowships in 1969 in Region 6.

A traditional representation of Catawba’s hornet’s nest totem is the central design element of this patch.       This is similar to the 1963 Dixie Fellowship patch and would later be used on the 1976

A mug and neckerchief were also produced for this event.   I do not presently have images of these pieces.

Thanks to Jason Spangler (www.santeeswapper.com) for supplying the images for the Area Z and Dixie Fellowship patches used on this blog.

Popularity: 13% [?]

1968 Dixie Fellowship Patch

The seventeenth Dixie Fellowship, the 1968 Area 6-B Fellowship, returned to South Carolina with Atta Kulla Kulla 185   serving as host lodge.

If   nothing else, the patch for this Dixie Fellowship was certainly brightly colored!     The basic color scheme — red border, yellow background, brown whippoorwill — is similar to that of the lodge’s first few flaps.     However in this case the whippoorwill is greatly simplified, and the symbol of Camp Old Indian is the central element.

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Popularity: 11% [?]

1967 Dixie Fellowship Patch

The sixteenth Dixie Fellowship, the 1967 Area 6-B Fellowship, remained in North Carolina with Itibapishe Iti Hollo 188 serving as host lodge.

This was the first Dixie Fellowship held at the brand new Camp John J. Barnhardt.   It was also the first time since the lodge hosted a Dixie Fellowship since the 1954 meeting at Camp Dick Henning.

Riddle and McLean report in their A Golden Legacy:   A 50th Anniversary of the Dixie Fellowship that the meals had to be served from the OA building due to the lack of a dining hall.     They also note this camp was built on the site of the former “black” camp for Central North Carolina Council.     Riddle and McLean do not mention it but I pressume Scouting in this council was intergrated with the construction of the new camp.

The tradition of the fellowship patch showing the totem of the host lodge was essentially maintained.     Blue Book, and therefore my site, has oddly listed the totem of this lodge as a beaver* however an American Indian in full bonnet often appears on this lodge’s patches.     An adaptation of that appears as a central element in this patch.

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Popularity: 14% [?]

1966 Dixie Fellowship Patch

The fifteenth Dixie Fellowship, the 1966 Area 6-B Fellowship, returns to North Carolina.   The newest lodge in this section,   Eswau Huppeday 560, served as host lodge.

Eswau Huppeday was only founded in 1964, so the brothers of this lodge were ambitious to accept the responsibility of hosting an area fellowship so quickly.     That is a credit to their   dedication and hard work.   This lodge has a reputation for being ambitious, innovative and trendsetting, apparently something they earned early in their history.

The patch design is not as elegant as other fellowships from this time period but it does hold to tradition, something that has been greatly valued by the brothers in this area.     The lodge’s totem, the cross rifle and tomahawk is featured in the center of this patch.     Of course I like the light blue background, pretty close to Carolina blue.

Thanks to Jason Spangler (www.santeeswapper.com) for supplying the images for the Area Z and Dixie Fellowship patches used on this blog.

Popularity: 10% [?]