NOAC 2012 - United, We Leave a Legacy

Every few years the Order of the Arrow has a national conference.  In 2012 it will be held at Michicah State University in East Lansing, Michigan July 30 - August 4.  Mitigwa Lodge will leave Sunday night, July 29th and travel through the night to arrive at the event.  At the event, participants take part in classes of all types (many don't even relate to the Order of the Arrow), explore fun activities, attend shows, and have more fun than should be allowed. One of the highlights of the event is Founder's Day where every lodge has a booth and it's like the Varied Industries Building at the Iowa State Fair.  Games, prizes, fun, and fellowship.  Last NOAC we had the worlds largest Kazoo band and had a wicked game of Lodge Ball (dodge ball with 300 - 500 per side).

The cost of the event has been set at $525 per participant with a maximum of 50 participants.  This includes the cost of the conference, travel to and from the conference on a chartered bus, 2 lodge event T-shirts, a polo shirt, and two sets of patches for your uniforms.  The lodge is trying to generate money towards this event to help defray travel costs and there may be opportunities for you to earn money for your own account by helping the lodge with certain projects.  The payment schedule is as follows:

10/1/2011   -   $150
12/1/2011   -   $100
2/1/2012     -   $100
4/1/2012     -   $100
6/1/2012     -   $75

Sign-up for the event is underway.  If you are considering attending, please e-mail me at jim.shumaker@mchsi.com so I can put you on a list and keep you up to date on information as it's released.  National is expected to release information in late 2011 as to the number we will be allowed initially.  After the initial sign-up date has passed, we can request more...


There are two ongoing fund raisers for the event.  One is our NOAC lodge flap ($10) which may be worn by any member of the Mitigwa Lodge.  They will also be valuable trading material if you trade lodge flaps.  The second is a NOAC luggage tag ($4) you can use on any pack, suitcase, or bag.
 
If you have any questions about NOAC, talk to one of the Arrowmen that have attended a NOAC.  The lodge attendees from 2009 were: Tim Baldon, Harvey Blaisdell, Rick Brecht, Jack Danks, Joe Danks, Andy DeBoard, Robert Emmerson, Jim Gulbranson, John Gulbranson, Christian Hurd, Brenda Lindholm, William Lindholm, Josh Lowe, Wayne Mast, Mitch McGee, Jason Porter, Ron Repp, Ben Rodgers, David Rogers, Jim Shumaker, and Michael Weber.  John and Diana Risse, Bob Trusty, and Mega Mike Patten served on staff.  Any one of these Arrowmen can tell you more about the event and why you should be there.

The event schedule has been released and it promises a great time in many areas.  Unlike past NOACs, classes will be assigned once everyone signs up, so there are no filled classes yet.  Check out the extensive list of classes in the document link.  There's still time to sign up and get in on the OA event of the year.

NOAC_Program_Guide

As information is announced by National, it will be posted here along with links to the event.  Stay tuned and plan to attend.

Register for NOAC here

National NOAC Site