By-Laws of Te’kening Lodge #37
Order of the Arrow
Boy Scouts of
(As adopted 9/99 with emendations
thereafter)
Article I.
It is the mission of Te’kening Lodge #37 to
achieve the purpose of the
Order of the Arrow as an integral part of
the Boy Scouts of
the guidance of selected capable adults.*
Article II. LODGE
ORGANIZATION
Section
1. Name,
Symbols, and Affiliation
1.1 The name of this lodge of the Order of the Arrow shall be
Te’kening Lodge #37, Wimachtendienk, Wingolauchsik,
Witahemui.*
1.1.i Te’kening means “In The Woods” in the
Lenni-Lenape language.
1.1.ii The forms, nomenclature, and traditions of the
Native Americans are utilized insofar as they are
conducive to furthering the objectives of the Order.
Under no circumstances shall such an emphasis be
placed upon the Native American aspect of the
Order as to obscure its objectives.
1.2 The totem of this lodge shall be that of the wild turkey.
1.3 The lodge shall be affiliated with the
Council, Boy Scouts of America, and shall be under the
supervision of the Council Camping Committee and under
the administrative authority of the Scout Executive.*
1.3.i The Scout Executive is the final authority of
Te’kening Lodge #37, Order of the Arrow. He
(She) holds the title of Supreme Chief of the Fire.
1.3.ii The Scout Executive may appoint a Lodge Staff
Advisor, who is a professional staff member and
acts on behalf of the Scout Executive in giving
guidance to the lodge in his/her place.
Section 2. Chapters
2.1 The lodge shall, upon the decision of the Scout Executive, be
divided into chapters that will complete the objectives of the
lodge more efficiently. Their boundaries shall be determined
according to lodge membership needs, upon the
recommendation of the Lodge Chief, Lodge Advisor, and the
Lodge Staff Advisor.
2.2 Chapter supervision shall come from the District Camping
Committees and be under the administrative authority of
assigned District Executives and the Lodge Staff Advisor.
2.3 There shall be no individual chapter treasuries or dues and
all necessary funds shall come solely from those operating
funds established and furnished by the lodge.
2.4 Each Chapter Chief shall oversee the formation of such
operating committees for the chapter as may be required,
subject to the approval of the Lodge Chief and the
Chapter Advisor.
2.4.i All chairmen of such committees shall be under
twenty-one years of age for the entirety of their
term of office.
Article III.
MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. Election
The requirements for membership in the lodge shall be as
stated in the current printing of the Order of the Arrow
Handbook and the Guide for Officers and Advisors, or as
amended by the National Order of the Arrow Committee.*
1.1 All unit elections must be cleared through the Unit Elections
Committee as outlined in the current printing of the Order of
the Arrow Handbook.
1.2.i The Unit Elections Committee shall be composed
of a youth chairman, and adult advisor, and the
Vice-Chief of each chapter or his designated
representative, as well as any general lodge members
trained in performing unit elections.
1.2.ii The lodge shall annually hold training in unit
elections to insure that each chapter has a qualified
election team.
1.2.iii Elections conducted in any other way, in such cases
where inaccurate information has been supplied to
the election team, or when conducted by another
member of the same troop will in no way be
honored by the lodge.
Section
2. The
Ordeal
2.1 After election, a Scout or Scouter is considered a candidate
until he or she has completed the Ordeal of the Order of the
Arrow.
2.1.i Procedure for the Ordeal shall be as stated in the
Order of the Arrow Handbook and the Guide to
Inductions.*
2.2 All ceremonies will be conducted in a proper manner in
accordance with the policies of the National Order of the
Arrow.
2.2.i No troop, chapter, or entity other than the lodge may
conduct any Order of the Arrow ceremonies without
the express written consent of the Lodge Executive
Committee.
2.2.ii There shall be no violence or hazing in any ceremony
conducted by the lodge for the purpose of nominating
or inducting a camper to membership.
Section 3. Brotherhood
3.1 Completion of Brotherhood membership shall be in
accordance with the requirements in the current printing of the
Order of the Arrow Handbook and the Guide for Officers and
Advisors.*
Section 4. The Vigil Honor
4.1 Attainment of the Vigil Honor shall be in accordance with
the requirements in the current printing of the Order of the
Arrow Handbook and the Guide for Officers and Advisors.*
4.2 A Vigil Honor Selection ad-hoc committee and chairman shall
be appointed by the Lodge Chief by the first Executive
Committee meeting of each year upon the recommendations
of the Lodge Advisor.
4.2.i The committee shall be composed of a youth
chairman, an adult advisor, and one or two youth
members of each chapter.
4.2.i.a At least one of the youth members from each
chapter should, if possible, already have
received the Vigil Honor.
4.2.i.b In no case may any eligible candidate for the
Vigil Honor participate in the selection process.
4.2.ii The Vigil Honor Committee shall review all
submitted Lodge Vigil Petitions and select qualified
candidates for the Vigil Honor as outlined in the
Order of the Arrow Handbook and the Guide for
Officers and Advisors.
4.2.iii The Vigil Honor Committee shall be responsible for
determining the time and location of the Vigil Honor
Ceremony, as well as selecting the members of the
Vigil Honor ceremonial team.
Section 5. Uniform and Insignia
5.1 Lodge Neckerchiefs and sashes shall be worn only when
representing the Order of the Arrow. The sash is worn with
the official “class A” uniform or official adult dress wear, or
in such instances as specially approved by the Lodge Chief or
Lodge Advisor.
5.2 The lodge’s standard pocket flap shall conform with all
requirements set forth by the National Order of the Arrow
Committee, as outlined in the latest edition of the Order of
the Arrow Handbook.
5.2.i The lodge shall uphold the recommendation of the
National Order of the Arrow Committee that no
restrictions be placed on the purchase of the standard
lodge flap.
5.3 Each current lodge member shall be permitted the purchase of
up to two Lodge neckerchief patches if such are available for
purchase.
5.4 Other insignia, such as the Universal Arrow Ribbon or the
Civilian Arrow Pin may be worn as described in the Order of
the Arrow handbook and in the official Rules and Regulations
of the Boy Scouts of America Insignia Guide.
5.5 All other insignia, including “legend patches”, beadwork,
signatures, or any such additions to the official Order of the
Arrow sash or other component of the “class A” uniform which
have not been approved by the National Order of the Arrow
Committee shall not be permitted.
Section
6. Honorary
or Permanent Membership
6.1 In accordance with the policies of the National Order of the
Arrow Committee, as outlined in the Order of the Arrow
Handbook, the lodge shall not grant any honorary membership
or recognize any as members of the lodge who have not been
duly elected and undergone the Ordeal of the Order of the
Arrow as set forth in the Order of the Arrow Handbook and
the Guide to Inductions.
6.1.i Adult professional Scouters of the council shall be
considered ex officio members of the lodge and may
be asked to undergo the Ordeal upon approval of the
Scout Executive if their active membership in lodge
activities is deemed to be a potential benefit to the
lodge and/or council. This shall conform to the
regulations set forth in the Guide for Officers and
Advisors.
6.2 The lodge shall in no way permit any form of permanent
membership status or other special arrangement with any
member which would preclude the annual payment of dues.
6.2.i All members must retain their membership in the
council with which the lodge is affiliated and pay
annually the set membership dues to remain a
registered member of the lodge.
Article IV. LEADERSHIP
Section 1. Officers and Officials
1.1 All elected and appointed youth leadership in the lodge and
within the chapters of the lodge must be under twenty-one
years of age for their entire term of office (see Article IV,
Section 3 for length of elected office).*
1.2 The officers of the lodge shall be, in order of precedence, the
Lodge Chief, the Executive Vice-Chief, the Vice-Chief of
Inductions, the Vice-Chief of Programs, the Lodge Secretary,
and the Lodge Treasurer (see Appendix A for full list of
officer duties).*
1.2.i The Lodge Chief shall have the power to act upon
matters in the best interest of the Lodge, if said
business cannot be delayed until the next scheduled
Lodge Executive Committee meeting, subject to the
approval of the Lodge Advisor and Lodge Staff Advisor.
1.3 The Immediate Past Lodge Chief shall act as a mentor to the
current Lodge Chief for the duration of the Lodge Chief’s
term of office.
1.3.i In the event that the Lodge Chief is unable to fulfill
his duties and chooses to resign his position, the
current Past Chief shall retain his own position.
1.3.ii The Past Chief shall be permitted to serve as the
chairman or advisor of a committee or as an officer of
the lodge or his chapter if appointed by the Lodge
Chief (or Lodge Advisor) or elected by his peers, as
described in the portions of Article IV relevant to
each position and in accordance with all relevant
restrictions and methods of selection. In this event,
his primary concern shall be the operation of his
committee or the fulfillment of his service to his
office, with all attendant rights and responsibilities.
1.4 Each chapter within the lodge shall have a Chief, Vice-Chief,
and Secretary, elected by the members of that chapter, as well
as any other officers or officials deemed necessary by the
chapter for its success (see Appendix A).
1.4.i The term length for chapter officers shall correspond
to that of the lodge officers.
1.4.ii At no time may any current Chapter Chief or Chapter
Advisor serve as the chairman or advisor of any
lodge or chapter operating committee. He may,
however, hold the position of chairman or advisor in
any lodge ad-hoc committee, as requested by the
Lodge Chief or Lodge Advisor, respectively.
1.5 The Lodge Chief shall, with the approval of the Lodge
Advisor, annually appoint such operating and special
committee chairmen as may be required for the functioning of
the lodge (see Appendix B for committees and functions).
1.5.i Each committee shall be permitted up to two
chairmen, selected as described above, of which the
seniormost one shall have the final decision in the
event of any conflict.
1.5.ii At no time may any current operating committee
chairman for the lodge serve as the chairman of a
second lodge operating committee. This does not
prevent him from membership in other committees.
1.5.iii The Lodge Chief has the power, at any time during
the year, to dismiss any non-elected member of the
Lodge Executive Committee for inadequate service,
subject to the approval of the Lodge Advisor.
1.6 Each Chapter Chief shall annually appoint such operating
committees for his chapter as may be required, subject to the
approval of his Chapter Advisor.
1.7 Whenever the Lodge Chief or any Chapter Chief transmits to
the Lodge Executive Committee his written declaration that he
is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and
until he transmits to them a written document on the contrary,
his duties shall be discharged by his Vice-Chief, acting on his
behalf.
1.8 The Lodge Advisor shall be appointed annually by the Scout
Executive. He (She) is the Deputy Supreme Chief of the Fire
and is a member of the Council Camping Committee.
1.9 Committee and Chapter Advisors, as well as any Lodge
Associate Advisors shall be appointed annually by the Lodge
Advisor, in consultation with the Scout Executive.
1.9.i Each committee shall be permitted up to two
advisors, selected as described above, of which one
shall be considered the senior and have the final
decision in the event of any conflict, subject to the
approval of the Lodge Advisor.
1.9.ii At no time may any current operating committee
advisor for the lodge serve as the advisor of a
second lodge operating committee. This does not
prevent him from membership in other committees.
1.9.iii The Lodge Advisor has the power, at any time during
the year, to dismiss any advisor for inadequate
service after consulting the Lodge Staff Advisor, and
with the approval of the Scout Executive.
Section 2.