I have found that once one engages in a position in the Order of the Arrow, one can never really let it go. Perhaps it is my own officious nature, but I am often moved to act and think in ways that were required when I was in my past roles. Of late, I have been moved to think as I did when I was the Wauna La-Mon’tay Lodge Membership Vice Chief, back in 2024.
Particularly, I have been thinking about how I aimed to guide the chapter chiefs and election officials to being successful that year, and I recalled an email I sent entitled Meditations on Membership. The point of these meditations was to advise chapter officials on making the election season go as smoothly and efficiently as possible. I thought, given our section’s current immersion in the elections season, I could revive my meditations for a moment, such that they may be of use to any in our section who are contributing to the elections effort. This is the start of a series on membership, which will continue throughout the year. I will start with my meditations on communication and presentation regarding the unit election.
Meditation 1: Communication Prior to the Election
Naturally, communication is the foremost component of the election process. In particular, I view communication with the unit leader to be the most important because they are the gatekeepers of the unit and very influential to getting youth and adults through their induction. To facilitate success in a unit election and inducting and activating the elected youth, communicate transparently with the unit leader.
Once an election is scheduled, reach out to the unit leader and committee chair about a week prior to the election to introduce yourself, finalize the number of active registered youth, check to ensure that all candidate information is correct, and work out the amount of time the presentation and election will take – typically budget for about 30 minutes.
The week-out model gives the unit officials time to get back to you and for any working out of any issues that come up in the process of these verifications. Many election teams I have seen have put this off until the day of the election when they arrive on site. This is an unnecessary stressor for election teams, as they are then put in a position wherein last minute alterations may be necessary with no efficient way to make them. Moreover, it rather inconveniences the unit leader and gives off an air of unpreparedness.
Ultimately, one cannot be too communicative with unit leaders prior to the unit election, as long as that communication is crowned with intentionality, and it builds trust between the unit leader and the chapter, which can only be beneficial to us as an organization.
Meditation 2: The Presentation at the Election
When you arrive at the election, with all the necessary materials and information, seek out the unit leader, committee chair, and youth leader. These interactions are to do a last-minute check of all the things that were communicated to the unit leader and committee chair a week in advance. It is also important to offer a platform for unit officials to ask questions about the election process and to answer them to your best ability. Next, set up your presentation and election materials.
Once these things are done, you are ready to begin the presentation. If the presentation is later in the meeting, I view the interim period as a great opportunity for election officials to respectfully intermingle with the youth and adults of the unit, so as to better familiarize themselves with the unit and promote the OA in a more informal manner. Once the unit is ready for the election officials to begin the presentation, start it out basic – they should introduce themselves and talk about the basics of what the OA is. Beyond stressing that the OA is Scouting’s national honor society, I recommend promoting chapter and lodge events to the youth of the unit.
The foremost advantage of this is that it ideally brings people together in an accessible way, as chapter and lodge events are typically somewhat close by, and the youth in the audience may have companions that will accompany them to such events, so attendance may increase. The other advantage to sticking to these two layers of the OA is that it keeps the OA local and tangible to the youth. In other words, it does not overwhelm or confuse the audience with things they have never really experienced and have little comparison to in Scouting (for example, there is no good comparison to a section in Scouting America).
Once the introduction of the OA is done, the unit election video ought to be shown. Some lodges have their own video, which chapters are permitted to show. When in doubt, however, stick to the national one. Be sure to visibly pay attention to the video, as you are the example for the audience. If you don’t pay attention to it, why should they? Once the video is over, do a quick recap of the election process and ask if there are questions. Moreover, I recommend having the youth on the ballot stand up so that the members of the unit can see their face. This helps newer youth or youth in a large troop recognize the name on the ballot with that person, as they may not remember the candidate’s name. Speaking of newer youth, you should be sure to ask any new scouts if they feel confident in casting a ballot, making sure they understand that turning in a blank ballot is a vote against everyone on the ballot.
Then, go ahead and run the election. Be sure to set up a system in which the voters’ ballots get back to you. This could be them folding it and bringing it to you or you coming to collect the ballot from them. Either way, I recommend having them fold the ballot to further discourage sharing of votes. Be sure to play the rest of the election video and camp promotion video after the ballots have been turned in.
After you have completed the election, counted the votes, had the unit leader sign the form (of which I recommend having two so that each party gets a copy), and agreed upon a time to announce the results of the election (it is recommended that results are announced on site, and I will move forward assuming that the results have been announced), you ought to speak to any current member of the OA to get their contact information, take inventory of things they may be interested in helping with on the chapter or lodge level, and do a final promotion of upcoming events. It may also be useful to ask them to encourage the candidates to go through their induction and to encourage current members to accompany candidates to their induction weekend. Next, see if you can pull the newly elected candidates aside to encourage them to attend an induction weekend and to check their contact information. Having done these things, you are free to leave the meeting, unless otherwise requested by the unit. I recommend that the results of the election be posted the day of the election so that candidates are contacted as quickly as possible.
That wraps up the first two meditations on membership. I hope that you have found it useful, and if nothing else, thought provoking to how the election and visitation process can be more smooth and efficient. I would ask that you, if you found these bits of advice useful, encourage your chapter elections teams and chapter chiefs and advisers to look it over, as they are really the ones on the front lines in the election season. If you have any questions or concerns about these meditations, please reach out at rlewallen@sectiong16.org. I look forward to next month, where I will be addressing further issues related to the election, induction, and activation metrics.
Until next time, Section G16!
Reece Lewallen
2025-2026 Section G16 Secretary