In this email you will find:
The section chiefs at the National Planning Meeting picked the winner of the NOAC Patch Design Contest. From the numerous submissions received, they decided that there was a three-way tie! The winning designers were: Matthew S. of Octoraro Lodge, West Chester, PA; Michael D. of Chippewa Lodge, Waterford, MI; and Steven V. of Aal-Pa-Tah Lodge, West Palm Beach, FL.
Elements of two of the designs were combined to create the NOAC patch, which will be unveiled at the conference. The third design will be featured on the NOAC merchandise at the NOAC Trading Post. Because there were three winners, each designer will receive a $100 credit at the NOAC Trading Post and a skybox seat at a NOAC show. Congratulations to our winners, and thanks to all who competed!
For many Arrowmen, the idea of a good time may be spending three days hiking in the backcountry. Many sixteen year-olds might spend their time with friends or surfing the latest music videos on MTV. But for Justin Churchman, nothing is more fun than spending three days in Mexico building houses for the less fortunate.
For four years sixteen year old Justin - an Eagle Scout and Ordeal member from Troop 59 in El Paso, Texas - has been hard at work providing shelter for impoverished Mexicans. In seventh grade Justin got the opportunity to go to Mexico with his middle school to build houses through the organization Casas por Cristo. He originally decided to go on the trip because it sounded like a cool weekend getaway. But by the end of the weekend it had turned into much more. “I fell in love with it…it changed my life,” he said.
After spending the weekend building a two-room home with power and lighting, Justin felt like he had accomplished a lot. But he knew he had a lot more work to do. “When I saw the family’s faces, I wanted to do so much more,” he said. And much more he did. Soon after his first trip, Justin called Casas to find out about starting his own team. Instead of helping him assemble everything necessary to build a house on his own, they referred him to two church groups that let him tag along. But by the end of 2006, Justin had convinced the organization that he was ready to build a house of his own.
In order to build his house, he recruited a team of thirty volunteers. In addition, he is responsible for raising $6,000, planning all of the logistics and filling out all of the necessary paperwork. But for Justin, it was worth it. “The idea of my hands giving someone shelter hit me hard,” he said. His project was successful and provided eight people with shelter they wouldn’t have had otherwise. With this success Justin was ready to build again.
One of his next projects carried special meaning. Justin decided to team with his sister and build a house to complete his Eagle Scout Rank and her GSA Gold Award.
By the end of last school year, he convinced the organization to let him intern - a position that’s normally reserved for college students. Now, according to Justin, he builds every chance he gets. “On Monday my friends talk about what they did over the weekend: watch movies or hang out. But when my friends ask what I did over the weekend, I can say that I built a house.”
Justin just completed his eleventh house and hopes to have twenty done by the time he’s seventeen. When he’s not building houses, Justin manages to find time to play soccer and participate in his church’s youth group. He has even started a healthy-living awareness group with a friend. Justin uses the power of one. Do you?
Every Arrowmen has the Power of One. If you know an outstanding youth Arrowmen who has truly made a difference in their community, you can nominate them to be featured in a NOAC News You Can Use by sending an Email with their name, contact info, and a brief background of what they have done to nept@oa-bsa.org.
Today, the NOAC 2009 merchandise was posted to the OA Trading Post Online, at http://tradingpost.oa-bsa.org/ There, you will find many classic memorabilia items that have traditionally been offered at national conferences (i.e., patches, T-shirts, ceramic mugs, and neckerchiefs, etc.). Additionally, we also have some new items that will spark interest in both youth and adults. Here is a sample of some of the new items that are available:
Place your pre-order as soon as possible. Pre-orders help determine how many of an item will be available. The less pre-orders there are, the less chance that you will be able to find your favorite NOAC memorabilia at the on-site trading post. Also, you do not need to attend NOAC to place a pre-order, so let your friends and family know that the NOAC 2009 trading post merchandise has been posted.
The International Scouting Collectors Association (ISCA) will be hosting the 2009 Pre-NOAC Trade-O-Ree, for the first time as an official part of the NOAC program. The Trade-O-Ree will be open to all Arrowmen on Thursday, July 30 and Friday July 31 from 8AM to 11:30PM and on Saturday, August 1, the first day of NOAC, from 8:00AM to 3:00PM.
The event will be located at the Tennis Center on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. For more information, visit http://scouttrader.org/
Video Staff for National OA Shows
At OAShows, we deliver Scouting's message. Our staff is full except for a handful of positions available for people with specialized skill and talent in television and video. Do you like to shoot, edit, and produce video? Are you passionate about creating and animating graphics? Are you interested in working with a team to help deliver the message of Scouting to everyone at NOAC?
The NOAC 2009 Shows Team is looking for a few good Arrowmen to help make this happen. Experience with the following is what we're after:
We work in a professional environment, and we work as hard as we play. Send a note with a link or example of what you've done to Brian Corder (briancorder@sportchassis.com). He can figure out where your talent might fit it the video team.
Do not forget that a $100 deposit is due by March 1, 2009 for all NOAC participants and staff. Remember that as soon as you pay your deposit, you will receive an “I’m There” – NOAC promotions patch.
"We all have ability. The difference is how we use it." - Stevie Wonder