Lodge History

To see the history of Miami Lodge 495 and the Order of the Arrow, including previous lodge chiefs, and awards recipients, please visit the Lodge History page.

Lodge Mission Statement

By building upon the foundations of the Order of the Arrow, the mission of Miami Lodge 495, through positive youth leadership, will be to promote a true Brotherhood of Cheerful Service by meeting and exceeding goals of the Council and the Lodge with strong communications, exciting programs, and opportunities for future leadership development under the guidance of capable adult advisers.

Purpose of the OA

The purpose of the Order of the Arrow is fourfold:

• To recognize those Scout campers who best exemplify the Scout Oath and Law in their daily lives.
  
• To develop and maintain camping traditions and spirit.
  
• To promote Scout camping.
  
• To crystallize the Scouting habit of helpfulness into a life purpose of leadership in cheerful service to others.

Lodge Location

Miami Lodge 495 is located in the Dayton, Ohio area in the Miami Valley Council. The Miami Valley Council includes Darke District, Preble District, Shelby District, Miami District, Wright Brothers District, and Sunwatch District.

OA Membership

The OA has more than 176,000 members located in lodges affiliated with approximately 327 local BSA councils.

OA Eligibility

Scouts are elected to the Order by their fellow unit members, following approval by the Scoutmaster or Varsity team Coach. To become a member, a youth must be a registered member of a Boy Scout troop or Varsity Scout team and hold the First Class rank. The youth must have experienced fifteen days and nights of Boy Scout camping during the two-year period prior to the election. The fifteen days and nights must include one, but no more than one, long-term camp consisting of six consecutive days and five nights of resident camping, approved and under the auspices and standards of the Boy Scouts of America. The balance of the camping must be overnight, weekend, or other short-term camps.

Adult selection is based on their ability to perform the necessary functions to help the Order fulfill its purpose, and is not for recognition. Selected adult Scouters must be an asset to the Order because of demonstrated abilities, and provide a positive role model for the youth members of the lodge.

Section C-4B

The section is the recognized interlodge/intercouncil organizational structure of the Order of the Arrow. The section exists to provide direct interlodge contact with lodge leaders. Thus, its principle purpose is to conduct an annual meeting for the delegates of the lodges, bringing them together for fellowship and mutual improvement through the exchange of ideas. This annual meeting is called a conclave.

Section C-4B was formed in June of 2004. The First Council of Chiefs meeting was held at Camp Friedlander on June 1st. Section C-4B held elections on that Sunday morning, which happened to be the last day of the last Section C-5B conclave. The Lodges in attendance were Tecumseh, Ku-Ni-Eh, Tarhe, Miami, and Tindeuchen. Elected to office were, Joe Fischer from Tecumseh, Chief; Tim Wright from Ku-Ni-Eh, Vice Chief; and Mike Price from Miami, Secretary. The first Section Advisers were Chris Grove from Miami, Adviser; Bob Church from Tindeuchen, Associate Adviser; and Clyde Howell from Ku-Ni-Eh, Associate Adviser. The first C-4B Staff Adviser was Rich Braessler from Tecumseh.

The Miami Lodge hosted the EC-6A Section Conclave in May of 1990. Rick Hauser, Miami Lodge Chief 1990-1991, served as the Section Secretary for the 1991 calendar year and was elected as the Section Chief for 1992 at the May 1991 Section Conclave held at the Fort Steuben Scout Reservation. Rick was reelected as Section Chief in May of 1992 at the Section Conclave held at the Muskingham Valley Reserve. At the May 1993 Section Conclave held at Chief Logan Reservation, Alex Rhodes, Miami Lodge Chief, was chosen as the Section Vice-Chief for the 1993-1994 program year. In June of 1994, Alex Rhodes was reelected at a special meeting to be Section Chief of the realigned C-4A for 1995-1996. P.J. Hentrich, 1995-1996 Miami Lodge Chief, was selected as the 1996-1997 C-4A Section Chief at the 1996 Section Conclave held at Camp Friedlander in Cincinnati, Ohio (Ku-Ni-Eh Lodge, Dan Beard Council). The host lodge for the 1997 Section Conclave was the Kiskakon Lodge #75. The camp is located approximately 40 miles north of Ft. Wayne at Camp Chief Little Turtle. The Section Conclave was held April 11-13, 1997. P.J. Hentrich was elected Section Chief for 1997-1998 in the new Section C-5B. At the 1997 Section Conclave held at camp Falling Rock, Rob Signom was elected as the 1998-1999 Section Secretary.

The following is a list of the lodges in our section, along with its principle city:

Tecumseh #65 (Columbus, Ohio)

Ku-Ni-Eh #145 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

Tarhe #292 (Springfield, Ohio)

Mawat Woakus #449 (Findlay, Ohio)

Miami #495 (Dayton, Ohio)

Tindeuchen #522 (Toledo, Ohio)

Portage #619 (Ashland, Ohio)