Momentum: Spark, the second event in the Order of the Arrow’s Momentum series, took place virtually from Nov. 6-7, 2020, with over 1,100 Arrowmen in attendance as either a basic or premium delegate.
The event was centered around holding the first-ever national induction weekend via virtual inductions for candidates who may not have been able to attend their induction weekend in-person due to their local COVID-19 restrictions, with nearly 1,000 candidates being inducted into the Order. Lodges were still responsible for administering the four tests of the Ordeal but Momentum: Spark provided ceremonial content and fun programming to welcome our new members on Saturday evening.
Besides the inductions held for the Ordeal candidates, other opportunities offered to Arrowmen include various training seminars, discussion panels, and other activities aimed to excite, engage and enlighten Arrowmen across the country. These training seminars were centered around activation and inductions, while the discussion panels were focused towards diversity and welcoming young women into the Order.
Premium delegates had the unique opportunity to participate in an event-wide game and connect with each other via the Momentum community platform on Slack. On Saturday evening, after the completion of the Ordeal ceremony, recently inducted and current Arrowmen came together for an evening of fellowship and fun. The Arrowmen in attendance had an opportunity to meet their national officers, play Kahoot and watch the region chiefs face off in a game of Tried and True Trivia. As the event ended Saturday evening with a closing show, each attendee returned to their home lodge with the training necessary to further their lodges inductions and activation initiative.
Here is just one example of a lodge’s success during Momentum: Spark!
Kittan Lodge, located in Upstate New York, took part in Momentum: Spark which provided the opportunity for them to induct 107 new brothers. Once tasked with the challenge of preparing for Momentum: Spark, it was through the hard work of several members of the lodge that this was accomplished.
Each chapter had the responsibility to coordinate with each of the local troops. The chapters ensured that each participating troop was assigned a service project that they could complete and an elangomat to guide all of the candidates. Another essential group that helped out was the Lodge Tech Team, who worked tirelessly leading up to the weekend to guarantee that each candidate would be able to participate virtually, through utilizing the Kittan Lodge YouTube account.
A welcome video was produced the week leading up to the induction for both candidates and their parents, while the chat feature was available during the live premier in order for candidates and their parents to ask questions during the presentation.
Throughout the weekend of Momentum: Spark, there would be check-in videos for candidates to join and further learn about what they were about to embark on next. After the Ordeal ceremony, the Lodge Chief ran a live presentation introducing the JumpStart program to the newly inducted Arrowmen.
In order to keep all of the new Arrowmen active, Kittan Lodge already plans to follow up Momentum: Spark by hosting their first virtual Arrow Weekend for all lodge participants to take part in.
Missed out on Momentum: Spark? More information on the next Momentum event, which will take place in late Spring of 2021, will be available soon at momentum.oa-bsa.org.