G. Kellock Hale, Jr.

G. Kellock “Kel” Hale was born January 17, 1904 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He joined Scouts at the age of 12 (minimum age in those days) in 1916. During World War I, Kel sold more war bonds than any other Scout in Philadelphia. As a result of this achievement, Kel was selected as the Scout that would serve as Lord Baden-Powell’s Orderly when he came to visit Philadelphia.

Kel was inducted in the OA at its birthplace, Treasure Island, in 1918. He was one of the Council’s most decorated Scouts. By the time Kel was twenty-years old and attending the University of Pennsylvania he was an Eagle Scout with three Silver Palms (that would be at least 66 merit badges in 1924, a remarkable achievement in that era).

Following college, Hale moved to Mount Airy, North Carolina and went to work for the North Carolina Granite Company rising to the position of Secretary. In Scouting, Hale became a troop Scoutmaster, a position he would hold for 15 years until becoming District Commissioner. During his time as Scoutmaster, Hale founded Wahissa Lodge in Old Hickory Council at Camp Lasater on June 9,1938. Later that year Hale assisted with producing the 1938 National Meeting at Camp Irondale. Hale kept his Vigil receiving the name Kittelendam translated as “The Earnest” on August 10, 1940. Hale served in a leadership role at the 1940 National Meeting at Camp Twin Echo and received the Silver Beaver Award from his council in 1942.

Hale started numerous lodges throughout Region 6 (North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida). In 1945 he was invited to the National Executive Committee meeting. His attendance was to assist in planning the 1946 National Meeting originally scheduled at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, close to where Hale lived. However for various reasons the 1946 National Meeting had to be moved to Chanute Field, Illinois.

At the 1946 National Meeting Hale received the Distinguished Service Award. He also ran for and was elected as the Southeast representative to the National Executive Committee. In 1948, when the National Executive Committee was disbanded and the National OA Committee formed Hale was named as the first National OA Committee Chairman. Hale only served as Chairman for a year, when illness forced him to resign in 1949. Hale lamented that strict doctor’s orders required him to dispense with all activities and he was required to observe strict bed rest as the remedy at the time for fatigue.

Hale continued to serve on the National OA Committee until 1971. His last leadership position was serving as chairman of the Distinguished Service Award Committee. During the critical years of the Order when the OA fully integrated as part of the BSA, it was Hale along with H. Lloyd Nelson and Thomas Cairns that provided the essential servant leadership. Kel was a member of the BSA for 55 years and on the National OA Committee or its equivalent for over 25 years. G. Kellock Hale passed away on October 3, 1973.

2, OA, Profile, Scouting

US Enters Korean War

The Korean war began on June 25, 1950. The Korean peninsula had been ruled by Japan since 1910 and following the surrender of Japan at the end of World War II, Korea was divided along the 38^th Parallel with United States troops occupying the Southern part and Soviet troops occupying the Northern part.

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National OA Committee Red Sash

In the spring 1950 issue of the National Bulletin, Arrowmen were told that members of the National OA Committee would be available to meet with them at the 1950 NOAC. It was stated that they would be accessible to help members better understand the Order and its policies. Members were also told,

you’ll recognize these men because they will be wearing a special Vigil Honor band on which the colors will be reversed. These bands were made specifically for our Committee so that lodge members could recognize these officials and seek their help.

The sash was a proactive response to the 1948 NOAC. Many Arrowmen were confused about what it meant to be fully absorbed into the BSA. They were only beginning to see the benefits of youth taking leadership roles. The reality was that the OA was more run by volunteer people than professionals than ever before. By making themselves conspicuous and available with their reverse color sashes the National OA Committee was able to allay fears and largely put the issue of the integration of the OA into BSA behind them.

During the red National OA Committee sashes tenure as few as 15 of them, including one for E. Urner Goodman,  were issued. Circa 1954 they were considered no longer needed and were retired.

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Truman Becomes President

Truman took office as the 33^rd President of the United States three months into Roosevelt’s fourth term following Roosevelt's death. It was a rough time, and World War II was still raging. Truman was the one who made the decision to utilize the atomic bomb – a controversial decision.

Harry S. Truman was a strong supporter of the Boy Scouts. In addition to being the Honorary President of the BSA, Truman personally attended and opened the 1950 National Scout Jamboree at Valley Forge, PA.

2, Non-Scouting

Japan Surrenders Ending WW II

World War II ended within days of the United States dropping of Atomic bombs over the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan unconditionally surrendered on September 2, 1945.  Both Goodman and Edson lost sons during the war. George Goodman and Stuart Edson were killed in action in Europe. Edson, having served in the reserve since his service in World War I returned to active duty as a lieutenant colonel and then attained the rank of Colonel shortly before his discharge in 1945.

2, Non-Scouting

14th & Last "National Meeting" Held

After World War II, National Lodge could meet again. The original plan was to hold the 1946 meeting where the 1942 National Meeting had been scheduled. However, with all of the returning military the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill informed the National Lodge that they would not have the dorm space available. The OA was now too large to meet at a Scout camp and universities were filled with returning military. An alternate site was needed.

984 delegates from 114 lodges (both records) descended upon Chanute Field Army Air Corp in Illinois. The Arrowmen bunked in the more than ample barracks. Owasippe Lodge, Chicago took the traditional role of a host lodge handling registration and other activities. Even though Chicago was over 100 miles away, Owasippe was the only lodge with the Arrow-power to handle the responsibilities.

Surprisingly, there was insufficient time to hold the very successful classes and group sessions presented at the 1938 and 1940 National Lodge Meetings. The OA Distinguished Service Award was presented. The meeting was set on a tight schedule with the opening on a Tuesday at 2:00 PM and ending on Thursday at noon.

1946 was the last meeting with elections of adult leadership. Robert H. Heistand of Nentico Lodge, Baltimore, Maryland was elected National Chief. John C. Norsk from Allogagan Lodge, Springfield, Massachusetts was elected to a second term as National Secretary. J. Rucker Newbery was elected National Treasurer. The National Executive Committee was expanded. The two immediate past National Chiefs would be on the board. They were H. Lloyd Nelson and George Mozealous. Four other committeemen were elected, each from a different geographical section of the country. Elected to the committee were G. Kellock Hale, Jr., John M. Pfeil, Herbert L. Gaskin and Andrew R. Groenink. In addition the National Council had two representatives, Founder E. Urner Goodman and Director of Camping Wes Klusmann.

1946 would be the last “National Lodge Meeting” (verbiage on the 1948 patch notwithstanding). From humble Grand Lodge Meetings with fewer than 10 lodges and less than 20 delegates the OA had become an official BSA program. In 1948 the Order of the Arrow would be fully integrated into the BSA. What would come next would be a NOAC!

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NBA Begins

The NBA was founded as the Basketball Association of America on June 6, 1946. The first game was played between the New York Knickerbockers and the Toronto Huskies. The league changed its name to the National Basketball Association, (NBA) when the BAA merged with the rival National Basketball League (NBL) in 1949.

2, Non-Scouting

First Modern Day African American Baseball Player

Jackie Robinson became the first African American to play modern Major League Baseball on April 15, 1947 at Ebbets Field, Brooklyn, New York. Born in Georgia, the son of sharecroppers, the youngest of five children (Brother “Mack” won a Silver Medal behind Jesse Owens in the 200 Meter Dash at the 1936 Olympics), Robinson went to UCLA and served his nation in the military.

2, Non-Scouting

J. Rucker Newbery

J. Rucker Newbery is best known as the editor of the first Order of the Arrow Handbook in 1948. Newbery officially joined the OA on June 11, 1936 when he chartered the Bob White Lodge, Augusta Georgia into the Order while serving as their Scout Executive. Newbery remained a member of the Order until his death in 1978.

Early in 1942 Frank Dix of the National Executive Committee tendered his resignation. Dix had been selected to the National Executive Committee as the Southern representative. When he was re-assigned by the national office as a Deputy Regional Executive to Cincinnati, he could no longer serve. It was a national BSA policy requiring balance on the lead OA committee that a Southern representative was required on the committee. Dix suggested J. Rucker Newbery as his replacement and in 1942 Newbery was appointed to the National Executive Committee.

In 1943 Newbery transferred to Charleston, South Carolina and became Scout Executive of Coastal Carolina Council. He immediately chartered Unali’yi Lodge. In 1946 Newbery was elected National Lodge Treasurer at the National Meeting at Chanute Field. Newbery also kept his Vigil at the 1946 Meeting and was given a Vigil name meaning “The Willing One”.

In 1948 J. Rucker Newbery edited the first Order of the Arrow Handbook. The book was an immediate success and was a requisite requirement for the OA becoming fully integrated into the BSA. Newbery was also an early patch collector. The OA Handbook was the first time groups of patches were photographed for members. This contributed to the growth of patch trading. Newbery was honored for his leadership and service with the OA Distinguished Service Award in 1948, a time when there had been fewer than 25 recipients.

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OA Official Part of BSA

It was announced at the 1948 NOAC that the Order of the Arrow would be fully incorporated into the Boy Scouts of America. In a process that had started in 1921 with the first national organization, the Order of the Arrow had finally realized its most ambitious and desired goal. This announcement was met with some acrimony from Arrowmen concerned about the BSA taking over the Order. While the national OA leadership had been fully dedicated for over 15 years to achieving this goal, many Arrowmen took pride in the autonomy of the Order.

It had happened incrementally. In 1922 WWW was labeled an Official BSA experiment. Starting in 1932 the OA was thoroughly investigated by the BSA and made a Scout program in 1934, effective January 1, 1935. Once an official program the Order grew rapidly. The OA grew from 43 active lodges at the end of 1934 to 362 active lodges in 1948. The OA had become a true national organization operating in every region of the country.

The OA did have to make some changes to gain full integration into the BSA program. Because of religious objections that had existed for decades regarding the ceremonies everything had to be reviewed and often re-written. Another issue was some members of the OA while elected as Scouts had allowed their BSA registration to lapse. As a BSA run only active members of the Scouts could be active Arrowmen. The OA also had to change some terminology.

There was also an agreement regarding youth leadership. As in Scout troops, leadership positions in lodges and eventually areas and regions would be changes to youth leadership with adult advisers. That however did not affect the national leadership that negotiated with the BSA. The OA would form the National OA Committee and would have their jobs made dramatically easier with BSA supervision. For example, supply problems had beleaguered the OA since the beginning. With the fantastic growth of the Order, it made supplying the local lodges incredibly difficult for volunteer Arrowmen (although many were Scout professionals, this was something they did as volunteers.) Under the BSA, National Supply would take over service to the local lodges. A professional would be provided to the Order to handle the clerical and administrative duties allowing the National OA Committee to focus on other matters such as policy and developing area meetings throughout the Order.

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1942 National Executive Meeting

With the cancellation of the 1942 National Meeting due to wartime restrictions a special National Executive Committee meeting was called. It was held on December 27 – 29 at the Hotel Bellevue-Stratford, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In some ways the meeting was a throwback to the old Grand Lodge days when the national meeting was held at a hotel.

Joe Brinton served as chairman of the Nominating Committee and reported that as a result of an advisory ballot a slate of officers was nominated and elected. Four-time National Scribe H. Lloyd Nelson of Unami Lodge who had served with distinction since 1933 was selected to serve as National Chief. Nelson became the first non-professional Scouter to serve as Chieftain of Wimachtendienk. John C. Norsk of Allogagan Lodge, Springfield, Massachusetts was selected National Secretary and Richard H. Heistand, Nentico Lodge, Baltimore, Maryland was selected National Treasurer. The other members selected for the National Executive Committee were George Mozealous, Joseph Brinton, J. Rucker Newbery, Herbert L. Gaskin and R. L. Van Horn. George E. Chronic was the new representative selected by the National Council, BSA.

2

250th Lodge Formed

Minnewasco Lodge in Sault St. Marie, Michigan became the Order's 250^th Lodge chartering on September 9, 1943. World War II had not slowed the growth of the Order. Indeed, there was as great a need as ever to find young men willing to unselfishly serve others.

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