This past April, Wa-Hi-Nasa lodge members gathered with our brothers from other lodges in Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi, Arkansas, Indiana, and Virginia for the 2009 SR-6 Conclave at Camp Davy Crockett in Whitesburg, Tennessee. Wa-Hi-Nasa Lodge members again took a leading role at this conclave, with Lodge Chief Nate Danielson serving as the Ceremonies Conclave Vice Chief (CVC) and lodge member Corey Barry serving as the Training CVC.

Alongside all of the training and ceremonies, there were many American Indian activities that some of our Arrowman participated in. Here, many of them learned about the tale of the Iroquois as well as how to do Native American line dancing, how to play and sing Native American folk songs on the drum, and there were even areas to craft Native American items from moccasins to breast plates.

On Saturday afternoon of the Conclave, our Lodge prepared to defend the title as Quest for the Golden Arrow champions. The Quest is an intense competition among all the lodges in the Section. We competed in events such as a tug-of-war tournament and the “brown bag special.” This was a relay race that started with one person running to a brown bag on the activity field, then they randomly grabbing an item from the bag and eat the item completely before tagging the next person in line. The can of sardines was by far the most reviled. Another competition required an Arrowman from each lodge to put on a t-shirt wadded up and frozen in a solid block of ice. After taking home first place in the Bat Spin Knot Relay and Lodge Planbook competitions, Wa-Hi-Nasa placed third overall in points for the Quest for the Golden Arrow.

Later that evening, there was an American Indian pow-wow and a closing campfire. The next morning, elections for the 2009-2010 Section Chief, Vice Chief, and Secretary took place. Those elected for these positions were Don Combs as Section Chief, Mitchell Sawsberry as Vice Chief, and Alex Hill as Secretary.

The lodge will look to reclaim its rightful prize as Quest champions next year at the 2010 Conclave, which will return to Boxwell Reservation. We will certainly need all hands on deck as we hope to have over a thousand Arrowmen at Boxwell for this major event. We’ve already started the planning process. Be sure to stay tuned to future issues of The Flying Eagle and at lodge events to find out how you can help Wa-Hi-Nasa welcome the Section to Middle Tennessee!