Santee Scores With New Flap Issue
News from Camp Coker this last fellowship- Santee 116 has a new standard issue flap. The S44 makes the third version of a design that was first issued in 2010. Designed by Steven Lastauskas with help from Todd Knaperek the first version of this design was the S32. In my frame I have it labeled as the Honors Flap. Not that I felt like that is a particularity charming nickname for a patch but instead it's trying to describe what it is. This design basically brought closure to the 3-flap system in Santee as it was meant to replace the Ordeal flap that was introduced in 2006. As such it might be called a combination honors flap to be worn by all members regardless of whether they are Ordeal, Brotherhood, or Vigil.
So if the S32 was meant to be the long term 1 flap to unite them all patch how come I started out this post by saying we are on our third version of the design? Well as many collectors know reorders are a squirrelly thing some times. In 2012 the lodge reordered the S32 design from the same company. Basically, hey send us another batch of those - you already have it on file. Now I am not deep enough on the inside to know if there was any confusion or what but what came back was not the same patch. Around the lodge I'm starting to promote the nickname of "floppy" for the S42. This flap came from A-B Emblem missing the inner blue border from the S32. It is also slightly longer and not as tall as the flap it was supposed to be a reorder of. The final insult is the patch is not stiff but feels cheap and limp. The flap was soundly disliked by most everyone in the lodge as it was sold from 2012 to the end of 2013. When it was time to order another batch of the S32 design the leadership dropped A-B emblem and went with the company that had won their business - Krelman.
The awesome 2013 anniversary set was produced by Krelman as was all the 2014 Dixie Fellowship memorabilia. So when they lodge leadership soured on the floppy flap that A-B Emblem sent (S42) it was pretty easy for them to send the design to Krelman and request a flap. That new flap was obiviously going to be different. There is just about no way to have a different company make a flap that is an exact match to the work of a prior company. So this Krelman take on the design that Steven and Todd first got manufactured in 2010 is slightly different. I've got a picture of all three below so you can see for yourself. Note the blue chain stitched inner border and the aqua blue details. The eye of the Carolina Parakeet is also not as pronounced. I'm not sure we have a nickname for this one yet but it's definitely the S44.
From top to bottom this is the S32, S42 and S44 designed by Steven Lastauskas and Todd Knaperek
Note the A-B Emblem sticker on the S32 and S42 but the "Made In Taiwan" sticker on the S44
Close up of the new S44 flap issued at the 2014 Summer Fellowship
The state silhouette says South Carolina, but the trees say Hawaii!