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BY-LAWS
WEST GARDINER ROD AND GUN CLUB
WEST GARDINER, MAINE
ARTICLE I: NAME AND LOCATION
ARTICLE II; PURPOSE
ARTICLE III: MEMBERSHIP & DUES
Section 1: Definition of Membership
A regular member is a voting member of the club. He/she has met the requirements and has followed the admission process specified below. Membership also includes spouses/partners.
Section 2: Requirements for Membership
Section 3: Voting Rights
Members and their spouse/partner as stated on the application, together, have
only one vote in conducting club business.
Any change in spouse/partner (except death) must be stated on the yearly renewal
form.
Section 4: Dues
Any member who is delinquent two years dues shall forfeit all club membership
rights, shares and all other privileges commencing thirty (30) days after final billing
is sent and continuing until a regular application is submitted and voted upon,
Section 5: Disciplinary Actions and Procedures
A member can be expelled or suspended for serious misconduct or dishonesty
according to the process described herein.
Process: Any member in good standing can issue a complaint in writing to the
club president. If the President agrees that the offense warrants expulsion, he/she
will call a meeting of the Board of Directors and invite both the complainant and
potentially offending member.
The complaint will be reviewed by the Board of Directors with input from both the
complainant and potential offender.
The offending member can be expelled without recourse if 3 of the Directors present
vote to do so.
Guidelines: The following guidelines can be used to help determine if an offense is serious
enough to warrant expulsion.
Acting in a manner that is contrary to the club's stated goals and/or purposes
Acting in a manner that is disruptive to a club meeting, function or activity
Theft
Vandalism
Destruction of club property
Acting in a reckless or unsafe manner while on club property.
ARTICLE IV: MEETINGS
Section 1: Schedule:
Section 2: Participation:
ARTICLE V: CHARTER MEMBERS
I. A charter member (CM) is defined as follows:
II. DUTIES
III. A club member in good standing, who has met his/her financial and participation requirements for at least five consecutive years shall be eligible for consideration as a charter member. A properly notified and scheduled CM meeting is required for acceptance of new charter members. New charter members must be approved by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of CMs present.
IV. Charter members who habitually fail to acknowledge or attend CM meetings after proper notification of said meetings may be deemed to have lost interest in the club and may be removed by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of CMs present after the CM has been issued notification, in writing, when this removal will be acted upon.
V. Any CM who forfeits his/her club membership, also forfeits his/her charter membership.
VI. Charter Member privileges and responsibilities shall not be amended or altered by the Board of Directors or by a club majority vote until an approval is granted by the charter members (CM). This approval shall require a two-thirds (2/3) vote of CMs present at a CM meeting.
VII. Selling or Disposing of club assets:
In the event of an asset disposal or club disbandment action, all asset transfer procedures
will adhere to the following approved protocol:
All charter members and their spouses/partners hereby have their single “share” converted to a “disposition vote” and will hereby forego recovering any past, personal funds donated to the club during any disposal or disbandment action. The share/vote may be used to designate his/her choice of another 501(c)3 non-profit organization to which club assets/proceeds will be awarded in the event that the club either disbands or desires to divest any property, real or tangible.
ARTICLE VI: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
There will be a Board of Directors consisting of five members of the club. Directors will serve three year staggered terms. Directors’ terms are in effect now and vacancies will be filled at the Annual Meeting by election, or at a special election to fill an unexpected vacancy. Any member of the Board of Directors who misses two consecutive Board meetings without a legitimate excuse may be replaced by an alternate.
Section 1- Duties of Directors:
ARTICLE VII : EXECUTIVE BOARD (OFFICERS/DIRECTORS)
Section 1: Executive Board Positions:
The Executive Board, which is comprised of the elected officers and Board of Directors, shall be the managing authority of the club.
Any major change to the facilities or operations of the club, not requiring Charter Member approval, must be approved by a two thirds majority of the executive board. Any changes which could be considered contrary to the club’s stated purpose cannot be considered.
The elected officers are as follows. President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Coordinator ,Sergeant at Arms, Facilities Manager and 5 directors.
Section 2: Officer Duties:
President:
Preside over and direct meetings, enforce rules, and perform duties prescribed, sign club documents and appoint committees
Vice President:
The Vice-President will serve as President in his/her absence and assist him/her as necessary.
Secretary:
Keep minutes of all meetings, send out annual newsletter, issue notice of special meetings.
In the absence of the Secretary, a Club Member appointed by the President will perform duties of the Secretary.
Treasurer
The Treasurer shall be custodian of the Clubs monetary assets, accept and deposit money, issue receipts, and make payments of money as directed a majority vote of members at a club meeting. In case of emergency the President has the authority to authorize payments up to $500.00. Emergency payments over $1,000 will require a majority vote of the Executive Board. The Treasurer shall also have available at each meeting a financial report for the club as directed.
The Treasurer shall pay from available funds any expenditure approved by the Executive Board or a majority vote of members at a club meeting.
Routine expenditures, such as heat, power, insurance and taxes do not need pre-approval.
Membership Coordinator:
The Membership Coordinator will manage the membership applications and approval processes for new perspective members, and record keeping for all new and existing membership.
The Membership Coordinator is responsible for collecting the new member applications and presenting them to the rank and file for consideration.
Sergeant at Arms
The Sergeant at Arms will preserve order at the meetings and the clubhouse and verify credentials.
Facilities Manager:
Ensures that all fire and safety requirements are current and up to date.
Ensures that the facilities are maintained in a state of cleanliness and good repair.
Ensures that bathroom, kitchen and general cleaning materials are available.
Acts as primary contact for all facilities matters.
Manages the club rentals.
The facilities manager will receive a stipend as described in the appropriate standard operating procedure (SOP).
Section 3: Election of Officers:
Section 4: Terms of Office:
Officers will hold office for one year beginning the first day of January of the year following the election.
ARTICLE VIII: BY-LAWS & AMENDMENTS:
ARTICLE IX: Exceptions/Omissions
Any other issues/policies not covered by the above articles will be covered by Robert’s Rules of Order.
In case of conflict, the club bylaws will supersede.
Other activities and procedures shall be defined in “Standard Operating Procedures”
Adopted January 1963 Revised April 20, 2017 Original signed by Scott Farnum, President on April 22, 2017
Revised 4/20/2018 Ratified 5/03/2018 Revised 10/17/2019 Ratified 11/07/2019
Revised 5/20/2021 Ratified 6/17/2021
Revised 7/9/2022 (charter member change for 501(c3) status) Ratified not yet ratified
BY-LAWS (currently the ratified version, but soon-to-be superseded by the above 501(c)3 change version.)
WEST GARDINER ROD AND GUN CLUB
WEST GARDINER, MAINE
ARTICLE I: NAME AND LOCATION
ARTICLE II; PURPOSE
ARTICLE III: MEMBERSHIP & DUES
Section 1: Definition of Membership
A regular member is a voting member of the club. He/she has met the requirements and followed the admission process specified below. Membership also includes spouses/partners.
Section 2: Requirements for Membership
Section 3: Voting Rights
Members and their spouse/partner as stated on the application each have one vote in conducting club business.
Any change in spouse/partner (except death) must be stated on yearly renewal form.
Section 4: Dues
Any member who is delinquent two years dues shall forfeit all club membership rights, shares and all other privileges commencing thirty (30) days after final billing is sent and continuing until a regular application is submitted and voted upon, as stipulated in Section 3 above.
Section 5: Disciplinary Actions and Procedures
A member can be expelled or suspended for serious misconduct or dishonesty according to the process described herein.
Process: Any member in good standing can issue a complaint in writing to the club president. If the President agrees that the offense warrants expulsion, he/she will call a meeting of the Board of Directors and invite both the complainant and potentially offending member. The complaint will be reviewed by the Board of Directors with input from both the complainant and potential offender.
The offending member can be expelled without recourse if three of the Directors present vote to do so.
Guidelines: The following guidelines can be used to help determine if an offense is serious enough to warrant expulsion.
Acting in a manner that is contrary to the club's stated goals and/or purposes
Acting in a manner that is disruptive to a club meeting, function or activity
Theft
Vandalism
Destruction of club property
Acting in a reckless or unsafe manner while on club property.
ARTICLE IV: MEETINGS
Section 1: Schedule:
Section 2: Participation:
Meetings may be attended by members, new member applicants and invited guests only. The Annual Meeting is open to members only.
ARTICLE V: CHARTER MEMBERS
All charter members and their spouses shall have one share each, in the Corporation, which will be non-negotiable and non-transferable, as long as their membership is current. Any member who forfeits his/her regular membership also forfeits his/her Charter Membership.
ARTICLE VI: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
There will be a Board of Directors consisting of five members of the club. Directors will serve three year staggered terms. Directors’ terms are in effect now and vacancies will be filled at the Annual Meeting by election, or at a special election to fill an unexpected vacancy. Any member of the Board of Directors who misses two consecutive Board meetings without a legitimate excuse may be replaced by an alternate.
Section 1- Duties of Directors:
ARTICLE VII : EXECUTIVE BOARD (OFFICERS/DIRECTORS)
Section 1: Executive Board Positions:
The Executive Board, which is comprised of the elected officers and Board of Directors, shall be the managing authority of the club.
Any major change to the facilities or operations of the club, not requiring Charter Member approval, must be approved by a two thirds majority of the executive board. Any changes which could be considered contrary to the club’s stated purpose cannot be considered.
The elected officers are as follows. President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Coordinator ,Sergeant at Arms, Facilities Manager and 5 directors.
Section 2: Officer Duties:
President:
Preside over and direct meetings, enforce rules, and perform duties prescribed, sign club documents and appoint committees
Vice President:
The Vice-President will serve as President in his/her absence and assist him/her as necessary.
Secretary:
Keep minutes of all meetings, send out annual newsletter, issue notice of special meetings. In the absence of the Secretary, a Club Member appointed by the President will perform duties of the Secretary.
Treasurer
The Treasurer shall be custodian of the Clubs monetary assets, accept and deposit money, issue receipts, and make payments of money as directed a majority vote of members at a club meeting. In case of emergency the President has the authority to authorize payments up to $500.00. Emergency payments over $1,000 will require a majority vote of the Executive Board. The Treasurer shall also have available at each meeting a financial report for the club as directed.
The Treasurer shall pay from available funds any expenditure approved by the Executive Board or a majority vote of members at a club meeting.
Routine expenditures, such as heat, power, insurance and taxes do not need pre-approval.
Membership Coordinator:
The Membership Coordinator will manage the membership applications and approval processes for new perspective members, and record keeping for all new and existing membership. The Membership Coordinator is responsible for collecting the new member applications and presenting them to the rank and file for consideration.
Sergeant at Arms
The Sergeant at Arms will preserve order at the meetings and the clubhouse and verify credentials.
Facilities Manager:
Ensures that all fire and safety requirements are current and up to date.
Ensures that the facilities are maintained in a state of cleanliness and good repair.
Ensures that bathroom, kitchen and general cleaning materials are available.
Acts as primary contact for all facilities matters.
Manages the club rentals.
The facilities manager will receive a stipend as described in the appropriate standard operating procedure (SOP).
Section 3: Election of Officers:
Section 4: Terms of Office:
Officers will hold office for one year beginning the first day of January of the year following the election.
ARTICLE VIII: BY-LAWS & AMENDMENTS:
ARTICLE IX: Exceptions/Omissions
Any other issues/policies not covered by the above articles will be covered by Robert’s Rules of Order. In case of conflict, the club bylaws will supersede.
Other activities and procedures shall be defined in “Standard Operating Procedures”
Adopted January 1963 Revised April 20, 2017
Original signed by Scott Farnum, President on April 22, 2017
Revised 4/20/2018 Ratified 5/03/2018
Revised 10/17/2019 Ratified 11/07/2019
Revised 5/20/2021 Ratified 6/17/2021