Lawrenceville Woman's Club By-Laws (2006 Revision)

ARTICLE I. Name

ARTICLE II. PURPOSE

The purpose of the Lawrenceville Woman's Club is to serve our community by improving the quality of life on local, state, national and world levels. The areas of service include: Arts, Conservation, Education, Home Life, International Affairs, Public Affairs, and Tallulah Falls School.

 

It shall be non-partisan and non-sectarian.

ARTICLE III. MEMBERSHIP

Any woman, who has attained the age of 18 living in Lawrenceville, or the adjacent area, who is interested in and willing to serve in this area shall be eligible for membership.

 

There shall be no discrimination on the basis of race, creed, religion, or national origin.

 

Section 1.

Charter Members - Those members who joined when the club was organized and who signed the original By-Laws.

        A.  Active Members - Those members who:

               1.  Pay active dues.

               2.  Participate in at least 3 club projects per

                     year.

               3.  Attend at least 5 general membership

                     meetings per year. (If a member is unable to

                     fulfill these requirements, it is her 

                     responsibility to notify The Executive Board  

                     which will work with the members on

                     possible alternatives.)

          B.  Sustaining Members - Those members who support

                the club through donations and participate in the

                responsibility of the club as desired.

Section 2.

          A.  Dues for Active Members shall be $44.00 annually,

                payable at the February installation banquet.

          B.  Dues are delinquent as of March 1. Consequently,

                 member will be deleted from the membership roll

                 and notified by the Membership Chairman.

          C.  Donations for Sustaining Members are a

                 minimum of $50.00.

          D.  Reinstatement occurs by payment of current dues.

Section 3.

A member in good standing wishing to terminate her membership shall send her resignation to the Membership Chairman. If a resigned member in good standing whishes to return to the club, notification should be given to the Membership Chairman.

ARTICLE IV. OFFICERS

Section 1.

The elective officers of this club shall be President or Co-Presidents, First Vice President, Second Vice-President, Third Vice-President, Recording/Corresponding Secretary, and Treasurer.

Section 2.

The appointive offers shall be the Parliamentarian, Historian, Chaplain, Newsletter Chairman, and Tallulah Falls Chairman and shall be appointed by the President/Co-Presidents.

The elective and appointive officers shall serve a one year term or until their successors are elected.

At the November meeting preceding the election, a nominating committee of three shall be elected. Any member in good standing (except the President/Co-Presidents) may serve on the nominating committee, but she shall not serve two consecutive terms. The member elected first shall be the chairman. It shall be the duty of the committee to nominate one candidate for each office and to submit this slate of officers at the January meeting. Additional nominations may be made from the floor with the consent of the nominee.

The election shall be held in January of each year with the installation in February. The election shall be by voice vote, unless there is more than one nominee for any office; then voting for that office will be by ballot.

February shall be the Annual Meeting at which time the new officers shall be installed and assume their duties immediately after the installation. Any papers or property pertaining to an office should be given to the new officer within two weeks prior to the installation.

No member shall hold more than one elective office at any one time. It is also recommended that no office be eligible for more than two consecutive terms in the same office. However, at the discretion of the club, this term limit may be extended as approved by the nominating committee.

In the event of a vacancy in an elective office, it is filled in the following manner: If it is the office of President, the First Vice-President will move up and fill this vacancy and the vacancy of this office and any other office will be filled by an election at the next meeting. In the event of Co-Presidents, the remaining President has the option to serve the remainder of the term alone. In the event an election is needed to fill a vacancy, nominations shall come from the Executive Board and other nominations can be made from the floor with the consent of the nominee. If only one person is nominated for the office, the election shall be by voice vote; otherwise, it must be by secret ballot.

ARTICLE V. DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Section 1.

The President or Co-Presidents shall preside at all meetings of the club and Executive Board.  She/they are automatically on all committees and invited to all departmental and special meetings.  She/they shall appoint the Parliamentarian, Historian, Chaplain, Newsletter Chairman, Tallulah Falls Chairman, and all Department Chairmen.  She/they shall approve all the bills paid by the Treasurer.  She/they approve all correspondence mailed with the Lawrenceville Woman's Club name and any money/donations contributed by the community on behalf of the Lawrenceville Woman's Club.

Section 2.

The First Vice-President shall perform the duties of the President in her absence and assist the President as needed. She shall be Membership Chairman. Her responsibility shall be to increase the club's membership. She shall compile membership packets for the annual banquet in February. She shall encourage social functions for the benefit of strengthening our current membership.

The Second Vice-President shall perform the duties of the First Vice-President in her absence. She shall be Dean of Departments and attend all Department meetings. She shall stay in direct contact with the President/Co-Presidents regarding the departments' upcoming projects and department meetings. She shall consult with the President regarding ideas for programs, speakers, or entertainment for each general meeting.

The Third-Vice President shall research ideas for potential fundraising projects and present them to the Executive Board. She shall lead the club in the choice and execution of fundraising projects for Community Improvement Projects and club expenditures.

The Recording/Corresponding Secretary shall keep the records of the club and all other correspondence of value. She shall keep and read the accurate records of the proceedings of all meetings of the club. The minutes of the meetings and the record of attendance shall be kept in bound books designated for that purpose. She shall furnish Georgia Federation of Women's Clubs with the name and addresses of all officers at the beginning of each administration. She shall write all correspondence which the club requires. She shall present to the club all correspondence which is received for information purposes.

The Treasurer is custodian of all funds of the club. She shall deposit funds in an FDIC bank approved by the Executive Board. She shall issue membership cards when dues are paid and notify members when dues are delinquent. She shall send District dues and Georgia Federation dues prior to November 1 of each year. Her books may be audited each year before the annual meeting.

The Parliamentarian shall assist the President by giving advice of parliamentary procedure between the meetings and by answering parliamentary procedure inquires during meetings only when requested to do so by the President.

The Historian shall keep a scrapbook of the history of the club and bring it current each year. She shall collect memorabilia and photographs throughout the year from various club activities and projects. She shall present the club scrapbook at the annual February installation banquet.

The Chaplain shall begin each meeting with an inspirational message.

The Newsletter Chairman shall gather information from the officers and department chairmen and shall print and mail and/or distribute the newsletter monthly to the membership. She shall send a copy of the club newsletter to the State and District Presidents. All newsletter information must be collected at the Board meeting. The newsletter shall be mailed out no later than one week prior to the general meeting.

The Tallulah Falls Chairman shall coordinate the efforts of the club to support Tallulah Falls School.      

 

ARTICLE VI. MEETINGS

Section 1.

The General Membership Meeting shall be held monthly, September through May, with the day and time to be determined by the Executive Board.

Section 2.

Special meetings may be called by the elective officers or the Executive Board.

In order to conduct business of the club at either a general membership or special meeting, the quorum shall be a majority of the voting members.

The Annual Meeting shall be the February meeting.

Attendance at all general membership meetings is expected and attendance at a minimum of five general membership meetings per year is required. Extenuating circumstances should be addressed to the Membership Chairman and Executive Board.

 

ARTICLE VII. THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

Section 1.

The Executive Board shall be composed of the elective officers, the appointive officers, immediate Past President, and the department chairmen.

Section 2.

All club members are invited to attend any Executive Board meetings.

The Executive Board shall meet within fourteen days preceding the monthly general membership meeting unless otherwise ordered by the President. The President may call a special meeting of the Executive Board if deemed necessary. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum.

The Executive Board shall make plans for the club and shall present its recommendations to the club membership for approval.

The Executive Board has the authority to terminate members for continued failure to meet the membership requirements.

 

ARTICLE VIII.  COMMITTEES, DEPARTMENTS, AND DIVISIONS

Section 1.

The club may have as many standing and special committees as deemed necessary by the President or Executive Board.

Section 2.

The club shall have as many departments and divisions as are necessary to meet the requirements of the club program and projects. The club shall be guided by the program of work suggested by the Georgia Federation of Women's Clubs and the General Federation of Women's Clubs. No club project shall be undertaken by any department or division without the approval of the Executive Board. All department chairmen are required to consult with the President prior to upcoming board meetings regarding any projects their department plans to undertake.

Each Chairman shall notify their committee members, President and Dean of Department (Second Vice-President) at least one week prior to the committee meeting date.

No member of the Lawrenceville Woman's Club shall be permitted to initiate a clubwide project which involves the raising of funds without the approval of the Executive Board.

 

ARTICLE IX. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

ARTICLE X. AMENDMENTS TO BY-LAWS

These By-Laws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the members present at any general meeting, provided that notice of the proposed amendment was given at the previous general membership meeting or sent to every member ten days prior to the meeting at which time a vote on the amendment is to be taken.