Hello Friends,
Per our bylaws, we are required to have an annual meeting of the membership in April.
This year, it is scheduled in conjunction with the Giving Lunch on Tuesday, April 18, 2023 at the SHARC.
The Giving Lunch is a heartwarming event to hear firsthand how the Sunriver Women’s Club is making a difference in our community.
I hope many of you will attend both the meeting and lunch; however, attending just the meeting without lunch is totally fine. The meeting will start at 11:30 a.m. and conclude before noon.
Attached are the documents required to be voted on by the membership at the meeting:
1. The minutes from the annual meeting on April 19, 2022
2. Proposed changes to the SRWC Bylaws (An explanation of some of the bylaw changes is detailed below)
3. The proposed slate of 2023-24 SRWC Board Officers
Proposed Changes to the SRWC Bylaws:
There are several changes to the bylaws, some are minor housekeeping and others are significant. Additional changes were made to align with current nonprofit laws and regulations.
I would like to explain a few of the major changes and offer anyone with questions to contact me.
Members who were here last year may remember we wanted to try a new organizational structure. The purpose was to provide broader leadership with three vice presidents instead of one.
The duties were divided with having a vice president focused development of the club's membership, programs & volunteerism; a vice president dedicated to our community impact through fundraising and grant giving; and a vice president responsible for coordinating communications.
It was a pilot structure, and the membership voted to suspend the bylaws specific to board positions for one year as the they are specific of the positions and duties of the directors.
The pilot structure had a few bumps but overall, it worked incredibly well.
The board would like to keep the same positions and continue to grow the leadership, while providing value to members and supporting our community. This is the backstory as you review the bylaw changes.
· Article V. Directors (page 2) and Article VI. Board of Directors (page 4) were combined into one Article titled “Board of Directors.” Per the operating policies, job descriptions are reviewed periodically and modified as needed. It is best practice for bylaws to be general and policies to be specific to the day-to-day operation of the organization.
· The other significant change is only the officers of the corporation (president, treasurer and secretary) are identified with associated responsibilities. The other directors are “at-large” and charged with carrying out the business of the organization. This will allow flexibility in addressing the needs of the club without having to change the bylaws each year. The number of board of directors is set at a range of at least 11 and not more than 15 directors.
· Some of the director’s jobs have been growing and becoming too burdensome for one person. It may be advantageous to break up some of the responsibilities, as we are volunteers. This could allow more participation with less burden. Having a range of the numbers of board directors provides flexibility and agility to operate effectively in a changing landscape.
· We also added a finance committee to assist the treasurers with their responsibility and ensure stewardship of our resources. Other changes are illustrated with strikethroughs and redline text of new language.
I hope to see you at the annual meeting, registration via the website is requested to ensure adequate seating.
Warm Regards,
Debbie Baker
President
