SPOUSES’ CLUB OF THE FORT SAM HOUSTON AREA
(Not affiliated with the Department of Defense)
BY-LAWS
ARTICLE 1
Duties
Section 1. Executive and General Board
Members of the Executive and General Board shall:
a. Attend Executive and General Board Meetings reporting verbally, even if “no report” – or notify the
President of their absence in advance.
b. Coordinate and supervise Club activities.
c. Support Club activities and programs
d. Maintain up-to-date files to include Job Description, Standard Operating Procedures, Minutes,
Budget and Treasurers reports, Constitution and By-laws, and After Action Reports.
e. Approve the annual budget and direct the collection and disbursement of Club funds, with the
fiscal year of 1 June through 31 May.
f. Have the authority to initiate revisions and amendments to the Club Constitution and By-Laws.
g. Act as representatives of the General Membership by bringing member suggestions to the
General Board for consideration.
h. All Board Members shall submit an After Actions Report (AAR) to the President and Secretary by
15 May or prior to vacating their positions, as well as file a copy in/on their continuity book/disc.
i. Shall submit a written letter of resignation to the President prior to vacating their position during
their term.
Section 2. Elected Officers.
a. The President shall:
1. Hold Active membership status in the Club.
2. Preside at all membership or Executive and General Board meetings.
3. Call special meetings when necessary.
4. Appoint all standing and special committee chairs.
5. Appoint the Parliamentarian.
6. Serves as an ex-officio member of all committees.
7. Co-sign the club checks over $50 that is not in the approved budget.
8. Revalidate and maintain Private Organizations status with the 502nd FSG Commander.
9. Vote at General Board meetings only in case of a tie.
10. Ensure that audits are performed at least annually or upon change of Treasurer.
11. Fill the vacancies among elected Officers with the approval of the General Board.
12. Serve on the Welfare, Scholarship, Budget, and Constitution and By-laws Committees.
13. With approval of the General Board, remove any General Board members who are not fulfilling
their duties.
14. Represent and act on behalf of the Club in all matters affecting the Club and performing such
other duties as pertaining to his/her office.
15. Act as liaison between the Club and other Installation Committees/Boards or appoint a designee
to attend in his/her place.
16. Attend Thrift Shop Board meetings in a non-voting capacity. (see Thrift Shop Constitution)
1
b. The First Vice President shall:
1. Cooperate with and assist the President at all times.
2. Assume all duties in the absence of the President.
3. Fulfill any unexpired term of the President.
4. Serve on the Nominating Committee.
5. Coordinate welcome and farewell gifts as appropriate.
6. In the absence of the President, co-sign checks over $50 that are not in the approved budget.
7. Vote on all issues before the General Board.
8. Establish and chair Fundraising Committees.
9. Hold either Active or Associate membership in the Club.
10. Will serve on the Tour of Homes Committee.
11. Be a liaison between the Thrift Shop Fundraising Activity and the Spouses’ Club of the Fort Sam
Houston Area Board (not affiliated with the Department of Defense).
c.
The Second Vice President shall:
1. Assume all duties in the absence of the President and First Vice President.
2. Develop programs for monthly functions and special events (i.e.: the Welcome Coffee) as needed
and make appropriate arrangements for functions (i.e.: Menu planning and hostess decorations)
September through May.
3. Every three years it will be the responsibility of the SCFSHA to establish and chair the Joint
Services Luncheon.
4. Be responsible for thank-you gifts and notes to guest speakers.
5. Vote on all issues before the General Board.
6. Hold either Active or Associate membership in the Club.
d. The Secretary shall:
1. Record, reproduce, and distribute the minutes of all Executive Board, General Board, and General
Membership business meetings.
2. Submit copies of the Minutes and Treasurers Reports monthly to the Private Organization Liaison.
3. Maintain and update the official club file including end-of-year After Action Reports that were
submitted by all Elected Officers and Committee Chairs.
4. Prepare, pick up and dispatch correspondence as needed.
5. Send greeting cards, etc. as appropriate and as authorized by the President.
6. Serves as Secretary of the Constitution and By-laws review Committee.
7. Vote on all issues before the General Board.
8. Hold either Active or Associate membership in the club.
e. The Treasurer shall:
1. Be the custodian of the Club’s funds and follow standard accounting procedures using the Club’s
QuickBooks.
2. Collect monies from any and all Club’s activities and deposit monies in the Club Bank Accounts.
3. Ensure receipt of Thrift Shop monthly financial statement and monthly check proceeds.
4. Pay all Club bills.
5. Disburse funds as authorized by the General Board, the General Membership, the President, or
the approved budget.
6. Co-sign checks over $50 that is not in the approved budget with the President, or in the
President’s absence, the First Vice President.
7. Prepare monthly financial statements (Balance Sheet, Income Statement and Bank
Reconciliation) and distribute them at General Board meetings.
8. Chair the Budget Committee and present the proposed Budget to the General Board and the
General Membership.
2
9. Arrange for audits and validate tax status.
10. Serve on the Welfare and Scholarship Committees.
11. Coordinate with the Ways & Means Chair all of the Ways & Means inventory on hand for the
financial statements.
12. Vote on all issues before the General Board.
13. Hold either Active or Associate membership in the Club.
Section 3. Honorary Officers and Advisors:
a. The Honorary Officers and Advisors shall act in an advisory capacity with no vote on the General
Board or any committees they advise. They may vote in General Membership meetings if they pay
Club dues. They shall serve as a liaison to their respective organizations.
b. The Honorary President gives guidance and support to the President and General Board and
coordinates representation on committees with other Advisors.
c. The Honorary Vice President assists the Honorary President as needed.
Section: 4. The Parliamentarian:
The Parliamentarian shall:
a. Advise the President, General Board, and members on parliamentary procedure.
b. Chair the Nominating Committee.
c. Conduct all elections and/or motion procedures.
d. Chair the Constitution and By-Laws Review Committee
e. Be responsible for Installation of Officers at May General Membership meeting.
f. Not be authorized to vote according to Robert's Rules of Order, revised.
g. Hold either Active or Associate membership in the Club.
ARTICLE II
Elections and Voting
Section1. Nominating Procedure.
a. Nominating Committee:
1. In selecting a Nominating Committee, the Parliamentarian as chair shall seek
recommendations from the Honorary President, Honorary Vice Presidents, and Advisors.
2. The committee shall consist of the Chair, Advisor, Membership Committee Chairperson,
Hospitality Chairperson, First Vice President, and at least two members from the General
Membership.
3. Members of the committee shall not be barred from becoming nominees for office.
4. The committee shall consider all Active and Associate members and prepare a slate for each
office according to guidelines.
5. The Nominating Committee shall begin meeting no later than January.
b. Presentation of Nominees.
1. The slate shall be presented to the General Board not later than the March board meeting.
2. The slate shall be published in the April newsletter.
3. The slate shall be presented to and voted upon by the General Membership at the April
General Membership meeting.
4. Nominations for each office shall be accepted from the floor at the April General Membership
meeting provided the nominee has been previously contacted, has consented, and is an
Active or Associate member as defined in article IV of the Constitution.
3
Section 2. Election.
a. Officers shall be elected at that April General Membership meeting by a simple majority vote of the
members present.
b. If more than one candidate is nominated for an office, voting will be conducted by written ballot.
c. If the Nominating Committee presents a single slate of candidates and additional nominees are
received from the floor at the April general membership meeting, the chair may take a voice vote
and declare the nominees elected by acclamation.
Section 3. Terms of Office.
a. The elected officers shall be installed at the May general meeting and their term of office begins 1
June and ends 31 May.
b. Duly elected officers may complete their term should their membership status change.
c. Elected Officers may only hold a particular board position for two consecutive years, after which
they must have at least a one-year break before returning to that position. Honoraria are excluded
from this provision. In the event no member steps forward to run for an elected position the board
has the power to vote that a willing member be allowed to serve a third term at the April Meeting.
Article III
Standing Committees
Section 1. Responsibilities
a. The President shall appoint all Committee chairs.
b. The chair or committee representative shall attend all General Board meetings as a voting
member.
c. The chair shall appoint an assistant chair and committee members as necessary.
d. The chair shall provide the Secretary a written copy of any business or proposal requiring
General Board action.
e. The chair shall keep the President informed of all committee activities.
f.
The chair shall keep all records and submit an AAR in triplicate by the May joint board meeting.
Section 2. Committees.
a. The Thrift Shop Committee shall be responsible for the Thrift Shop Fundraising Activity.
1. The Thrift Shop Committee consists of the Thrift Shop Chair, Thrift Shop Manager,
Bookkeeper, President, First Vice President, Treasurer, and Advisor.
2. The Thrift Shop Chair appoints a Thrift Shop Board as designated in the Thrift Shop
Constitution.
3. The Thrift Shop Chair holds a position on the Budget Committee.
4. The Thrift Shop makes contributions to the Spouses’ Club of Fort Sam Houston Area (not
affiliated with the Department of Defense) based upon the agreed percentage of proceeds
raised as stipulated in the Thrift Shop By-Laws
b. The Fundraising Committee shall:
1. Be responsible for planning and coordinating major and/or minor fundraising activities for the
Welfare and Scholarship projects of the Club to include the Tour of Homes.
2. Have the chair or his/her designee serve on the Budget Committee.
3. Be chaired by the First Vice President.
c.
The Tour of Homes Committee:
1. Be responsible for planning and coordinating the Tour of Homes fundraising activity on
applicable years
2. Be chaired by the First Vice President.
3. Have the chair or his/her designee serve on the Budget Committee.
4
d. The Historian shall take pictures at Club functions and keep two scrapbooks of club activities, one
to present to the outgoing President and one for the archives.
e. The Hospitality committee shall:
1. Recognize new members, guests, and departing members at the monthly General
Membership meeting.
2. Assist the Second Vice President with the annual welcome function.
3. Have the chair and his/her designee serve on the Nominating Committee.
f.
The Membership Committee shall:
1. Determine eligibility of applicants for membership.
2. Collect dues.
3. Prepare, publish, and distribute a Membership Directory.
4. Maintain current membership records.
5. Have the chair or his/her designee serve on the Nominating Committee.
6. Ensure that a representative of the Club will be present at the post sponsored quarterly
newcomers welcome activity.
g. The Newsletter Committee shall be responsible for:
1. The preparation, publication, and distribution of the Club newsletter.
2. Solicit advertisements to help offset the cost of publication.
3. Establish and communicate with other Joint Base San Antonio Spouses Club’s.
h. The Publicity Committee shall publicize Club activities through available media.
1. Includes the preparing, publicizing, and maintaining of print and social media sites for the
Spouses’ Club of the Fort Sam Houston Area (not affiliated with DOD).
2. Serve on the Budget Committee
i.
The Reservation Committee shall:
1. Accept reservations for monthly General Membership meetings and special activities.
2. Record attendance at these functions.
3. Receive money at the monthly function in the absence of the Treasurer.
4. Collect non-canceled reservation fees.
j.
The Retired Officers’ Wives Club representative shall serve as a liaison between the Club and the
Retired Officers’ Wives and Widows Club.
k.
The BAMC Auxiliary Representative shall serve as a liaison between the Club and the BAMC
Auxiliary
l.
The Scholarship Committee shall:
1. Consist of the Chair, Advisor, President, Treasurer, and First Vice President with at least two
members from the General Membership.
2. Receive funds from Thrift Shop Fundraising Activity.
3. Consider scholarship applications received and determine the recipients and the amount each
will receive.
4. Present the total amount for dispersal to the General Board and General Membership for
approval in April, with presentation to recipients in May.
m. The Ways & Means committee shall:
1. Select, purchase, price, advertise, sell, inventory, and keep financial accounts on items sold
by the Club.
2. Have the chair or his/her designee served on the Budget Committee.
3. Submit to the Treasurer the inventory on hand and sales for the monthly Financial Statements.
5
n. The Welfare Committee shall:
1. Consist of the Chair, Advisor, President, Treasurer, First Vice President with at least two
members from the General Membership.
2. Receive funds from Thrift Shop Fundraising Activity
3. Receive and investigate requests for welfare funds and meet at least two times per year.
4. Present the recipients and amount of disbursements to the General Board and General
Membership for approval in October for Fall Welfare, resulting in November disbursement,
and April for Spring Welfare, resulting in May disbursement.
ARTICLE IV
Special Committees
Section 1.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Responsibilities.
The President shall appoint committee chairs.
The chair or committee representative shall be a non-voting member of the General Board.
The chair shall appoint assistant chair and committee members as necessary.
The chair shall provide the Secretary a written copy of any business or proposal requiring General
Board action.
e. The chair shall keep the President informed of committee activities.
f. The outgoing chair shall provide an After Action Report to the incoming chair, incoming President
and incoming Secretary by the joint Board meeting in May.
Section 2. Committees.
a. The Budget Committee shall:
1. Consist of the outgoing (if available) and incoming Treasurers as chairs, an Advisor, the
President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Thrift Shop Chair, the Ways & Means
chair, the Publicity chair, and at least two members from the General Membership.
2. Each outgoing Officer and committee chair must submit a tentative proposed budget for the
upcoming year to the outgoing Treasurer no later than the May Board meeting.
3. Prepare a proposed annual budget for the fiscal year 1 June thru 31 May to be presented to
the General Board for approval in August.
b. The Constitution and By-Laws Review Committee shall:
1. Consist of the Parliamentarian as chair, an Advisor, the President, the Secretary, and at least
two members from the General Membership.
2. Review of the Constitution and By-Laws in compliance with Installation guidelines.
Section 3. Other committees.
The President, if necessary, shall appoint other committees.
ARTICLE V
Dues/Assessments
Section 1.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Dues.
The General Board shall determine dues for Active and Associate members.
Dues for new members joining after 1 January shall be one-half of the annual dues.
Spouses of students assigned for six months or less will pay one-half of the annual dues.
Eligible individuals who are not members may attend one function per Club year.
6
Section 2. Assessments.
a. A member shall be responsible for the cost of any reservation not canceled by the cancellation
date.
b. The General Board shall determine any additional assessments.
Section 3. Refunds.
a. There shall be no refunds of dues or assessments.
ARTICLE VI
Finances
Section 1. Income.
a. Operating fund income shall be received from:
1. Dues.
2. Assessments.
3. Minor fundraisers, restricted to monies that were raised from the membership and guests, i.e.
Ways & Means.
4. Up to 30 percent of the net monies raised in all major fundraisers (as described below).
b. Scholarship/Welfare fund income shall be received from:
1. Major fundraisers-minimum of 70% of net monies that were raised from members and
nonmembers, to include the Thrift Shop, subject to approval by the 502nd FSG Commander
or his or her designee.
2. The excess of operating fund, after projected debts are paid and a balance is left for operation
of the succeeding General Board.
3. Donations.
Section 2. Disbursements
a. Operating fund.
1. The Operating Fund shall cover operating expenses as specified by the Budget.
2. The General Board shall have the power to authorize all expenditures and make adjustments
to the budget as necessary.
3. The President shall independently be able to approve expenditures up to $50 not in the
approved budget. The General Board shall approve expenditures over that amount.
4. The succeeding General Board shall manage the operating fund so a minimum cash reserve
of $10,000 or an amount approved by the General Board, remains for use after expenses
have been met.
b. Scholarship/Welfare funds.
1. Scholarship funds will be allocated solely for High School students, Spouses and continuing
education purposes for all with Military affiliation.
2. Welfare funds shall be used for charities, non-profit organizations, or other worthy causes.
3. The General Board shall determine the dollar amount to be allocated for each purpose.
4. The General Board shall approve disbursement of scholarship and welfare funds.
5. All scholarship and welfare funds allocated must be disbursed.
Section 3. Accounting.
a. Records shall be maintained using QuickBooks.
b. A standard operating procedure (SOP) describing the accounting system shall be prepared and
maintained in a permanent file with the Treasurer’s books and with the Secretary.
7
c.
Financial Statements (Balance Sheet, Income Statement, and Bank Reconciliation) shall be
prepared monthly for the General Board’s review and forwarded to the Secretary to forward to the
Private Organization Liaison. (See Secretary’s duties, Article 1 of the By-Laws Section 2D).
d. An Audit shall be conducted annually. The Audit will include:
1. A check to insure all transactions are recorded and documented per the SOP.
2. An inventory of all Club property including Ways & Means inventory.
3. Verification that the Financial Statements are accurate and issued monthly.
4. A cash account of all cash on hand, Reconciliation of Bank Statements, Accounts Receivable,
Accounts Payable and other Liabilities.
5. An approved Auditor.
e. A copy of the audit and a report of corrective action shall be furnished to the 502nd FSG
Commander through the Private Organization Liaison, 502nd FSS/FSR.
f. Any member expending approved funds on behalf of the Club must submit a written record of the
transaction with the supporting voucher. The Club is not responsible for reimbursing non-budgeted
funds without prior written approval from the President and/or General Board.
g. Upon the change of Treasurer, a memorandum of transfer of financial responsibility needs to be
signed by the out-going and in-coming Treasurers.
Approved by a majority vote of the general membership on April 15, 2014.
___________________________________
President
Joy R. Kellner
________________________________
Secretary
Kathy Tempel
Copies of the by-laws and all amendments may be found with Parliamentarian or at the office of the 502nd
FSG Commander, 502nd FSS/FSR, 2380 Stanley Rd. (Bldg 124), Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234-2718
8