BY-LAWS

of

Community Club of Brookside, NJ

Article One

NAME

          The name of this club shall be Community Club, Brookside, NJ

Article Two

PURPOSE

          The purpose of the Community Club is to promote the recreational, social, civic, educational and cultural welfare of the people of the community.

Article Three

MEMBERSHIP

Sect. I.  Membership is open to all residents of Mendham Township sixteen (16) years of age or over and to all employees and other members of Mendham Township organizations who are members in good standing and more than sixteen (16) years of age. Neither race, color, creed nor national origin shall be a factor in determining eligibility for membership.

Sect. II.  Anyone enjoying the privileges of the club shall comply strictly with the rules of the club as provided by the Board of Governors.

Sect. III.  Membership shall be by family unit consisting of a single person or two or more persons domiciled together.

Sect. IV.  Membership of a family unit shall commence as soon after January 1 as that unit pays its annual dues.  The membership of that unit shall expire on December 31 of the next year unless renewed before that date. 

Sect. V.  The Board of Governors shall establish membership fees for each family unit.

Article Four

MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS

Sect. I.  Annual Meetings.  An annual meeting of the membership shall be held each November at 7.30 PM to review the yearly reports, elect officers, adopt the annual budget, approve the acquisition or disposition of property, amend the bylaws, and consider any other matters which are beyond the responsibilities of the Board of Governors and the Officers.  A quorum (defined later) is required.

Sect. II.  Special Meetings.  Special meetings of the membership may be called by the President, Board of Governors or at the written request of twenty-five (25) members.  No Business shall be transacted at a special meeting other than that specified in the notice of said meeting.  A quorum is required.

 Section III.  Any officer may, for non-performance of duty, be removed from office by a vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the members present and voting (a quorum is required) at any annual or specially convened membership meeting, but no officer may be removed unless a resolution to that effect has been mailed to all members at least ten (10) days prior to the meeting.

Sect IV.  Rules and Regulations for membership meetings. 

A.     Quorum.  Twenty (20) members shall constitute a quorum.

B.     Notice.  Notice for annual and special meetings shall be sent to all members and publicly posted at least two (2) weeks before the date of the meeting.

C.     Voting.  Members who are at least sixteen (16) years old are eligible to cast a vote at membership meetings, except that the right to vote on questions involving the acquisition or disposition of property shall be limited to members eighteen (18) years or older.  Elections shall be by ballot, except that when there is only one nominee for an office, the secretary may be instructed to cast a single ballot.  Unless otherwise directed in these Bylaws, a majority vote of those members qualified to vote and voting shall be decisive.  Absentee or proxy voting shall not be permitted.

D.    Reports.  All officials and committees shall report at the annual meeting and as noted in the section on the Board of Governors.

Article Five

GOVERNMENT

Sect. I.  Between membership meetings, authority to act on behalf of the members shall be vested in its officers, Board of Governors and committees.  This authority does not extend to actions which are the prerogative solely of membership meetings, i.e. to approve the acquisition or disposition of property, to elect officers annually, to adopt the annual budget, and to amend the bylaws.

The Board of Governors and committee chairpersons shall meet in formal session at least twice each year in April and October, at which time committee reports shall be presented by the committee chairpersons.

Sect. II. Officers.

A.      The officers shall consist of President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. 

B.      The officers shall have charge of all assets of the club, and carefully preserve the same for the use and benefit of the club members and shall supervise the collection of all income therefrom.  They shall attend to all matters relating to the purchase, sale and care of securities and other property of the club and to such other matters as the Board of Governors or the membership may direct.  They shall ensure that all liabilities of the club are satisfied, and shall oversee the maintenance of public liability insurance coverage.

C.      Officers shall be elected for terms of two (2) years. 

Sect. III. Board of Governors

A.      The Board of Governors shall consist of one (1) person appointed by each of the following institutions.

·         Brookside Women’s Club

·         Brookside Community Church

·         Mendham Township Fire Department

·         Mendham Township First Aid Squad

·         Mendham Township Recreation Commission

B.          In addition to these institutional representatives, three (3) representatives of the community-at-large shall be elected to the Board of Governors at the annual membership meeting for staggered terms of three (3) years.

C.      If they are not already members of the Board of Governors, the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be ex officio members of the Board of Governors during their term of office with full voting and other rights. 

D.     Acceptance or removal of membership of any organization on the Board shall be determined by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the entire Board of Governors. 

E.      The Board of Governors shall be responsible for carrying out the spirit and letter of the Bylaws.  Annually, it shall consider the need for review and amendment of the Bylaws.  The Board shall coordinate the work of the various committees and resolve questions of authority.  In the event of vacancies in any elected positions it shall by majority vote elect a replacement to serve until the next annual membership meeting.  The Board shall review (and either approve or disapprove) the President’s appointments of chairpersons and members of all committees.  The Board shall provide review and advice to the Treasurer and Vice-President on the annual budget before it is submitted at the annual membership meeting.

F.      All funds, securities or property of the club in the care of the Board of Governors must be held in the corporate name of the club.

Sect. IV.  Moneys or funds may be invested only in the name of Community Club, Brookside, NJ, and any division of the funds or other property of the club among its members is illegal.

Sect. V.  At least once each year, the Board of Governors shall review and set the schedule of charges for use of the club facilities.

Sect. VI.  The following shall be the standing committees.

1.       Building and grounds

2.       Bylaws

3.       Club rental calendar

4.       Membership

5.       Publicity

6.       Social and fund raising

Section VII. Ad-hoc committees may be established by the President and/or the Board of Governors.

Article Six

DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Sect. I.  The President:  It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all meetings of the club and to enforce a due respect for the observance of the laws and regulations and to see that all officers and members of committees perform their respective duties in a proper manner.  Subject to the approval of the Board, the President shall appoint all officers, committees, and committee chairpersons not otherwise provided for and fill all vacancies in such positions prior to the next annual meeting. The President shall vote only to break tie votes. The President will also inspect and announce the result of all balloting and other votes.  The President shall appoint a nominating committee consisting of three (3) members at least thirty (30) days prior to the annual meeting. 

Sect. II.  The Vice-President shall assist the President in accordance with the regulations of the club.  In the absence of the President or when the President is not chairing a meeting, the Vice-President shall preside at all meetings and perform all duties appertaining to the office and shall perform such other duties as necessary to the office or the club may require.  The Vice-President and Treasurer shall have the responsibility to draft the annual budget for approval at the annual meeting.

Sect. III.  The Secretary shall keep a correct record of the proceedings of each club meeting.  The Secretary shall write all letters, issue all community notices required and notify candidates of their election within five (5) days thereafter and make out such reports as are required by the club.  The Secretary shall perform such other duties as necessary to the office or the club may require.

Sect. IV. The Treasurer shall maintain accurate books and records of the Club’s assets, liabilities, income and disbursements, and prepare and submit all tax returns and governmental filings and shall provide an income and expense statement and a balance sheet (listing all assets and liabilities of the Community Club) and submit it to the Board of Governors, for approval and inclusion in the minutes of the meeting. The Treasurer and Vice-President shall have the responsibility to draft the annual budget for approval at the annual meeting.

Article Seven

AMENDMENTS

Section I.  These by-laws may be amended or revised¾in part or in full¾by an affirmative vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the members qualified to vote and voting at any annual or special membership meeting regularly called, provided that all proposed actions shall be submitted in writing, posted on the Community Club website, and posted in a public place for a period of thirty days prior to the meeting at which final action shall be taken.  Such actions shall be binding alike on all members.

Section II.  Robert’s Rules of Order will govern the conduct of all meetings, including meetings considering amendments to the bylaws, except when the existing bylaws conflict with Robert’s Rules, in which case the bylaws take precedence.

Section III.  These by-laws were adopted by the Community Club, Brookside, NJ, on November 8, 1923, and were revised and re-adopted at a meeting of the membership on November 17, 1997. They were revised again at the general meeting on November 12, 2001 to remove term limits and the requirement that proposed actions be mailed to all members 30 days prior to the meeting at which final action shall be taken.  They were revised again at a special meeting on Feb. 10, 2003 to provide that the duration of membership will be one year commencing on Jan. 1 instead of April 1.