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Article I – Establishment
I. Name and Symbol
A. The name of the club shall be “The TrailManor TrailBlazers Club”, hereinafter referred to as TrailBlazers.
B. The official Trailblazers’ logo design is the original logo of the TrailManorTM.
II. Organizational Status
A. TrailBlazers is organized as a nonprofit club without ownership.
B. TrailBlazers central mailing address shall be located at the residence of the Secretary.
Article II – Membership
I. Definitions
A. The term “Regular Member” is a TrailManorTM Trailer owner.
B. A TrailManorTM Trailer will be referred to as a “TrailManor” or “a unit.”
C. The term “Associate Member” is applied to a previous Regular Member who no longer owns a TrailManor but wishes to remain in the club and shall retain all Regular Member rights, privileges and status.
D. Potential TrailManor owners may purchase the Tidings at a rate equal to Annual Dues for one year prior to their ownership of a TrailManor trailer. During that one year period, the purchase of a TrailManor trailer would convert them to Regular Members for the balance of the year. The sole responsibility of the club during this one year period would be to mail regular issues of the Tidings and welcome prospects to any of our rallies.
E. Friends and Family
- Friends and Family who have joined a past TrailBlazers local rally by invitation from a Regular TrailBlazers Member, but whose trailer is not a TrailManor, may join as a non-voting “Friends and Family” (F&F) member upon recommendation from the TrailBlazers Member that invited them. Upon payment of Annual Dues, F&F members will receive the Tidings newsletter and be welcomed at National Rallies.
- Regular TrailBlazers Member unit is limited to recommending one unit for new F&F membership per camping year.
II. Application for Membership
A. Application for membership is voluntary and shall be accepted as received.
B. Membership shall endure as long as eligibility criteria are met.
III. Rights of Members
A. Members can ask for a refund of dues if multiple years were paid. The request must be in writing stating the reason: sale of TrailManor, illness, extenuating circumstances, etc. The refund will be for unused years beginning the next October 1st.
B. All members have the right to attend any meeting, participate in any discussion, and receive all publications.
C. All members have the right to present proposals to the governing authority.
D. Each unit of Regular Members has the right to one vote per unit, with one added vote for spouse or partner of the unit, with no more than two votes per unit.
IV. Membership Fees and Dues
A. Dues per unit
- Regular Membership: $15.00 per camping year (October 1- September 30).
- Changes to dues shall be as established by the Executive Board and if approved by a majority of the regular membership by ballot, the fees in Article II.IV.A.1 will be revised.
B. Dues are due by the end of September of every year. Notice will go out in the May issue of Tidings. Final notices will be provided at the first of the year. All dues must be paid by the end of February. If not
paid, the member will be dropped from membership.
C. If you join before April 1, you pay dues again in September. If you join after April 1, you do not pay again in September of that year.
Article III – Government
I. Composition
A. All meetings of the Executive Board, Board of Directors, Committees, Chapters, and National Meetings shall be conducted in accordance with “Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised”, when its requirements are not inconsistent with the Constitution and any duly adopted regulations.
B. Composition of the Governing Authority
- The Executive Board shall be composed of the President, the Vice President, Secretary, and the Treasurer.
- The Board of Directors includes the Executive Board, the immediate past President as an advisor only for one year, and Directors from each Chapter.
C. Source of Authority
- The governing authority of TrailBlazers is derived from its Regular Members and shall be vested in elected officers who serve as the Executive Board.
- The Board of Directors reviews operations, assures fiscal responsibility, and represents the membership. There shall be one Director from each Chapter.
- Members of the Executive Board shall manage the day to day operations of Trailblazers and have the authority for decisions and policy.
D. Meeting of the Board of Directors
A meeting of the Board of Directors shall be held at least every three (3) years. Other regular or special meetings may be held as a majority of the Board of Directors or the President may direct. Should a Director be unable to join a meeting, another member may be delegated as that Chapter’s voting representative.
E. Voting
Each member of the Board of Directors shall have one vote except the advisor.
II. Required Records
A. Minutes of Meetings
B. Financial Records
C. Membership Rolls
D. Security and Privacy of Records
No TrailBlazers records shall be sold or used for other than official TrailBlazers purposes.
Article IV – Meetings of the General Membership
I. General Meetings
A. A meeting of the General Membership of TrailBlazers shall be held at least every three (3) years at a time and place approved by the Executive Board.
B. General Membership as used herein shall include all members.
C. Notice of a General Membership meeting shall be published in the Tidings at least two months before the meeting. Unless stated otherwise, all TrailManor National Rallies shall include a General Membership meeting.
D. A quorum for the General Membership meetings shall be a simple majority of all the Regular Members present.
E. The President shall set the agenda for the meeting of the General Membership.
II. Special Meetings
The President may convene special meetings of the General Membership of TrailBlazers.
Article V – National Officers
I. Term of Office
A. Executive Board Officers shall hold office for a period of three (3) years.
B. No two persons from the same unit can hold office at the same time.
C. Stipends provided for any position below must be established by the Executive Board and approved by a majority of the Board of Directors.
II. Duties of Office
A. President
- The President is the principal executive officer of the TrailBlazers and shall exercise supervision and control of the affairs and business of the Trailblazers.
- The President shall preside at all meetings of the General Membership, the Executive Board, and the Board of Directors, and shall appoint committee members otherwise not specified.
- The President shall retain custody of all physical property belonging to the TrailBlazers. He or she should submit an inventory of such property to the Secretary within three months of assuming office.
- The President will vote only in case of deadlock.
B. Vice President
- The Vice President shall perform duties assigned by the President and the Board of Directors and those specified under Article VI.
- In the absence of the President at any meeting or in the event of the President’s inability to preside, the Vice President shall fulfill the duties of President and shall have the same authority as the President when so acting.
C. Secretary
- The Secretary is responsible for the recording of complete and adequate minutes of all meetings of the General Membership and the Executive Board, and maintaining all organizational records as required by statutory duties of the office.
- The Secretary shall maintain the Constitution, receive proposals for amendments, and modify these documents after changes are approved.
- The Secretary is responsible for publishing, mailing, receiving, and recording the count of all ballots.
- If the Secretary is unable to attend any meeting that requires his or her presence, the President shall appoint an alternate.
D. Treasurer
- The Treasurer is responsible for all financial records of the TrailBlazers. The Treasurer shall regularly report accounts to the President. The Treasurer shall disburse funds as business may require up to $600.00. Anything over $600.00 requires the approval of the Executive Board.
- All funds received by any person for Trailblazers are to be delivered to the Treasurer. They shall be immediately entered into the books of account and deposited to the credit of the TrailBlazers in a bank or other depository as designated by the TrailBlazers.
- If the Treasurer is unable to attend any meeting that requires his or her presence, the President shall appoint an alternate.
- The Treasurer shall provide a report of income and expenses for the previous fiscal year in the May issue of the Tidings.
- The fiscal year of the TrailBlazers shall be January 1 to December 31. A copy of the year end bank statement shall be provided to the Executive Board.
- The Treasurer shall support an audit as described in Article V.II.I.
E. Chapter Directors
There shall be a Director for each Chapter, elected at the discretion of the majority of the Chapter members.
- If a Chapter Director becomes an associate member that Director may still serve as Chapter Director if the Chapter
- desires, and retains his or her position and vote on the Board of Directors.
- If both the President and the Vice President are absent from a duly convened meeting, or in the event of the inability of either officer to preside, the attending members shall elect a presiding officer from one of the Directors who are present. If no Director is present, the meeting is adjourned.
F. Membership Coordinator
- The Membership Coordinator will serve at the discretion of the TrailBlazer’s Executive Board and will hold no voting rights other than those accorded to the regular members, with the exception that if an Executive Board member also serves as Membership Coordinator, voting rights are retained as provided for Executive Board members.
- Shall provide a central address for new memberships and renewals.
- Maintain a membership directory of all TrailBlazers. (Format to be approved by the Board).
- Assemble and email to the Tidings Editor the current copy of the membership directory to go to a printer.
- Respond to all new members with a welcoming letter, a copy of the membership directory which includes the Constitution, and a copy of the current Tidings via email or regular post.
- Prepare and forward to TrailManor and Chapter Directors, additions and deletions from the Membership.
- Notify Chapter Directors of members who have been added or dropped from the membership on a quarterly basis, via email.
- Maintain a mailing list for the Tidings or other mailings as determined by the Executive Board.
- Forward all moneys received for dues or any other purpose, to the club’s bank for deposit, then send proof of deposit and itemization to the Treasurer.
G. Newsletter Editor
- The name of the Trailblazers newsletter is Tidings.
- The Editor is to publish the Tidings three (3) times a year: January, May, and September.
- The Editor should submit a draft of the Tidings to be proofread by the Secretary before publishing.
- Preferably the Tidings are distributed electronically.
H. Constitution Committee
- When needed, the President shall appoint a Constitution Committee chairperson to serve at the discretion of the TrailBlazers Executive Board for the purpose of revising the Constitution per Article VIII. The chairperson is encouraged to recruit two (2) additional members from different chapters to serve on the committee when changes are
requested.
- The Constitution Committee will serve until constitutional revisions are approved as specified in Article VIII, within a three year term.
I. Auditor
- The President, with approval of the Board of Directors, shall appoint an Auditor to conduct an internal audit every three years.
- The Auditor shall establish an approach for conducting the audit subject to responsibilities below and report the internal audit and finding to the Board of Directors and the Membership via the Tidings.
- The Auditor will review fiscal input from the Treasurer to establish cash need and determine the need for change in dues and/or fees.
- The Auditor will provide overview of national elections and certify results per Article VI.IV.5.
Article VI – Election of Officers
I. National Elections
A. National elections shall be held every three (3) years.
B. Terms of office will begin October 1st.
II. Nominations
A. On or before February 1 of the election year, the Vice President shall request Chapter Directors to identify and submit names of members willing to serve as National Officers, to be received by March 1.
B. A slate of candidates for all National Offices shall be prepared from the Chapter Directors’ input and submitted to the Secretary by April 1.
III. Requirements, Eligibility and Obligations of the Nominees
A. Any Regular Member who has been a member at least one (1) year is eligible to run for office.
B. Each Candidate who accepts nominations for elective office shall promise that he or she, if elected, will perform the duties and accept the responsibilities of the office to the best of his or her ability.
C. Eligible candidates are encouraged to submit a brief statement of interest and qualifications for the National Office they are willing to hold.
D. Status and information regarding the National Election is encouraged to be included in the May issue of the Tidings.
IV. Election
A. The Secretary shall conduct the election for all National Offices. This includes the following duties:
- Prepare and receive the ballot in such a way as to ensure voter secrecy.
- Distribute the ballots to the regular members on or before June 1.
- Members shall be alloted one month to complete voting; ballets must be received within two weeks after voting closes.
- Verify that the ballots are authentic and were voted by Regular Members.
- Count the ballots and facilitate review and certification by the Auditor of the election results.
- Inform the Executive Board and the Editor of the Tidings of the results of the election, by August 1.
- Retain the ballots by the Secretary for safekeeping. After one year, if there is no question on the count of the ballots, the Secretary will destroy them.
V. Contingencies
A. In the event that an office is vacant despite the election process specified above, it may be filled by nomination and vote from attendees during the next General Membership meeting.
B. If a National Officer resigns or is unable to perform their duties, the President shall appoint a replacement with approval by a majority of the Board of Directors to serve the remaining term until the next election.
Article VII –Chapters
I. Authorization
A. Any member units in the same geographical area may petition TrailBlazers to form a “Chapter”.
B. Membership in TrailBlazers is a prerequisite for membership in a Chapter.
C. All applications for a Chapter shall be presented to the Vice President.
D. The Vice President may designate a geographical area that has not formed a Chapter as a “Group”.
II. Initial Application for a Chapter
A. The petition applying for recognition as a Chapter of TrailBlazers shall be submitted to the Vice President for the issuance of a Chapter.
B. The Petition for a Chapter shall be accompanied by the following:
- The name for the Proposed Chapter and geographical region.
- A printed or typed list of names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of the members applying to be granted a Chapter.
- Name of the Chapter Director.
III. Adjustments to Chapters
A. A Petition for adjustment of a chapter shall be submitted to the Vice President for issuance of the adjustment.
B. The Petition for adjustment shall include the information described in Article VII.II.B.
C. If two or more chapters are seeking adjustments between each other, justification and concurrence between the chapters shall be provided by their Directors.
D. A chapter that has become non-functional for three years may be reclassified as a Group by the Vice President.
Article VIII –Amending the Constitution
I. Submitting Changes
A. Any Regular Member may propose a change(s) in or additions to the Constitution.
B. Proposals shall be in writing and must be received by October 1st to allow time for the review and recommendation by the Constitution Committee.
C. Each proposal for a Constitutional change shall be referred to the Constitution Committee for review. After its review the Constitution Committee shall refer the proposal to the Executive Board. The Executive Board shall have the authority to accept, amend, or reject the proposed amendment.
D. The Constitution Committee shall return the original text, along with its own recommendations and the Executive Board recommendations, to the Secretary for duplication and distribution to the Regular Members, together with a mail-in ballot.
E. To permit adequate time for study of any proposed changes, thirty (30) days shall be allowed between the date of mailing the ballot and the date they must be received by the chairperson of the Constitution Committee.
F. The received ballots shall be validated and counted by the Constitution Committee and the results will be determined and announced in the next Tidings.
II. Adoptions
A. Affirmative votes that are one (1) more than half of the votes cast by the regular members shall be required to adopt, change, amend, revise, or repeal the constitution.
B. Changes, additions, amendments, or revisions to the Constitution shall be effective immediately after their adoption.
III. Special Action
The Constitution Committee may make corrections for the sole purpose of eliminating or correcting clerical or typographical errors.
Article IX – Discontinuance of TrailBlazers
TrailBlazers shall not be discontinued unless a majority of the Regular Membership shall vote for such discontinuance in the manner provided for amendments to the Constitution, or if National Offices remain vacant. Property, which may remain after payment of the just debts due city, state, nation, or creditors, shall be contributed to a qualified charity or charities chosen by the Board of Directors.
