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BY-LAWS OF THE BERGALL ASSOCIATION
(Rev C Oct 17, 2015)
Article I – OBJECTIVES
The Bergall Association operates as a fraternal organization to keep alive the spirit of the first USS Bergall (SS 320) and the second USS Bergall (SSN 667) and provides a means for her crews and extended family to keep in contact and meet annually.
Article II – MEMBERSHIP
Membership is open to all men who served in the United States Submarine Bergall SS-320 or SSN-667, their spouses, significant others, and family members.
Benefits of an active membership include:
Member Certificate
Membership card
Discounted rate for annual reunion meal
10% discount for all ships store merchandise
Participation as a voting member of the association
All non-life memberships expire on the 31st of August each year. An email will be sent to all newly inactive members and non-members offering sign-ups for the next year or the opportunity to sign up for life membership.
Full Membership Full membership is open to all men who served on the United States
Submarine Bergall and who are Qualified in Submarines in the United States Navy. The applicant must not have been disqualified for administrative or judicial reasons nor have caused discredit to the submarine community. This is not meant to limit persons who served in temporary status nor does it preclude membership by persons who shifted status to other services or who performed duties on a submarine from other services or organizations.
Associate Membership Associate membership will be accepted for those persons who have significantly contributed to submarine services. Associate memberships will also be used for spouses, significant others, and family members of Bergall crew. The Associate member shall have the same rights and privileges as a regular member except that the Associate member may not hold office. For a person to be eligible for Associate Membership, he must have had a long term involvement in submarine activities and have made a significant contribution to the field, be a direct family member or close friend of a submariner eligible for full membership. Associate members must be voted in by a majority vote of the Association Officers.
Life Membership Life Membership must meet one of the above categories and will be assigned under that category. Life membership is a payment option for Full or Associate membership. Membership privileges for Life members depends on whether they meet the guidelines for Full or Associate membership.
Life membership cost is determined by the following formula:
Life_Dues = (75-(Current_Age))*(Annual_Dues_Rate/2)
Example for someone 49 years of age at $10 a year Annual Dues Rate
Life Dues=(75-49)*(10/2) or $130
Article III - MEETINGS
Meetings will be held in conjunction with the Bergall Association reunion. The meeting will be the forum for election of officers, and establishing goals and objectives for the following year. Future sites and target dates for reunions will set. Six months prior to each reunion date as established by of the Bergall Association Officers, the President will request a committee to nominate a site. After approval by a majority of members voting as prescribed in A Reunion committee will established and be responsible for making detailed arrangements, and executing the reunion and meeting.
Meeting Quorum
Members in good standing and present in body shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of business regardless of the total number in attendance.
Voting
Voting at the annual meeting will be by a quorum of those members in attendance. A reminder email will be sent to all active members prior to the annual meeting offering them the right to assign a proxy for their vote. The person wishing to assign a proxy shall send an email or written notification to the person who will be their proxy and their proxy shall present this to the Association Officers at the meeting.
Any voting required mid-year will be performed via email. An email with the choices will be sent to all active members with a ten day window to respond. All who choose not to respond, will be recorded as "abstained". Motions will be decided by a simple majority of respondents, regardless of the total number of votes received. In the event of a tie, the Association Officers shall convene and cast the deciding vote as a single voting body.
Article IV - Officers
Elections
An election will be held annually to elect officers of the Bergall Association. The Association will put up the following nominees for election annually with prior consent of the nominees. For President, the sitting Vice President, for Secretary, the sitting Secretary, and for Treasurer, the sitting Treasurer. Nominations for any office will be accepted from the floor. Special elections may be conducted when an office is vacated prior to a scheduled election or during a year in which no reunion is held.
President
The President will:
Administer the affairs of the association subject to the policy guidance of the by-laws and votes of the membership.
Formulate and implement procedures, programs and directives to carry out the policies of the association.
Recommend new policies to the membership.
Vice President
The Vice-President will:
Serve as the President during a Presidents temporary absence or unavailability. The Vice-President shall exercise all authority and accept all responsibilities of the President when legally acting as President. The Vice President shall be responsible to the President for the execution and conduct of all procedures, programs and directives to carry out the policies of the association as assigned by the president.
Vice president is responsible for outbound communications from the association via email and social media posts.
Assign membership numbers to all new members.
Keep or cause to be kept, the roster of all members of the association, their mailing address, email address, and communications preferences, and status of dues paid.
Update the webmaster when any changes to the membership list are made.
Secretary
The Secretary will:
Keep or cause to be kept, the minutes of all meetings of the association.
Act as keeper of official records and the seal of the association.
Manage Postal mailings for the organization.
Treasurer
The Treasurer will:
Collect the funds of the association and cause them to be deposited to the prescribed account.
Act as the comptroller of all financial matters for the association and shall monitor the expenditures of the president and make recommendations to the president and membership on budgetary matters.
Disburse the funds of the association and contract for services and supplies as are necessary for proper operation of the association subject to the supervision of the other officers.
Be responsible for signing any financial contracts on behalf of the Association, upon review and approval by the BOD.
Past President
The most recent Past President will serve the board as an advisor and be a voting member of the board.
Board Advisory Members
The current sitting President will select two members in good standing. The two individuals must be Full Members in good standing and will serve the board as voting members for the duration of the sitting President.
Article V - INSIGNIA
The following is the insignia of the Bergall Association.
Article VI - AMENDMENTS
Resolutions for amendments to these articles shall be adopted by a quorum of the membership when submitted, posted for 30 days on the website, voted upon as prescribed and approved by a Majority.
Article VII - DUES
Annual dues will be established by the Association Officers and posted to
https://www.ussbergall.org/assoc/join.html
Dues to be paid initially with application submitted to the secretary and annually prior to August 31st to the treasurer.
Article VIII - EFFECTIVE DATE
The effective date for the Bergall Association by-laws Rev. C is 10/17/2015 after a majority vote by members in attendance at the 2015 meeting.
We, the undersigned, being the duly elected officials of the Bergall Association, do hereby certify that the foregoing amended by-laws of this association have been adopted by a quorum vote of the membership and set our signatures to this document the
Gordie McKibben
Association President
Bryan Waller
Association Vice President
Jerome Whitehead
Association Secretary
Brian Daugherty
Association Treasurer
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