Abington R/C Sport Flyers

CHARTER AND BYLAWS 

1.       Name 

                    The name of this Club shall be Abington R/C Sport Flyers Incorporated.

2.       Purpose 

The main purpose of this Club is to promote the hobby of model aviation. The goal of the club is to involve members in the hobby through activities that include education, pleasure, and recreation, on a not for profit basis, in accordance with the rules of the Academy of Model  Aeronautics (AMA) and of this organization as amended.

3.       Membership 

A.      Membership is open to all individuals with an interest in model aviation.  

B.      Membership in the club requires a current membership in the Academy of           Model Aeronautics (AMA) and completion of a club membership application. Club dues must be paid at the time of application. 

C.      Voting rights are reserved for current club members. 

D.      Indemnification/Hold-harmless clause

It is understood and required of all members that current AMA membership be maintained so as to provide the individual flyer with liability insurance coverage. No individual member is to be responsible for the negligent or intentional misconduct of another member who violates any of the rules or regulations of this Club or of the AMA.

E.             Termination of Membership in the Club may be accomplished in the following ways:

1.      Voluntarily, by resignation, either verbal or written to an officer of the club or at a club meeting.

2.      Involuntarily as a result of disciplinary actions for flagrant or continued violations of Club rules or of Club principles to the detriment of the Club and/or the hobby. 

3.      Disciplinary action for club violations will be applied as follows: 

a.       First offense – Verbal Warning by a Club Officer

b.      Second offense – Suspension of Flying Privileges for a period of Two-week period

c.       Third offense – Dismissal from the club determined by a vote of the club board members

  F.      Reinstatement of terminated membership may be accomplished in the following ways: 

4.      Members who resign voluntarily may be reinstated if they can meet membership requirements as in section 3.A.

4.        Executive Board 

 The club shall be guided by an Executive board consisting of five (5) members in good standing elected from and by the general membership. The Executive Board members shall include all officers of the Club as listed in Section 5 below. Two members that will be appointed the officers of the club.

 5.         Officers 

A.     The President shall: 

1.      Preside at all meetings and determine the agenda.

2.      Be a spokesperson for this club.

3.      Appoint chairpersons of all committees subject to Club approval and be an ex-offlcio member of all committees.

4.      Replace board Members who are unable to fulfill their required duties due to excessive absences, reasons of heath, and so on.

5.      Cast a deciding vote in the event of a tie.

B.     The Vice President shall:

1.      Serve in place of the President when he is unable to serve.

2.      Maintain the Club Calendar of social events.

3.      Coordinate social and tutorial sessions.

        C.    The Secretary/Treasurer shall:

1.             Keep the minutes of all meetings.

2.             Handle all correspondence pertaining to club activities.

3.             Keep roll of membership attendance at meetings.

4.             Maintain and file the Club AMA Charter, Corporate Charter, Club correspondence, insurance records, etc.

5.             Handle and keep a record of all money.

6.             Be authorized to pay bills.

7.             Present a report of all transactions at meetings.

8.             Provide an annual financial report to the membership within 60 days following the end of each calendar year.

9.             Keep all Club funds in a Club checking and/or savings account as approved by the Club.

10.         Keep a record of members in good standing, which shall serve as the Club roster

          D.  Appointed Officers

1.             The Field Marshal shall:

a.       Provide reports and recommendations to the Board on field issues.

b.      Greet new faces at the field and explain the hobby.

c.       Know the location of the local hospital, police dept.

d.      Enforce transmitter impound area and frequency control.

e.       Handle non-fliers who may disrupt operations.

           2.   The Safety Officer shall:

a.       Supervise the flight line and frequency control.

b.      Enforce the AMA Safety Code and Club safety rules.

c.       Make recommendations to the Board on field rules.

d.      Prevent individual flyers from flying if their conduct or aircraft are unsuitable.

e.       Know location of local hospital and police department.

f.        Provide safety presentations as needed at meetings.

g.       Maintain posted AMA Safety Code at the field.

6.       Term of Office 

A.            Term of office for all Board members shall be for one year. Election of the President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer shall be held annually. 

B.            Elections will be by written ballot sent to all members. Votes will be counted at a regular membership meeting.  

C.            Board members and Field Officers shall be appointed at the first meeting after a new election of officers. If re-appointed, Board members may serve continuous terms.

7.       Dues and Finances

 A.            Dues are payable upon submission of membership application. Payments will be made to Abington R/C Sport Flyers and collected by the Treasure of the club. 

B.            All money spent towards the Club without proper authorization will be considered a donation and a refund will not be awarded.  

C.            There will be no funding of a specialty group or modelers within the Club. 

D.            All money paid out by this Club, with the exception of field maintenance, will be made by a vote of membership at our monthly meeting. The President shall have authority to make decisions and authorize expenditures within $50. The Executive Board may, by majority vote and concurrence of the President, authorize expenditures within $200 when it is in the best interests of the Club to do so prior to the next membership meeting. However in the case of Treasurer and Secretary, finances for correspondence, postage and office supplies, and charter renewal will be left to their discretion. 

E.              All money in the treasury of this Club will have as first priority field upkeep, AMA charter, and office expense, this balance should be equal to the last year total expenses for upkeep and office expense, money over this base amount can only then be used for other expenses.

            F.              All club check shall require the Treasurer's and President's signatures for redemption.

8.        Field Rules 

A.     All members will abide by the field rules and be able to present any member a valid AMA card and a Club card showing dues are paid up.

 B.     Visiting flyers must show a valid AMA card on request.

 9.        Meetings

                        A.            General membership meetings will be held as often as the Club deems necessary.

B.             All meetings will be conducted whatever the attendance count. All voting will be made with a minimum quorum of 10 members. In the absence of a quorum, the Executive Board shall conduct business in accordance with its authority.

                       C.            The conduct of the meetings shall be in accordance with regular Parliamentary Procedure per "Roberts Rules of Order", latest ed.

11.    Instruction

    A.            Flight instruction may be given by any member in good standing and is capable of safely controlling the student's aircraft.

B.            New members may not fly without an instructor until they have demonstrated basic flight ability.

 12.   Amendments 

                       Revisions to club doctrine 

A.                      A majority vote of the entire membership.

B.                      A 2/3-majority vote of a quorum at a membership meeting Provided all members have been notified of the proposed changes at least 5 days prior to the meeting.