Article I Name The name of this Club shall be Montelindo Garden Club.
Article II Objective The objective of this Club shall be to stimulate the knowledge and love of gardening and to encourage home and community beautification, to improve the knowledge of horticulture and to encourage civic planting and conservation programs.
Article III Membership Section 1. Membership shall be limited to 125 members. Both men and women are welcome to join.
Section 2. Any person interested in becoming a member shall contact a Membership Officer. New members shall be admitted whenever a vacancy arises. Priority shall be given to those on the waiting list. An applicant must attend two General Meetings before becoming an active member. Only active members may attend club activities except when an activity is declared open to guests.
Section 3. Termination of Membership. The Board reserves the right to terminate a person’s membership by a super majority (60%) vote of the Board if the Board determines that the member has engaged in repeated disruptive behavior that has interfered with the effective functioning of the club.
Article IV Club Affiliations Section 1. This Club shall be a member of The Gardens at Heather Farms. The Club may also join any other garden and/or nature related organizations as approved by the Board.
Article V Dues Section 1. The annual dues shall be set by the Board and shall be due and payable as of May 1. Members whose dues are delinquent after June 30th will pay a $10.00 penalty when the dues are paid if the dues have not been paid by September 1st, they shall be dropped from the roster. (If someone does not pay by June 30th and decides to rejoin the Club, that person is not eligible for new membership status and will be assessed the $10.00 penalty.)
Section 2. A new member who joins any time before December 31st shall pay full membership dues. Any new member joining from January 1 through April 30 shall pay half dues.
Article VI Officers and Duties Section 1. The Officers of the Club shall be: President, 1st Vice President, 2nd Vice President, Programs; Social; Membership, Treasurer, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, Parliamentarian, Publicity, and Newsletter Editor. Officers may be added or deleted at the discretion of the Board.
Section 2. These officers shall constitute the Board. Any vacancy shall be filled by the President, with the approval of the Board, for the unexpired term. Officers shall be elected for a one-‐year term and shall hold the same position for no more than three consecutive terms. Section 3. Any Board member may appoint an assistant if so desired. Said assistants should not be members of the Board.
Section 4. Duties of the Board Members: a. The President shall convene and preside at all General Meetings of the Club and the Board Meetings and shall approve all the Committee Chairs and their activities except the appointment and work of the Nominating Committee. The President or her/his appointee, shall serve as the Club representative to the Orinda Mayor's Liaison Meeting b. The two Vice Presidents will decide annually, with the approval of the Board, which committees and chairs each Vice President will oversee for that year. b-‐1. The 1st Vice President shall act in place of the President in the event of her/his absence or incapacity. If the office of the President becomes vacant, she/he shall become President. She/he shall be in charge of some committee chairs and special chairs, keeping the President and the Board informed of an appointments and activities. b-‐2. The 2nd Vice President shall keep a master calendar of all Club dates. She/he shall act in place of the President and 1st Vice President in the event both are absent or incapacitated. If the office of the President and 1st Vice President become vacant, she/he shall become President. She/he shall be in charge of some committee chairs and special chairs, keeping the President and the Board informed of all appointments and activities. c. The Program Officer shall be in charge of organizing programs for all General Meetings, the Spring Luncheon and the Holiday luncheon. She/he shall contract with each speaker, arrange for room and equipment set up, a thank you note, and gift or fee. d. The Social Coordinator shall plan for General Meeting refreshments. She/he may appoint assistants as needed. e. The Membership Officer shall maintain the handbook of members. When no vacancy exists she/he shall place the names of applicants on a waiting list in the order in which the applications are received. She/he shall collect Club dues and publish an annual Club handbook. She/he shall issue new membership cards annually. She/he shall direct the drawing of door prizes drawn from a monthly attendance list. She/he shall work in conjunction with the Corresponding Secretary to make contact with frequently absent members. f. The Treasurer shall keep an itemized account of all expenditures and receipts following an annual fiscal year of July 1 to June 30. She/he shall post a report at every meeting. The President or the Treasurer may sign checks. The Treasurer shall establish a budget committee for the year consisting of the Treasurer, President, a Vice President and Program Officer. Additional members of the board may be added at the discretion of the committee. g. The Recording Secretary shall keep the minutes of all the board-‐meetings of the Club. She/he shall be custodian of all records and papers pertaining to the Club and pass them on to the next Secretary. As approved by the Board, the minutes shall be considered the official record of the Club. h. The Corresponding Secretary shall assume responsibility for all social correspondence, keeping records of all correspondence, including sending get well, condolences and missing you cards. i. The Parliamentarian shall be the immediate past President and shall advise the Club on questions relating to the By-‐Laws and parliamentary procedure. If balloting is necessary, she/he will be responsible for tallying the vote. She/he shall act as chair of the By-‐Laws Committee and of the Nominating Committee. j. The Publicity Officer shall submit publicity releases for all local media. She/he shall keep a copy of any releases on file in her book for Club reference. She/he shall distribute publicity information to appropriate community locations. k. The Newsletter Editor shall produce the monthly Newsletter, obtaining news, typing, assembling, mailing and e-‐mailing as needed. She/he shall establish deadlines, both for news and mailing on a monthly basis.
Article VII Committee Chairs Committee Chairs shall be appointed by the 1st and 2nd Vice Presidents and they shall report to the appropriate Vice President as to their activities. Their duties are described in Committee Chair Job Descriptions attached to the By-Laws. They shall attend Board meetings as necessary. The Board at its discretion may add or delete Committee Chairs.
Article VIII Meetings Section 1. General Meetings shall be held on the third Friday of the month or as set. There shall be no General Meetings in the months of June, July and August.
Section 2. Officers shall be installed at the May meeting.
Section 3. There shall be a joint board meeting of new and old officers at the end of the fiscal year.
Section 4. Board meetings shall be held as required.
Article IX Elections Section 1. A Nominating Committee of five members shall be appointed in January of each year. Chair will be the Parliamentarian; four other members shall be chosen, two from the Board, including a Vice President, and two from the membership at large.
Section 2. The Nominating Committee shall prepare a list of candidates whose names shall be published in the newsletter prior to their reading at the April meeting. Further nominations shall be in order from the floor, providing a nominee has given prior approval to its presentation.
Section 3. If there is more than one candidate for the same office, election shall be by ballot, and a majority vote shall elect. If there is only one candidate for each office, the President shall declare the slate duly elected.
Article X Quorum Section 1. A quorum for the transaction of business at a General Meeting shall consist of fifty per cent (50) of the active members of the Club.
Section 2. A quorum for the transaction of business at the Board shall consist of fifty per cent (50) of the members of the Board.
Article XI Amendments or Revisions Section 1. Amendments or revisions to the By‐Laws may be presented for discussion at any General Meeting, provided that the Board has approved the proposed amendment and the membership has been advised prior to a General Meeting of the Club.
Section 2. The By-Laws may be amended by a two-‐thirds (2/3) vote of those members present (presuming a quorum for a business meeting).
Section 3. The President, 1st and 2nd Vice Presidents, Recording Secretary and Parliamentarian shall keep a printed copy of the By-Laws and all amendments or revisions.
Standing Rules a. The budget shall be based primarily on annual membership dues. Any income may be expended at the discretion of the Board.
b. Donations may be made to garden and nature-‐related projects of the Board.
c. A memorial fund shall be maintained accepting contributions made in memory of members, former members and others. Contributions shall be acknowledged and recorded. Funds shall be commingled and records shall not be kept on an individual basis. From time to time the fund money shall be spent for special garden projects as determined by the Board.
Revised May 1984 Revised Feburay1990 Revised May 1992 Revised March 1993 Revised March 1998 Revised January 2007 Revised Apri1 2012 Revised April 2014 Revised June 2015
Montelindo Garden Club Committee Job Descriptions The numbers of Chairmen or Committees and Assistants may vary from year to year but remain at the discretion of the Board. The Descriptions focus on what the job is and not on how the job is implemented. The Chairmen or Committees determine how the job is implemented when they assume their position.
Birds It shall be the responsibility of this person to give a short bird talk at General Meetings as requested by the President.
Book Reports It shall be the responsibility of this person to give a report on a gardening related book at General Meetings as requested by the President. This position may be combined with Horticulture.
Civic Beautification/Outreach 1. Orinda Crossroads Mini-‐Park It shall be the responsibility of this committee to maintain the landscaping around the Orinda fountain located at the northeast corner of Brookwood and Camino Pablo in coordination with Orinda’s Parks and Recreation Department.
2. Orinda Garden Clubs’ Liaison It shall be the responsibility of this person to liaison with the three other Orinda garden clubs and provide periodic updates on joint projects of the four clubs.
3. Orinda Library Flowers It shall be the responsibility of this person to have members volunteer to bring two floral/plant arrangements weekly to the Orinda Library for a three month period. This is a joint project of the four Orinda garden clubs.
4. Orinda Plant Containers It shall be the responsibility of this person to organize and implement maintenance of city planters in the south downtown area located along Moraga Way during a three month period. This is a joint project of the four Orinda garden clubs.
5. Convalescent Flowers It shall be the responsibility of this person to have members volunteer to bring flowers to General Meetings and subsequently deliver them to local convalescent home(s).
Communications It shall be the responsibility of this person to post materials about gardening and display the Club’s sign at General Meetings.
Friendship Garden Exchange It shall be the responsibility of this committee to organize and implement a sale at General Meetings of plants and garden related items donated by Club members.
Fund Raising It shall be the responsibility of this committee to organize, implement and publicize fund raising event(s).
Garden Center Representatives It shall be the responsibility of these representatives to report at General Meetings on the activities of The Gardens at Heather Farms, Markham Nature Park and Arboretum and other organizations as decided by the Board.
Garden Discussion Group It shall be the responsibility of this person to organize, implement and publicize a monthly meeting that focuses on gardening issues.
Garden Resource File It shall be the responsibility of this person to maintain and update a file containing recommendations submitted by the Garden Club members of home and garden services and supplies, and provide access to the information online and at the General Meetings.
Guest Greeter(s) It shall be the responsibility of this person(s) to greet everyone at General Meetings and introduce guests attending the Meetings.
Handbook Production It shall be the responsibility of these persons to prepare an electronic copy of print material and members’ pictures for the printing of the Club’s annual Handbook.
Historian It shall be the responsibility of this person to keep and update the Club Scrapbooks and display Scrapbooks at General Meetings.
Holiday Luncheon It shall be the responsibility of this person to organize a committee to plan, implement and publicize the Holiday Luncheon, and coordinate with the Program Chair for entertainment.
Horticulture It shall be the responsibility of this person to provide horticultural reports at General Meetings as requested by the President. This position may be combined with Book Reports.
Meeting Flowers It shall be the responsibility of this person to provide a floral display for General Meetings.
Mini Tours It shall be the responsibility of this committee to plan, implement and publicize Mini‐Tours.
Newsletter Distribution It shall be the responsibility of this person to duplicate, assemble and mail to those members who do not receive the newsletter by e-‐mail the Club newsletter after receiving a finished copy from the Newsletter Editor.
Penny Pines It shall be the responsibility of this person to collect money at General Meetings for reforestation in the Mendocino National Forest.
Photographer It shall be the responsibility of this person to organize a committee to take photos of new members for the Membership Book, and photos for the annual Handbook, Scrapbook and Newsletter.
Spring Luncheon It shall be the responsibility of this person to organize a committee to plan, implement and publicize a Spring Luncheon, and coordinate with the Program Chair for entertainment.
Spring Tour It shall be the responsibility of this committee to organize, implement and publicize an annual Spring Tour for 40-50 Garden Club members.
Summer Social It shall be the responsibility of this committee to organize, implement and publicize a Summer Social, which accommodates 40-60 members.
Workshops It is the responsibility of this committee to plan, implement and publicize workshops related to one or more purposes of the Club: gardening, home and community beautification, horticulture, and/or civic planting and conservation.
October 13, 1993 Revised January 2007 Revised April 2012 Revised May 2014