CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS OF INDIA CLUB

                     LAGUNA WOODS VILLAGE, CALIFORNIA 

  MISSION STATEMENT 

The India Club of Laguna Woods Village, California is an assembly of people of Indian heritage and other like-minded people. The mission of the Club is to promote awareness of the Indian culture by organizing traditional and non-traditional cultural and social activities. This shall be accomplished in a healthy and vibrant environment by practicing equality, truthfulness and fairness, a spirit of teamwork and collaboration and showing respect for free minds and for other cultures.

NOTE: The constitution contains the basic principles and By-Laws which provide specific procedures for operating an organization. By-Laws describe in detail the procedures the group must follow in order to conduct business in an orderly manner. They further provide definition to the articles of the constitution and can be changed easily as the needs of the organization change.

ARTICLE I: NAME

The name of this organization is INDIA CLUB of LAGUNA WOODS VILLAGE, CALIFORNIA (hereinafter referred to as INDIA CLUB, IC, or Club).

ARTICLE II: PURPOSE

The purpose of INDIA CLUB is to promote awareness of Indian culture and heritage by organizing events which involve traditional and non-traditional cultural and social activities. INDIA CLUB strives to bring together the diverse cultures and social groups which exist in Laguna Woods Village.

The purpose of this Constitution and By-Laws is to lay down the governing rules and regulations as well as the rights, responsibilities, and obligations of the officers, directors and members for governance of the Club in an effective and efficient manner.

ARTICLE III: OFFICE LOCATION

The principal office for transactions and activities shall be located at an address within the jurisdiction of Laguna Woods Village, California, as designated by the Board of Directors (BOD). Since the club does not have a structural location, the address of the elected President shall be the location of the club office. This shall change with each new election of the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE IV: MEMBERSHIP

There shall be two main classes of members in this Club: Resident-members and Non-resident members. Non-resident member class, however, includes a special class termed Honored members as defined in Section 2.

1. Resident Members:

Any resident living in Laguna Woods Village, after paying the annual membership fees, shall be considered a Resident-member. There shall not be any numerical limit to this membership.

2. Honored Non Resident Members:

Any non resident member not living in Laguna Woods Village who has been a member of IC prior to 1/1/2017 shall be considered an Honored member and is grandfathered in, provided that membership fees are paid every year.

3. Non Resident Members:

a) Effective 1/1/2017, any member not living in Laguna Woods Village shall have a purely Non-Resident member status. Incompliance with Golden        Rain Foundation, the number of such Non-Resident members will be limited to 20% of the resident members.

b) All members (Resident, Honored and Non-Resident) shall have equal rights to vote at all upcoming elections.

c) There will be 7 positions on the BOD.

d) An Honored/Non-Resident member can only stand for the position of Member at Large (Advisory Director). This member position can only be filled in by a non resident member who has been in good standing for a duration of at least six months.

e) An Honored /Non-Resident member cannot hold any of the other 6 positions on the Board.

f) All members in good standing are expected to volunteer to serve and carry out the purposes of the Club.

4. Requirements for Continuous Membership and Payment of Dues:

a) All members are required to pay Dues when they join the Club and to renew their membership every year.

b) Membership shall be terminated if the member leaves voluntarily or does not renew his/her membership.

c) Non-members shall pay for the programs only and if so desired, can donate to the club and do voluntary work as requested by the Board.

d) In order to vote, all members are required to maintain their membership in good standing.

e) The amount of Dues shall be decided by the Board members and approved by the General Body. It may be subject to change from time to time.

f) All members shall provide contact information to the Secretary.

ARTICLE V: EXECUTIVE BOARD OF DIRECTORS (BOD)

The Club shall be administered by an Executive Board (Board of Directors or BOD) which shall serve as the backbone of the organization. The BOD is responsible for running the Club in an effective and dedicated manner. The BOD shall make sure that the Club follows all the governing rules and policies of the Club as well as those of the GOLDEN RAIN FOUNDATION (GRF).

a) The Board shall consist of a President, a Vice President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, a Provisions (Food) Director, an Entertainment Director and
Member-at-Large (Advisory Director).

b) Only 7 members are to serve on the BOD at any given time.

c) The only position available to a non-resident member in good standing is that of the Member at Large (Advisory Director).

d) The President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Food Director and Entertainment Director have to be resident members in good standing.

e) Each member of the Executive Board (BOD) Board must be approved by the General Body by securing at least 51% of the votes of the members voting at the General Body meetings held for the yearly elections in November and December of each year.

f) The BOD is collectively responsible for all the actions of the executive committee and the successful execution of all events. Even though each
BOD member has a primary job responsibility, the members of the Board have to work in tandem with each other and also help overloaded members by sharing the work. Every BOD member is responsible to carry out the responsibilities of the BOD.

g) The BOD shall take decisions based on a simple majority vote of its members

ARTICLE VI: Responsibilities of The BOD:

 A.  PRESIDENT:

a) The President shall manage all the current affairs of the Club.

b) He/she shall conduct the General meeting as well as the BOD meetings which consists of all the Office Bearers.

c) The President could invite Previous Presidents of the Club to participate and share their expertise/experience at the Board meetings.

d) At any meeting, the President is to ensure that there be a minimum of five Office Bearers or appointed substitutes to conduct the business.

e) A simple majority in the Board meeting shall give a decision holding vote.

f) The President with the Board shall determine the club’s programs and implement them accordingly. At each program, the President shall advise the members present regarding any important announcements.

g) With the approval of the Board, besides the regular monthly meeting, the President may run a special event.

h) The President shall have the responsibility to delegate various tasks to Board members and to form other committees when necessary. This shall be on a voluntary basis.

i) The President’s term, as of now, is one year. If it is deemed to be necessary, with the approval of the General Body, the term can be extended to two years.

j) The President shall commence the election of the new Board members in the month of November.

k) The President shall keep an account of all the activities of the Club with the Treasurer, the Secretary, and other Board members. This account shall be presented to the General Body on a quarterly basis at the minimum.

l) The President, in order to address an issue concerning the Club, and to resolve it, shall, in conjunction with the BOD, refer the matter to the Advisory Committee (hereinafter, AC) for a recommendation to present to the General Body for its approval or disapproval.

m) The President has no authority to change or alter a unanimous decision of the BOD.

n) The President can cancel an event only with the joint approval of the BOD obtained prior to the cancellation. Process for cancellation of a previously decided on event has to be in writing and approved by the BOD and AC.

o) President and Treasurer are required to jointly sign for any sums to be drawn from the bank account for amounts over $200 or an amount to be determined by the BOD.

p) The President and other BOD members are required to present the Treasurer with the Original valid bills/receipts before they could be reimbursed.

q) The President has to be a resident member of Laguna Woods Village.

B.  VICE PRESIDENT:

a) In the absence of the President, the Vice President shall have full authority and shall perform all the duties of the President

b) Upon request and guidance from the President, the Vice President shall help the BOD and carry out other duties required for the Club.

c) The Vice President should be actively working with the President in sharing responsibility to help the President and the Club.

d) The Vice President has to be a resident member of Laguna Woods Village

C.   SECRETARY:

a) The Secretary shall keep a book of minutes of all meetings of the Club and actions of Board members, noting the time and place of holding, whether it is a Regular, Executive, General or Special meeting. The names of all persons present at such meetings shall also be included.

b) The Secretary shall keep a record of all members showing their names, addresses, telephone numbers, E-mail addresses and the class of membership held by each, in two separate rosters, one for Resident-members and one for Guest and Non- Resident members.

c) The Secretary shall E-mail any general meeting notices to all members and publish them on the IC Website as well.

d) The Secretary shall prepare the program fliers, print them, and distribute them to all the clubs of the Laguna Woods Village by means decided upon.

e) The Secretary shall inform all Board members of upcoming Board meetings, 48 hours in advance, providing information on the venue, date and time and the agenda for the meeting.

f) The Secretary shall type all the minutes and keep the records for future reference.

g) The Secretary shall choose a member as an Assistant-Secretary whose responsibilities shall fall in the same category. When the Secretary is absent, the Assistant-Secretary shall perform the duties as required. The assistant would need to be approved by the BOD.

h) The Secretary shall maintain a mailing list of all visitors/non-members if requested by the attendee/s.

D.  TREASURER:

a) The Treasurer does their due diligence and approves the budget for an IC event before any expenses are approved towards an event.

b) The Treasurer is a Financial Officer. He/she shall attend the General meetings and shall collect membership fees when due. At the same time, he/she shall check all the pertinent information of a member regarding address, telephone number and E-mail address. He/she shall pass on this information to the Secretary from time to time.

c) The Treasurer shall collect from the members the charges for the events taking place at the monthly meetings and at special events and record the money received. If desired by a member, the treasurer shall issue a receipt of membership dues and other donations received.

d) The Treasurer shall deposit money collected in a designated bank account and save the receipts of all the transactions after reimbursement of submitted & approved expenses.

e) At the end of his/her term the Treasurer shall prepare a ledger of all the transactions, money deposited, and money spent for various activities and hand it over to the new Treasurer.

f) When required, the Treasurer shall give an account of all the expenditures, collections of dues, donations, and the remaining balance. It shall be open to inspection by the President and the BOD.

g) The Treasurer shall require two signatures on a check to be issued, the President’s and his/her own if the amount on the check is over $200 or an amount to be determined by the BOD.

h) Treasurer must receive the original valid bills /receipts from BOD members and /or vendors before issuing any payments.

i) The Treasurer shall choose an assistant to help him/her to take over as Treasurer in his/her absence. The assistant will not have any voting rights when the treasurer is present and available. The assistant would need to be approved by the BOD

j) The Treasurer will provide a financial statement to the general body at least once every three months.

k) The Treasurer has to be a resident member of Laguna Woods Village.

E.  ENTERTAINMENT DIRECTOR:

a) The Entertainment Director shall arrange all the monthly programs for the Club as well as other events.

b) The Entertainment Director shall forward his/her ideas to the BOD for approval including the cost, feasibility and form a committee in order to carry out the event successfully.

c) He/she can also choose an assistant to achieve the goal of entertainment for the benefit of the Club. The assistant will not have any voting rights when the Entertainment Director is present and available. The assistant would need to be approved by the BOD.

d) The Entertainment Director shall solicit opinions of Club members as to the nature of social, musical, educational and wellness programs the Club should have.

e) The Entertainment Director shall promote only those religious programs that are approved by the Executive Committee. He/she shall not involve the club in any kind of political activity.

f) The Entertainment Director will present a list of options to the BOD during their meeting and work on the option approved by majority of the BOD.

g) The Entertainment Director has to be a resident member of Laguna Woods Village.

F.  PROVISIONS DIRECTOR:

a) The (Food) Provisions Director in agreement with the BOD shall submit his/her proposal either to cater dinner and dessert, have a potluck or have members bring in their own dinner. He/she shall inquire as to the cost of catering and recommend the amount to be charged to the BOD.

b) He/she shall choose food servers and other volunteers needed for helping out before and after meals are served.

c) The Food Director shall choose an assistant to assist in carrying out his/ her duties. The assistant will not have any voting rights when the Food Director is present and available. The assistant would need to be approved by the BOD

d) He/she shall be responsible for all activities in the kitchen and assign volunteers to dispose garbage, clean tables and utensils and fold tablecloths.

 e) He/she shall assign to members what dishes to bring for potluck events and picnic outings. For a picnic event, he/she shall find an appropriate, pleasant picnic area convenient to all and reserve the spot if needed. If no reservation is required, the Provisions Director shall send a volunteer early in the day to reserve picnic tables in the chosen area.

f) The Provisions Director will present a list of options to the BOD during their meeting and work on the options approved by the majority of the BOD.

g) The Food Director has to be a resident member of Laguna Woods Village.

G.  MEMBER -AT-LARGE (Advisory Director)

a) Shall be required to be a Resident or be an Honored or Non-Resident Member in good standing for a minimum of 6 months

b) He/She shall demonstrate:
    1) Strong communication, observational and listening skills.
    2) The ability to motivate and build a rapport with the Board and Club Members.
    3) An empathetic, non-judgmental and ethical approach
    4) Team working skills and the capability to work under pressure
    5) Organizational and problem-solving skills
    6) Ability to build a productive working relationship with the Board and Club Members.
    7) A non-judgmental attitude and the ability to connect with people from diverse backgrounds
    8) The ability to motivate and inspire the volunteers and Club Members.

ARTICLE VII: ADVISORY COMMITTEE (AC)

To ensure the proper functioning of the Board and to maintain proper checks and balances, there will be a body of THREE (3) elected members, elected by the general body, to be known as the ADVISORY COMMITTEE (AC) who will make sure that all the rules and regulations and By-Laws are followed by the Board. The AC is empowered to remove any active member of the Board and will follow up on any complaints the members have towards the Board.

1. The Election of the Advisory Board of 3 members shall be at the same time as the
election of the BOD.

2. To qualify for the position of a member of the AC, a member in good standing would have to be an ex Board member or have been a Laguna Woods Resident with at least 3 years residency. In the event of an emergency situation , any member of the general body in good standing can ring the issue at hand to the ADVISORY COMMITTEE by writing or e mailing the 3 members. The ADVISORY COMMITTEE will then convene a meeting of all 3 members as soon as possible, and no later than 1 week to address the issue at hand. The committee will determine if the issue at hand requires for a General Body or Special meeting to be called.

3. Emergency situations could include situations where time is of the essence as also to address issues with the working of the BOD and the President.

ARTICLE VIII: Nominations and Voting for the Election of an Office Bearer (BOD AND AC):

 a) In October of each year, the BOD shall solicit 3 members of the IC to serve as members of the Election Committee (EC) to conduct the annual elections in November and December for that year.

b) The three members of the EC should be members who must not be directors or candidates. 

c) Nominations (requiring consent of the nominee) and self-nominations for the BOD as well as the AC must be submitted to the pre-appointed Election Committee (EC). This must be done in November in writing, (by mail, e-mail), or verbally at the November India Club meeting.

d) Each nominee shall be given 5 minutes at the November meeting to make a statement to the General Body regarding his/her candidature.

e) During the month of December, if a candidate wishes to reach the Club members, he/she can submit a statement to an EC person to be distributed to all members.

f) The secretary shall mail out a Nomination of Member form to all members with the list of the nominees. The list of positions shall include the 7 BOD positions as well as the 3 AB positions.

g) Voting will be conducted at the December Club meeting by a secret ballot. The three members of the EC shall count the votes and announce the results.

h) If more than one candidate runs for an office, whoever gets the highest number of votes would be declared to be the official director for the position.

i) In the event of only one person running for election, that person would be appointed to the position after approval by 51% of the total members voting at the December meeting.

j) Until a suitable candidate/candidates are found, the club shall function under a temporary BOD selected by the past presidents if needed.

k) Members are requested to be present in person. However absentee ballots are to be tabulated. They are to be sent via mail or e mail to the secretary with a cut off date of 5 days prior to the date of the election. (weekends included).

l) All active Club Members are expected to vote in person or by mail unless there are real life-threatening issues involved.

m) The new elected BOD & AC committee members are to begin their tenure with the January meeting following the elections.

ARTICLE IX: Vacancies among the Board members:

a) Any Office Bearer may resign at any time by giving written notice  to the BOD effective at the date specified in that notice. The BOD shall appoint a new member to fill in the vacant office for the remainder of the term, with said member to be approved by the ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

b) If the majority or all members of the BOD resign, the outgoing BOD shall call for a special General Meeting and conduct the new election. These elected members shall be in office until the next new election and if so desired, shall nominate themselves for the preferred position for the new annual election.

ARTICLE X: Meetings:

a) All monthly meetings/events may be held at a club house designated for the purpose or by Zoom. The BOD shall specify the date, time and the day of the week for such meetings. Under certain circumstances, the BOD shall change the place of the meeting for a special event. The BOD shall
inform all the Board members of the change in detail.

b) Special Meetings may be called for by the AC to address specific issues. The Secretary shall provide the date, time and place of such meetings to all members.

c) The President shall decide the place, time, date and the day of the week for the Board meetings.

d) Ex Presidents may be invited to attend the Board monthly meetings.

e) Secretary and Treasurer are to go over Minutes of previous Board Meeting.

ARTICLE XI: Recall of BOD Members:

a) BOD members can be removed from office by the joint decision of the ADVISORY COMMITTEE and voting members. b) The voting members have the power to recall and remove the BOD before term expiration by petitioning the ADVISORY COMMITTEE with their request.

c) The ADVISORY COMMITTEE may then call for a special meeting to vote for the removal and 51% votes of members voting in favor of this act shall confirm the removal of one or all BOD members.

d) A quorum of 51% of members should be present at any given time when special meetings are held and the issue of removal of a member(s) of the BOD is to be determined. However if the quorum is not met, the ADVISORY COMMITTEE has the right to conduct the meeting after waiting for a period
of 1 hour for absentee members to show up.

e) 51% of all voting members must vote for the removal of the concerned Board Member or Members for the removal to take effect.

ARTICLE XII: MISCELLANEOUS

Section 1: Fiscal Year:

The fiscal year of this Club shall be January 1 through December 31.

Section 2: Term of Office:

The term of office for all Board members and AC members shall be from January 1 to December 31 of each calendar year. Newly elected Board members shall work side-by-side with the outgoing Board members for a smooth transition.

Section 3: Parliamentary Practices:

Except as otherwise specifically provided in this Constitution and By-Laws, all questions of order or procedure with respect to any meeting or action of this Club, its Board of Directors or any Committee appointed hereunder shall be determined in accordance with ROBERT’S RULES OF ORDER, NEWLY REVISED or as revised from time to time.

Section 4: Partisan Politics And Religion:

This Club shall not endorse or recommend any candidate for public office, nor shall partisan politics or sectarian religion be debated by members in meetings of this Club.

Section 5: Personal Benefit:

No Officer or member of this club shall use his/her membership as means of furthering personal, financial, political, or any other aspiration, nor shall the Club, as a whole, take part in a movement not in keeping with its purpose and objectives.

Section 6: Compensation:

No Officer/Director shall receive any compensation for any service rendered in this Club in his/her official capacity.

Section 7: Solicitation of Funds:

No funds shall be solicited from the Club by any individual or individual(s) without approval of the General Body.

Section 8: Conformation to the Rules & Regulations of Golden Rain Foundation (GRF):

All proposed changes of the Constitution and By-Laws of the Club shall conform to the rules and regulations of GRF.

Section 9: End Beneficiary in the Event of Club Closure:

If the Club is dismantled for any reason, all the remaining assets shall be donated to a recognized charity.

ARTICLE XIII: AMENDMENTS TO THE BY LAWS

A)  Amendments proposed by Members:

a. Whenever new amendments are considered to be needed, a committee shall be formed to propose amendments to the existing By-Laws. This committee shall be responsible for framing the proposed amendments which would then be voted on and approved by the IC members before being incorporated into the By-Laws.

b. A special meeting of all members is required to be called by the BOD to address the proposed Amendments.

c. The General Body may adopt the Amendments with a 51% majority of members voting at the Special Meeting called for that purpose.

d. Members present at the Special Meeting could vote to accept or reject the proposed Amendments in whole or in part. They could approve some Amendments and reject some Amendments. If 51% of members who are present and voting approve the proposed amendments, those amendments would be considered to be approved by the General Body.

e. If any proposed Amendments do not get an approval from 51% of the voting members and are considered to be rejected by the voting members, concerned members could make their case for recommendations and requests for modification and reconsideration , in writing, to the BOD and ADVISORY COMMITTEE. The BOD may then request a follow up special meeting to be held to discuss the issues and a 51% majority vote of voting members present at that meeting shall be required for implementing the new changes.

f. No BOD shall change, alter, or delete any part of the By-Laws without the consent of 51% of the members voting at a special meeting.

B) Procedure for Incorporating Future Amendments in the By-Laws:

The Secretary shall describe the nature of the amendment as to whether the change approved by the General Body is an addition, deletion, or alteration of language of an existing point or section. In the case of language changes, the original verbiage shall also be included. A page shall then be added to these By-Laws with the appropriate explanation, date and signatures to make the change official.