OLD RES YACHT CLUB
BYLAWS
Revised May, 2023
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ARTICLE I-NAME AND PURPOSE
The name of this club is the Old Res Yacht Club (“ORYC”), and it is a social club.
ARTICLE II – MEMBERSHIP
Although the club is based in Lexington, Massachusetts, membership is open to non-
residents.
There are three categories of membership: members who pay dues, members who
live outside Massachusetts (Active Away) and pay dues, and inactive members who
were once members but no longer pay dues.
Members will pay dues of $20 per person per year. Dues shall be paid in the month
that the Annual Meeting (as defined herein) is held.
ARTCLE III – OFFICERS
The club shall have four officers, President(s), Vice President(s), Secretary(ies), and
Treasurer(s).
The President(s), Vice President(s), Treasurer(s), and Secretary(ies) will be elected at
the Annual Meeting for a period of two years. The elections will alternate so that
only two positions are vacated each year.
The President(s) will preside over Steering Committee meetings, the Annual Meeting
and any special meetings (all as defined herein). The President(s) will interpret
these Bylaws. The President(s) will send out general email announcements to the
membership as well as periodic letters on the website.
The Vice President(s) will take over the duties of the President(s) in the President’s
absence. The Vice President(s) will contact new members and explain club offerings
and rules. The Vice President(s) will be responsible for sending out sympathy cards,
or in some cases, flowers. The Vice President(s) will add to the Member News
section of the website.
The Treasurer(s) will maintain a roll of the members (active and inactive) in an
electronic format including payment of dues and any other pertinent information,
keep accurate accounts of receipts and disbursements, present a financial report of
the club’s income, disbursements and account balance at the Annual Meeting, collect
annual dues, maintain the club’s checking account, send donations in the name of a
member who has passed, deposit checks for dues and Socials (as defined herein) into
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such checking account and disburse funds for the expenses incurred for the Socials
and any other approved club expenses. The Treasurer(s) will be available to consult
with the planning committees for the Socials regarding budget questions. After the
Annual Meeting, the Treasurer(s) will send a reminder to those members who are
delinquent in paying the dues.
The Secretary(ies) will take minutes at the Annual Meeting, any special meetings
and Steering Committee meetings, maintain and update a roll of the members
(active and inactive) in an electronic format with current contact information (name,
mailing address, telephone number, email address) and send out the updated
electronic roll of members current contact information to the membership at least
twice per year. If there is no Webmaster, the Secretary(ies) will be responsible for
keeping the website updated and will print out screenshots from the website in order
to preserve paper records for the year.
The Vice President(s), Treasurer(s), and Secretary(ies) will each chair one of the
three Socials.
ARTICLE IV-STEERING COMMITTEE
The Steering Committee will consist of the President(s), the Vice President(s) the
Secretary(ies), the Treasurer(s) and the Webmaster.
The Webmaster shall establish and maintain an internet web site on behalf of, and in
the name of the club. Any expenses incurred by the Webmaster in establishing and
maintaining such web site shall be a club expense and shall be reimbursed to the
Webmaster by the Treasurer.
The Steering Committee will nominate members for the two outgoing officer
positions. These nominations will be presented and voted upon at the Annual
Meeting.
The Steering Committee will be responsible for developing a written document
which shall be titled “Old Res Yacht Club Operational Practices and Guidelines”
which shall set forth in reasonable detail how the club, the officers, the Webmaster
and its members operate in practical terms based upon the Bylaws. The Steering
Committee will review and update such document as necessary.
When a Steering Committee member is unable to complete his/her/their term of
office, a replacement will be appointed by the Committee.
A Steering Committee meeting may be called by any member of the Steering
Committee. Steering Committee meetings may be attended in person or
telephonically.
OLD RES YACHT CLUB
BYLAWS
Revised May, 2023
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No member may be on the Steering Committee for more than two consecutive years.
The Webmaster is a nonvoting and nontenured member of the Steering Committee.
ARTICLE V- NEW MEMBERS
Prospective new members must be sponsored by a current member of the club and
can attend one Social as a guest before paying dues. It is the responsibility of that
sponsoring member to inform the Treasurer(s) and Secretary(ies) so that they may
be ready to add the new member to the membership list when the dues are received.
The Vice President(s) will introduce the new member(s) via a short biography on the
website.
ARTICLE VI-SOCIALS
There will be a minimum of three Socials per year.
It is the responsibility of each member to work on one Social planning committee
each year. Members sign up to be on one of the socials at the Annual Meeting. If
they are not present at the Annual Meeting, they have an opportunity to contact the
President(s) and request a certain assignment; otherwise, the President(s) will make
that assignment. Also, the President(s) will balance the number of members on each
social planning committee.
Socials are expected to be self-funded. (see Operational Practices and Guidelines).
In certain cases, the Treasurer(s) may be consulted on availability of additional
funds. The Social chairperson may request advances from the Treasurer(s).
In conjunction with one of the three Socials, there will be an Annual Meeting, the
timing of which will be decided by the Steering Committee.
ARTICLE VIII-MEETINGS
The Annual Meeting will be held for the purpose of electing incoming officers, voting
on Bylaw amendments, having the Treasurer(s) present the financial report, paying
dues, signing up to work on one of the three Socials, and any other business that
comes before the membership.
Elective activities, in which some members may be involved, may post sign up sheets
for the coming year.
Annual dues shall be paid in the month that the Annual Meeting is held.
A quorum for the Annual Meeting shall consist of those present.
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A special general meeting of the club can be called by the President(s), with the
consent of the Steering Committee. A special meeting can be called to have either the
membership attend in person or it can be called to have the membership attend and
respond electronically.
ARTICLE IX-PROCEDURE FOR BYLAW AMENDMENTS AND VOTING
Bylaw amendments can be suggested by any member. They will be written,
discussed, and voted upon by a majority of the Steering Committee and then
presented by the President(s) in writing to the membership either before the Annual
Meeting or before a special meeting. A majority of those present at the Annual
Meeting plus electronic votes is required in order to adopt an amendment to the
Bylaws and to elect the officers.