Minuteman Boston Terrier Club

ARTICLE I

NAME AND OBJECTIVES

Section 1. The name of the Club shall be Minuteman Boston Terrier Club.

Section 2. The objectives of the Club shall be:

a. to encourage and promote quality in the breeding of pure-bred Boston Terriers and to do all possible to bring their natural qualities to perfection and to work to breed out genetic problems. b. to urge members and breeders to accept the standard of the breed as approved by The American Kennel Club as the only standard of excellence by which Boston Terriers shall be judged. c. to do all in its power to protect and advance the interests of the breed by encouraging sportsmanlike competition at dog shows and obedience trials under the rules of the American Kennel Club. d. to conduct sanctioned and licensed specialty shows and obedience trials under the rules of The American Kennel Club.

Section 3. The Club shall be conducted and operated as a non-profit organization and shall use all monies for Club activities and for the benefit of the Boston Terrier.

Section 4. The members of the Club shall adopt and may from time to time revise such By-Laws as may be required to carry out these objectives.

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I

MEMBERSHIP

Eligibility. While membership is to be unrestricted as to residence, the Club’s primary purpose is to be representative of the breeders and exhibitors in its immediate area.

Membership shall be open to all persons who are in good standing with The American Kennel Club and who subscribe to the purposes of this Club. There shall be the following categories of memberships:

A. Regular Membership. Regular membership shall be open to all persons eighteen years of age and older. Regular members are eligible to vote and to hold office. B. Family Membership. Family membership shall be open to all immediate family members as a unit. Family member shall be entitled to all privileges of membership except that family member(s) under the age of eighteen are not eligible to vote or to hold office. Family members shall be entitled to automatically convert to regular membership upon reaching their 18th birthday. C. Junior Membership. Junior membership shall be open to all person 10 to 17 years of age. They shall be entitled to all privileges of membership except those of holding office and the entitlement to vote. They shall be entitled to automatically convert to regular membership upon reaching their 18th birthday. D. Associate Membership. Associate membership shall be open to all persons 18 years of age and older. They shall be entitled to all privileges of membership except those of holding office and the entitlement to vote. If requested, each shall be entitled to automatically convert to regular membership upon membership renewal. E. Life Membership. Life membership may be conferred upon such members in good standing as have been determined to have rendered extraordinary service to the welfare of the Club and the breed. Life membership may be conferred following either the recommendation by the Board of the Minuteman Boston Terrier Club or by recommendation by written petition endorsed by a total of five members, and either recommendation shall be approved by a favorable vote of 75% of the members present and voting at the next Annual Meeting. Life members shall be exempt from the payments of annual dues, and shall hold all privileges of regular membership. Members accorded Life Membership prior to the adoption of these By-Laws shall not have their Life Membership retroactively affected.

Section 2.
Dues. Regular membership dues shall be twenty dollars ($20.00) per year, not to exceed thirty dollars ($30.00). Family membership dues shall be twenty five dollars ($25.00) per year, not to exceed thirty five dollars ( $35.00). Junior membership dues shall be twelve and one-half dollars ($12.50) per year, not to exceed eighteen dollars ( $18.00). Associate membership shall be fifteen dollars ($15.00) per year, not to exceed twenty five dollars ($25.00). Dues shall be set by the board at or before its November meeting, and shall be payable on or before the 1st day of January of each year. No member may vote whose dues are not paid for the current year. During the month of November the Treasurer shall send to each member a statement of dues for the ensuing year.

Section 3.
Election to membership. Each applicant for membership shall apply on a form as approved by the Board and which shall provide that the applicant agrees to abide by these Constitution and By-Laws and the rules of The American Kennel Club. The application shall state the name, address and occupation of the applicant and it shall carry the endorsement of two members who are in good standing. Accompanying the application, the prospective member shall submit dues payment for the current year.

All applications are to be filed with the Membership Chair. Each application shall be read at the next meeting. At the following meeting the application shall be voted upon and affirmative votes of 3/4 of the members present and voting at that meeting shall be required to elect the applicant.

Applicants for membership who have been rejected by the Club may not re-apply within six months after such rejection
. The prepayment of dues submitted by the rejected applicant shall be refunded in full within 14 days of the date of the meeting at which the applicant was rejected.


Section 4.
Termination of Membership. Memberships may be terminated:

a. by resignation. Any member in good standing may resign from the Club upon written notice to the Secretary, but no member may resign when in debt to the Club. Dues obligations are considered a debt to the Club and they become incurred on the first day of each fiscal year. b. by lapsing. A membership will be considered as lapsed and automatically terminated if such member’s dues remain unpaid 30 days after the first day of the fiscal year; however, the Board may grant an additional 90 days of grace to such delinquent members in meritorious cases. In no case may a person be entitled to vote at any Club meeting whose dues are unpaid as of the date of that meeting. c. by expulsion. A membership may be terminated by expulsion as provided in Article VI of these By-Laws.