Board Handbook

NOTE: This is intended as a general guide to board member duties.

Since many positions have been modified with the introduction of the SSSS website, Facebook page and bookkeeper, this document should be considered a guide to be modified based on board decisions in the coming year.

Updated May 5, 2020

General timeline for the Board as a whole

August

  • Prepare the September issue of the Ship-to-Shore
  • Program chair begins soliciting people to present at meetings
  • Vice Commodore prepares a stock of burgees to sell
  • Race Chair begins soliciting race committee boats

September and October

  • General Meeting: Treasurer and Secretary handle annual membership renewals and new memberships, recording membership information and all fees.

November

  • Board nominates candidates for USSA Sportsmanship Award

December

  • Board meeting may be held at home of Commodore
  • Genera Meeting is the annual Holiday potluck at OYC and wine auction/fundraiser

January

  • Washington State non-profit reporting form due to Secretary of State
  • Joint cruise with OYC to Island Home

February

  • Toliva Shoal Race
  • Begin planning new Board transition

March

  • Support preparations for Opening Day festivities at OYC

April

  • Complete planning for Board transition
  • Nominate someone for Sportsmanship award (someone who had provided extraordinary service to the club)

May

  • Board meeting: review annual financial report
  • Treasurer and Finance Committee present budget for coming year to be reviewed, discussed and adopted
  • Review event calendar for upcoming year and updates for coming membership year. All officers participate in both activities
  • General Meeting: Present slate of nominated incoming board members

June

  • Board meeting: Past and new officers meet to review procedures and hand over materials
  • General Meeting program: potluck, election of officers and make award presentations

General Meetings

  • Meetings generally start at 1900 (7pm) and end at 2100 (9pm)
  • Set out blank nametags with pen markers
  • Doors open for happy hour at 6:30. By the terms of our lease, we can enter at 5:30 to set up. With 4-5 people setup goes pretty fast, so the entire Board does not need to be there each time, but it is recommended to sort out who will be there ahead of time

Suggested agenda

  1. Call to Order
  2. Welcome by Commodore
  3. New member, new boat introduction and raffle tickets o Board of Directors Reports
  4. Committee Reports
  5. General Announcements from members
  6. Intermission break (10 minutes)
  7. Guest Presentation
  8. Adjourn Meeting

Clean up

  • If we tell members how to stack the chairs, cleanup happens fast too
  • Someone needs to vacuum the floor
  • Trash and recycle bins must be dumped in the fenced corner of the parking lot
  • The OYC/SSSS liaison will inspect the facility and make sure the doors or locked, but someone from the Board should be with them until that happens

Commodore Activities

From the Bylaws: The Commodore shall preside at all meetings of the organization, casting a vote only in case of a tie, and shall be responsible for the efficient operation and good order of the organization. During the year following his/her regular term of office s/he shall continue as a member of the Board and be known as Past Commodore. Shall be an ex-officio member of all standing and special committees.

Materials

  • Commodore flag
  • Bell
  • Keys to PO Box, storage unit, bulletin board at Swantown Marina office

Represent SSSS (or send a substitute)

  • Represent SSSS to OYC and other organizations as required
  • Represent SSSS in Olympia Yacht Club Opening Day (typically last weekend in April) and Seattle Yacht Club Opening Day (usually first weekend in May)
  • Send welcoming email to each new SSSS member
  • Reserve location for board meetings in August and contract with OYC in May

Newsletter duties

  • Submit monthly article regarding general club activities, topics of interest to members, general cheerleading, etc. to the S-t-S Editor no later than the second Tuesday of the month for the next month’s newsletter

Meeting duties

  • Set agendas for board and General Meetings
  • Conduct Board and General Meetings
  • Coordinate the calendar planning with cruise chair, race chair, STAR fleet chair to ensure delivery to calendar editor on time
  • Arbitrate among meeting members
  • Assist in setup and/or cleanup of the OYC at all SSSS events

General

  • Submit all receipts to the treasurer for reimbursement

Vice-Commodore

From the Bylaws: The Vice Commodore shall assist the Commodore in carrying out his/her duties and preside in his/her absence. Generally responsible for membership boosting, publicity of club events, media relations, provision of club burgees and embroidered clothing.

Materials

  • Vice Commodore flag

Key duties

  • Post club and other events of interest to members to the SSSS website and Facebook page (except for races, programs and cruises that are posted by those chairs)
  • Serve as the liaison with the Webmaster to make changes to the SSSS website, etc
  • Keep the marina bulletin boards current at West Bay Marina, on the landing at Tugboat Annie’s (not locked) and near the front door of Swantown Marina offices (locked)
  • Maintain an inventory of club burgees and sell them at meetings. Give all money received to the Treasurer
  • Order new promotional items for sale. Maintain an accurate inventory of items by cost. Responsible to ensure all sales are reported to Treasurer
  • Serve as the liaison with Jeananne Tescar-Burcham, who embroiders items from the ships store for members on demand. With Jeananne, select items for the store and promote the products at meetings
  • Submit all receipts to the Treasurer for reimbursement

Meeting duties

  • Conduct Board and/or General Meetings in absence of Commodore
  • Conduct new member and visitor door prize drawings at General Meetings
  • Assist in the setup and cleanup of the OYC meeting room at all SSSS events

Past Commodore

From the Bylaws: The Past Commodore shall be the immediate past Commodore, except as in Article VIII, Section 6; shall serve as a member of the Board of Directors; and shall be Chair of the nominating Committee.

Materials

  • Past Commodore flag

Key duties

  • Coordinate the recruitment and election of the incoming board members
  • Submit all receipts to the treasurer for reimbursement

Meeting duties

  • Stand in for the Commodore at board and General Meeting if the Vice Commodore cannot
  • Plan and execute the barbecue potlucks at the June meeting. Coordinate with Thera and Thom, who cook the burgers. Shops for all food, wine, soft drinks and supplies per Thera’s shopping list and instructions attached
  • Plan and execute the Christmas potluck at the December meeting
  • Coordinate with Don Waterhouse about the wine auction
  • Help set up and clean up the OYC clubhouse before each General Meeting

Newsletter duties

  • Write an article for the newsletter promoting the December and June potlucks. June potluck article due to StS Editor by the second Tuesday in May; December article due to StS editor by the second Tuesday in November

Webpage duties

  • Post information about the June and December potlucks on the SSSS website and the SSSS Facebook page

Secretary

From the Bylaws: The secretary shall keep minutes of all membership, Board and special meetings and shall maintain and preserve all records, reports and documents of the organization.

Key duties

  • Maintain and update membership database
  • Keep current year’s archived materials complete online and on paper
    Submit receipts to treasurer for reimbursement
  • Retrieve mail from Post Office Box and distribute to other Board members in a timely fashion
  • Update the member data base as required
  • Serve notices required by law or the bylaws of the club

Newsletter duties

  • When requested, submit articles regarding membership and other administrative details
  • When requested, produce labels for monthly newsletter mailing

Meeting duties

  • Have membership applications available at every General Meeting
  • Produce minutes of the monthly Board meeting and distribute to Board via Google docs
  • Post approved minutes to website
  • Assist the treasurer in collecting dues and race fees
  • Record, issue and countersign membership cards
  • Assist in setting up and cleaning up the meeting room

Treasurer

From the Bylaws: The Treasurer shall keep all financial and property records; shall account for, receive and dispense all monies; shall submit a quarterly financial statement; and shall be Chair of the Finance Committee and submit the annual budget.

Materials

  • Treasurer Officer flag (blue field with white acorn)
  • Checkbook
  • Reconciled financial records (both paper and electronic)
  • Key to PO Box
  • Key to the storage room

Passwords

  • PayPal
  • Twin Star Credit Union
  • Olympia Federal Savings Bank
  • Federal Payment System (EFTPS)
  • WA Licensing (Secure Access Washington) o WA Department of Revenue (dor.wa.gov)
  • SSSS Club Website Administrator
  • Acrobat password protected documents
  • Excel password protected documents
  • ssssclub email account

Key duties

  • Coordinate with the bookkeeper
  • Send billing invoices and statements to the Ship to Shore advertisers
  • Pick-up the mail from the PO Box and distribute it to other board members
  • Establish accounting and expense reimbursement standards and procedures
  • Deposit cash and checks from the General Meeting
  • Collect sales tax and act as a fiduciary for the sales tax savings account
  • Maintain a calendar of upcoming tax deadlines
  • Serve as the custodian of the private records protected under WA State law
  • Monitor the bank accounts and PayPal account for unusual activity
  • Keep backups of the electronic accounting records
  • Pay the annual filing fee to maintain the Club’s Not-for-Profit status with the State of Washington; this duty is coordinated with the Secretary and Andy Saller, who serves as the agent for the Club
  • Prepare checks for bills and other expenses, balances checkbook
  • Keeps club’s financial records up-to-date and reconciled
  • File federal, state and local income tax forms
  • Represent the club with federal and State tax entities 8

Newsletter duties

  • Occasional articles to update membership on financial issues or concerns
  • Due to the S-t-S Editor no later than General Meeting (second Tuesday) for the next month’s newsletter

Meeting duties

  • Periodically provide a balance sheet to the Board
  • Provide a monthly verbal report to the General Membership
  • Prepare the annual financial report and budget for the May Board meeting
  • Chair the Financial Committee to prepare annual budget to present to Board at May meeting
  • Make an annual recommendation to Board for membership dues
  • Assist in the setup and cleanup of the meeting room
  • Be prepared to collect membership dues and burgee funds at General Meetings.

Race Chair

From the Bylaws: The race chair shall be responsible for organizing and conducting the annual racing program of the organization.

Key duties

  • The Race Chair is assisted by a committee of racers, including an Assistant Race Chair, STAR Fleet captain, Dinghy Fleet captain, SSSS Toliva Race chair and other interested members. The Race Chair organizes regular meetings of the RC for discussion of class breaks, courses, dates conduct of races, awards, and club racing instructions, etc.
  • Work with the cruise chair, OYC and Southern Sound race committees to establish the SSSS race calendar for the year
  • Nominate, in coordination with the Toliva Shoal Race Committee, the Toliva Shoal Race Chair from SSSS membership on alternate years (other years the chair is an OYC member)
  • Coordinate with Bill and Vicky Sheldon (Transition) and/or recruit race committee staff/boat for each race in the season
  • Maintain or arrange for the racing equipment (buoys, flags, gun, etc.)
  • Coordinate racing seminars with speakers/presenters from in-house and outside the SSSS
  • Coordinate the production of PHRF and Sportsman awards, trophies and plaques
  • Submit receipts to the treasurer for reimbursement

Webpage duties

  • Review and amend sailing instructions and racing rules in the PHRF section of the web page, as necessary
  • Post the calendar of race events on the webpage
  • Review and update racing marks and buoys charts for the web page

Meeting duties

  • Keep board up to date on emerging race program issues
  • Announce upcoming races and race program events at General Meetings
  • Make racing awards at meetings
  • Assist in setup and cleanup of meeting room

Newsletter duties

  • Prepare a monthly article regarding racing activities and submits to StS editor by the second Tuesday of the month before the article will be published.

Program Chair

From the Bylaws: The Program Chair (member-at large) shall be in charge of special programs; shall represent the general interest of the membership; shall perform such other functions as prescribed the Board.

Key duties

  • Solicit ideas for programs from members
  • Plan programs for general membership meetings in September, October, November, January, March, April and May, inviting speakers, determining their AV needs, helping make sure their AV works, providing a gift card the day of the presentation and sending a thank-you card afterwards
  • Submit receipts to treasurer for reimbursement

Meeting duties

  • Report proposed General Meeting programs to Board
  • Announce current and future programs at General Meetings
  • Greet incoming members at the door
  • Assist in setup and cleanup of room for General Meetings

Newsletter duties

  • Submit monthly article promoting upcoming General Meeting program to the StS editor by the first Tuesday of the month before the relevant General Meeting. Articles are due on the second Tuesday of August, September, October, December, January, February, March, and April for the following month

Webpage duties

  • Administer the SSSS Facebook page
  • Post details of upcoming meeting programs on SSSS website and Facebook page

Cruise Chair

From the Bylaws: The Cruise Chair shall be responsible for organizing and conducting the annual cruising program of the organization.

Materials

  • Cruise Chair flag

Key duties

  • In spring of each year, work with Race Chair and board to plan calendar of cruises for the year
  • Coordinate with OYC to put the Lighted ship parade and the joint cruises on the calendar and promote them
  • Coordinate with Reciprocal Manager to keep current with the reciprocal cruising program
  • When a visiting boater sends a request for reimbursement, coordinate their payment
  • Attend each scheduled cruise or recruit a host for it
  • After each cruise, write up a recap for the StS or have the host do it
  • Submit all receipts to treasurer for reimbursement

Website duties

  • Update the SSSS website and Facebook page with information for each cruise

Meeting duties

  • Announce upcoming cruises at Board and General Meetings
  • Assist in setup and cleanup of the meeting room

Newsletter duties

  • Write articles for the StS to promote upcoming cruises and recap the past cruise
  • Articles are due to the StS editor by:
Aug 10 for September cruise
September General Meeting for October cruise
October General Meeting for November cruise and lighted ship parade
November General Meeting for lighted ship parade
January General Meeting for February cruise
February General Meeting for March cruise
March General Meeting for April cruise
April General Meeting for May cruise
May General Meeting for any summer cruising events that are planned

Other SSSS responsible parties

House Chair

  • Provide refreshments at SSSS General Meetings.
  • Obtain banquet permit before SSSS meetings where alcohol is served
  • Coordinate house setup and cleanup after General Meetings.
  • Count donations and conveys to the treasurer
  • Submit receipts to the treasurer after each meeting.

OYC Liaison

  • While meetings are held at the OYC clubhouse, serve as liaison with OYC caretakers and clubhouse committee. OYC Liaison should be a dual member of SSSS and OYC

Education/Safety Committee

  • Provide for the general education and enlightenment of SSSS members in all manner of sailing related topics
  • Prepares materials for the monthly Ship-to-Shore newsletter regarding education/safety topics, including notices of meetings of related organizations (e.g. Power Squadron and USCG Auxiliary classes and open activities, local sailing courses sponsored by Evergreen College, OYC Junior program, Corinthian Sailing, City of Olympia Recreation Dept., etc.)
  • Notice may include C/safety topics of related clubs (e.g. Tacoma Women’s Sailing Association, the Sailing Foundation, etc.)
  • May also do book reviews, etc.
  • May present education/safety related materials at club General Meetings.

June Potluck Grillmaster

  • Order 2 x 4’ grills ahead of time from Celebrations Party rental. Strongly recommend having them delivered Tuesday by 4 p.m. and picked up Wednesday.
  • Grills are typically set up parallel to the outside wall. Thom and I have our own cooking gear: charcoal chimneys, cooking tools, etc. – you just need to get us the grills and charcoal please. Regarding charcoal, don’t get anything other than 2 new bags of Kingsford Charcoal Briquettes
  • Depending on the weather, we’ll be indoors or outdoors. You’ll need to set up (and break down) the tables and chairs, either way. People are happy to help – just point them in the right direction. Save room for the awards table. Outdoors, that is usually in the SE corner of the deck. If outdoors, start with the lightweight round tables on the patio; may need to bring some out from indoors. Get long tables from the storage closet for the food table (3, I think) and awards table (2). (Verify that this is still true. I vaguely remember something in 2017 about indoor tables not being allowed outside. We go with whatever rules they have in place at the time
  • Regarding the food line, set it up so that people pick up their plates and napkins at the far end of the food line away from the grill, and then have all the potluck food so they have to work through the various dishes and get their buns and condiments at the end right before they get to the grill.
  • Having the grilled items the last things people get works best for keeping the line moving, by far, and letting them have a warm burger or dog instead of a cold one.
  • Regarding provisioning – you’re responsible for buying the basics: burgers, dogs, buns, and condiments. You pick the condiments. Be careful about overbuying, both in variety and quantity. Know that we toss lots of condiments every year – ketchup, mayo, mustard, relish, etc. plus the better part of a platter full of tomato, lettuce and onion. Costco quantities are too big for tomatoes!! And Garden Burgers – a six-pack, not a Costco pack. Less is more.
  • See note below about storage before shopping. This is true for meat, too.
  • And don’t overbuy meat unless you already have confirmed with the recipient on the other end and one of you can store it. It’s usually not a good idea to buy for anything other than this. It can’t be stored at OYC.
  • That’s not our kitchen, and related to that there’s prep.
  • Regarding prep for the tomatoes and lettuce, I’ve seen people bring them prepped and ready to put out; I’ve also seen people try to wash and slice them there. If you’re with the latter know that the kitchen MAY NOT be available – in fact, unless you’ve received confirmation that it will be open, assume it is not available (better to be pleasantly surprised). If you use it be ready to thoroughly clean it afterwards. And be prepared, if you’re going to prep there, bring a cutting board and knife. I suggest washing ahead of time as it’s easier doing that at home than doing it in the men’s or women’s bathroom.
  • My potluck contribution is grilled peppers and onions. This is true until such time as I’m not grilling any longer. You don’t need to do anything or buy anything for that for me.
  • Dinner starts at 1830. Don’t start early. You’ll see us partially cooking burgers so that they “finish” quickly when the food line gets going. Just because we have some burgers stacked up doesn’t mean you should start the food line early – it’s upsetting to those who arrive for an 1830 start.
  • Once upon a time there was a box with supplies for the potlucks – paper towels, plastic wrap, foil, large zip lock bags, extra plates and cups, etc. I have no idea if such a box still exists. If so, it probably has some things in it that will come in handy. It’s in the storage room at Rod’s place. Just know that it is not good to store condiments in it for a year. That is why Cash and Carry is such a good source for so much of this. You can get various sizes, without having to buy “Costco quantities.”