Dear FOSEL Members and Library supporters,
We cordially invite you to our Annual Members' Meeting on Wednesday, July 1, at 6:00 PM, via ZOOM.
(If you wonder whether you are a member, in the past when we had LIVE Annual/Membership meetings, those who showed up were considered members. The same will hold for whoever shows up via ZOOM.)
FOSEL's joint Members/Annual Board Meeting in March was canceled due to the pandemic. Instead, the board held a separate Annual Meeting on May 7 via ZOOM. We had hoped to hold out and convene an in-person Members' Meeting, but given the uncertainty we are facing, we thought it best to move ahead with a virtual Members' Meeting.
At the Annual Board Meeting in May, the directors voted to elect a new slate of directors to govern for 2020 and to approve a series of changes to FOSEL's bylaws. At the upcoming Members' Meeting, the Members will be asked to vote to confirm the 2020 slate of directors and to approve the bylaws changes. Links to the list of the 2020 slate and to a copy of the bylaws highlighting all changes can be found below. The most important of the bylaws changes is a shift from a Membership governance structure, as we now have, to a Board-only governance structure. We have added a button you can click on below to view the bylaws’ changes.
The idea behind creating a Membership organization in 2006-7 was that FOSEL wanted to be broadly supported by the community for the Library's benefit. Over the years we have been able to achieve that aim in another way, namely by producing popular programming and successfully advocating for Library and Park renovations.
Under a Membership governance structure, the Membership had to meet on a regular basis and keep minutes which, unfortunately, did not happen, nor were Membership rolls kept up. The primary driver of the proposed governance change was eliminating these types of administrative obligations while still enabling all interested to continue to participate in FOSEL programs, receive our newsletter, and keep up our efforts to make the South End Library and Library Park the best they can be.
After the change in governance we hope to accomplish with your vote, all will still be welcome to attend the board's Annual Meeting. And, financially, we will still invite you to be supporting members on an annual basis at a donor level you can afford. However, with the approval of the bylaws amendments, the governance of FOSEL will be the responsibility of the board of directors alone.
AGENDA
for the July 1 Membership meeting:
1. Vote to approve the minutes of the 2019 Annual Members Meeting
2. Vote to confirm the 2020 slate of directors and officers
3. Clerk Tracey Bolotnick’s update about the the proposed bylaws changes, followed by a vote
4. Treasurer Barbara Sommerfeld's financial update
5. President Marleen Nienhuis's update on recent FOSEL achievements and activities
6. Vice-president Yvette Yarreau's update on FOSEL's new committee structure
If you are unable to attend the meeting, you may cast your vote on items 1, 2, and 3 by proxy. In order to do so, please respond to this message at info@friendsofsouthendlibrary.org before July 1, 2020 by indicating either:
1. "I VOTE YES ON APPROVING THE MINUTES" or "I VOTE NO ON APPROVING THE MINUTES"
2. "I VOTE YES ON THE 2020 SLATE OF DIRECTORS or 'I VOTE NO ON THE 2020 SLATE OF DIRECTORS
3. "I VOTE YES ON APPROVING THE AMENDMENTS TO THE BYLAWS" or "I VOTE NO ON APPROVING THE AMENDMENTS TO THE BYLAWS."
Please feel free to include additional commentary.
To view the FOSEL bylaws changes and the 2019 minutes, please use the buttons below.
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Meeting ID: 890 8159 1362
Password: 497851
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