NEW TOA CONSTITUTION
(ADOPTED AT THE AGM ON 29th NOVEMBER 2023)
Article
1. Name: The Name of the Association shall be the Tomahawk Owners Association.
2 Purpose: Its Purpose shall be to share information between Members; and to increase the benefit of owning a Tomahawk 25 sailing yacht .
3 Means : Communication shall be through : email; the internet; the Association’s website, the Association’s newsletter and social media. The Association shall encourage and promote regional rallies (including overseas rallies) and social meetings.
4. Membership:
.1 The membership shall comprise: Full, Associate, Overseas and Honorary Members.
.2 A Full Member shall be a Tomahawk owner, or a joint Tomahawk owner. Joint Full Members pay a single subscription each year. Only two joint owners are allowed for any one Tomahawk. Both joint owners shall have full voting rights at TOA meetings, and both may stand for office.
.3 Associate Members shall be former Full Members who no longer own a Tomahawk but continue to pay the Full Membership annual subscription. They shall have full voting rights at TOA meetings and may stand for office. Former Joint Full Members may continue to be Joint Associate Members.
.4 Tomahawk Owners from any country outside the United Kingdom shall join as Overseas Members, have full voting rights, and are eligible to stand for office .
.5 Honorary Members may be elected at an Annual General Meeting, having been proposed by two or more Members prior to the AGM. They may attend, address and vote at a Meeting or Annual General Meeting, and may stand for office.
.6 New Members shall submit an Application Form to the Secretary and pay the annual subscription in force at the time. Joint owners shall submit one application form each.
.7 The annual rate of subscription for all categories of membership shall be recommended by the Treasurer two weeks in advance of the Annual General Meeting, and voted on by Members at the AGM.
.8 Subscriptions shall be due and payable on January 1st each year. Members failing to pay their subscriptions by October 1st shall be deemed to have resigned. Subscriptions for New Members joining between 1st August and 31st December shall be valid until 31st December of the succeeding year.
.9 At all Association Meetings each Member shall have one vote.
4. The Officers of the Association
.1 The Officers of the Association shall be Full, Associate, Overseas or Honorary Members and shall consist of: Commodore, Vice Commodore, Secretary, Treasurer, Social Secretary, Publications Editor, Technical Officer, Website Manager, and Regional Representatives.
.2 Assistant Officersmay be co-opted to the Committee when required. They shall assist their specific officer in his / her work, and have speaking and voting rights at Committee meetings.
.3 Officers shall be proposed, seconded and elected at the Annual General Meeting :
The Commodore for a term of three years;
The Vice Commodore for a term of one year, prior to being elected Commodore;
Other Officers and Assistant Officers for a term of one year.
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.4 All Officers of the Association except the Commodore shall be eligible for re-election. In the event that any of the Officers are unable to continue to serve during their term of office, their vacancy may be filled by the Committee co-opting another Member to serve in that position until the next AGM.
5. The Management of the Association shall be the responsibility of a Committee comprising the Officers of the Association, who shall ensure that the funds of the Association are applied in accordance with Article 2. The Committee shall have powers to co-opt additional members for one year if required.
The Commodore shall serve as an ex-officio Committee member in the year immediately following their three-year term of office.
Should the Vice Commodore be unable for whatever reason to stand for election as Commodore, or if no Vice Commodore has been appointed, the retiring Commodore shall serve as Acting Commodore for one further year.
Committee meetings and general meetings, including the Annual General Meeting, shall be held via the internet. Such meetings to be arranged by the Secretary.
6. The Commodore shall : support the Association’s Officers in their duties, promote the recruitment and retention of new members, contribute to the Association’s Publications and Technical archive, and lead the Association in planning its future. The Commodore chairs all Meetings, including Committee meetings, of the Association. Should the Commodore be unable to be present at any meeting a replacement chair may be elected by those Committee members in attendance.
7. The Vice Commodore shall : support the Commodore in his/her duties, chair meetings in his/her absence, and familiarise him/herself with the workings of the Association, prior to seeking election as Commodore at the conclusion of the current Commodore’s three-year term of office.
8. The Secretary shall : keep a register of the Association’s Members’ names, addresses and contact and boat details; conduct the correspondence of the Association; keep custody of all Association documents including the Technical Archive; prepare an Agenda and notify all Members of any meeting of the Association; keep full Minutes of all Association meetings, which shall be confirmed and signed by the Commodore (or their deputy) upon the agreement of the Members.
9. The Treasurer shall : recommend, two weeks prior to the AGM, the rate of subscription for the coming year; control funds and make such disbursements as the Association shall direct; keep a record of authorised signatories; maintain accounts which give a fair and true view of the Association’s finances; prepare annual accounts for distribution to Members two weeks before the Annual General Meeting, giving details of all monies received, expended, sales, assets and liabilities of the Association.
10. The Social Secretary shall : make contact with Members and encourage potential new members; maintain the Association’s social media group(s) and liaise with other Tomahawk groups; support and encourage the Regional Representatives to network with owners in their region.
11. The Publications Editor shall : co-ordinate reports, articles, technical information and items of interest from Members and publish these in the Association’s regular newsletter; be responsible for any other publication that the Association may require.
12 The Technical Officer : is responsiblefor developing theAssociation’s technical archive and assisting Members with their technical queries.
13. The Website Manager shall : manage and develop the Association’s website; ensure data is kept current in all sections; be responsible to and be guided by the Committee;
14. Regional Representatives
.1 Regional Representatives may be elected to the Committee each year, including, when possible, at least one Overseas Representative. They shall : establish contact with other TOA Members in
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their region; encourage local rallies and social events; monitor other Tomahawks in their region; notify the committee of newly discovered Tomahawks and boats for sale; make contact with and welcome new Members in their region; report specific concerns of TOA Members in their region to the Committee.
.2 An Overseas Regional Representative’s role will be slightly different. Their special purpose is to monitor the smooth running of the international dimension of the Association, ensuring that benefits and costs for overseas Members are fair.
15. Meetings
.1 All meetings of the Association shall be internet-based with timings given in GMT (winter months) or BST (summer months) so that Overseas Members may apply their local time difference when logging on.
.2 Annual General Meeting. An Annual General Meetingshall be heldbefore November 30th in each year. The Secretary shall : notify by email all Members of the AGM’s date, three months in advance; invite them to submit proposals for inclusion in the AGM’s Agenda and to propose or second candidates for Committee posts, at least 28 days before the AGM; email or post a notice of the meeting to all Full, Associate Overseas and Honorary Members at least fourteen days beforehand, including the Agenda, a set of accounts, and details of any Proposals to be discussed and voted on at the meeting.
.3 General Meetings. The Officers may at any time, upon giving fourteen days’ notice by email, call a Special General Meeting of the Association for any special business. The Officers may similarly call a Special General Meeting when requested by at least six Members via email to the Secretary.
.4 Committee Meetings. The full Committee should meet at least four weeks before an AGM to set an Agenda and determine those Proposals on which Members will be asked to vote. The Commodore, or other Officers, may request a Committee meeting at other times throughout the year as circumstances require. The Secretary shall circulate an Agenda prior to all Committee meetings, and Minute their proceedings.
.5 Minutes of all Association meetings shall be circulated to all Members.
16. Quorum. “10% of Members entitled to vote, and registered present, shall form a quorum at any Association General Meeting, including the AGM and any Special General Meeting. Five Committee members shall form a quorum at any Committee meeting.”
17. Dissolution of the Association.
On agreement that the Association should cease to exist, any funds remaining after satisfying all debts and liabilities shall be transferred to an institution with similar interests, or to a charity, this being determined at the General Meeting prior to the dissolution.