Bylaws of Chinook RV Club

ARTICLE I - CLUB NAME
The name of this not-for-profit organization shall be the Chinook RV Club, hereinafter referred to as
the "Club," or "CRVC".
ARTICLE II - OBJECT
1. PURPOSE: This Club exists to promote social, recreational, and informational exchange
activities that provide for the enjoyment and pleasurable use of all member coaches.
2. AREA: This Club shall function primarily in the western and central United States, although it is
open to qualified Members from anywhere in the United States and Canada.
3. SCOPE: This Club will be comprised of members with a mutual interest in Recreational
Vehicles built and sold by the former Trail Wagons/Chinook Company of Yakima, Washington.
This Club was organized and will operate under IRS Code Section 501(C) 7 as a social
recreational organization.
ARTICLE III - MEMBERS
1. ELIGIBILITY TO JOIN: To be eligible for initial membership in (to join) the Club (to become
a "Member") a "person," as defined in Paragraph 5 below, must be the current owner of a
recreational vehicle built by Trail Wagons/Chinook of Yakima, Washington, and meet the dues
requirements and provisions set forth in these Bylaws.
2. ELIGIBILITY TO RENEW MEMBERSHIP AS A MEMBER: To be eligible to renew
membership in the Club as a Member, a person must still be the current owner of a recreational
vehicle built by Trail Wagons/Chinook of Yakima, Washington, and meet the dues requirements
and provisions set forth in these Bylaws.
3. ELIGIBILITY TO JOIN AS AN ASSOCIATE MEMBER: To be eligible to join the Club as
an Associate Member, a person must have been a Member in good standing of the Chinook RV
Club, when they were the current owner of a recreational vehicle built by Trail Wagons/Chinook
of Yakima, Washington, but no longer own that, or any other recreational vehicle built by Trail
Wagons/Chinook of Yakima, Washington, and meet the dues requirements and provisions set
forth in these Bylaws.
4. ELIGIBILITY TO RENEW AS AN ASSOCIATE MEMBER: To be eligible to renew
membership in the Club as an Associate Member, a person must already be an Associate
Member of the Club, or have initially joined the Club, or the Chinook RV Club, when they were
the current owner of a recreational vehicle built by Trail Wagons/Chinook of Yakima,
Washington, but no longer own that, or any other recreational vehicle built by Trail
Wagons/Chinook of Yakima, Washington, and meet the dues requirements and provisions set
forth in these Bylaws.
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5. The term "Person," is defined as either a family unit or an individual or individuals. The term
"Family Unit," is defined as a person; his or her spouse, or partner; dependents of each,
regardless of age; non-dependent grandchildren and great-grandchildren aged 18 and under.
6. The term "Member," is defined as each adult who, jointly or individually, constitutes a
membership. Each coach, no matter whether owned by one or more Members, is entitled to one
vote, however, any Member shall be entitled to hold an office, and more than one Member
owning a single coach may hold office.
7. Associate Members shall be entitled to vote but not entitled to hold office. They are encouraged
to participate in all Club activities and may attend all events, including all meetings.
8. DUES AND FEES:
a. ANNUAL DUES: Timely annual payment of Club dues enables persons to remain active
members and entitled to all rights and privileges of the Club. The annual dues for
membership in the Club shall be an amount that the membership shall establish.
b. RENEWAL: Renewal dues from Club Members and Associate Members become due and
payable on September 30th each year.
c. INITIAL APPLICATION: Application for new membership shall be accompanied by
payment of annual Club dues. If an initial application is accepted after June 1
st the dues shall be regarded as covering the next membership year.
d. ARREARS: Any member whose dues remain unpaid for more than three (3) months after
becoming due shall be considered delinquent; after being delinquent for two (2) months, their
membership will be canceled.
ARTICLE IV - OFFICERS
1. DUTIES OF OFFICERS: The duties of elected officers shall be as follows:
a. The President shall be the chief executive officer of the Club and shall preside over all
business meetings at which they are present. If the President is not present or otherwise able
to preside at a duly called business meeting, then one of the Club Vice Presidents shall
preside.
b. The Vice President - Rallies shall be responsible for recruiting Club Members to act as
Rally Hosts ("Wagon Masters") and shall support and facilitate the efforts of the Rally Hosts
in putting on interesting and attractive events for the Club Members. The Vice President -
Rallies shall be the chairperson of the Rally Committee for which they may select and recruit
members to help them in their duties.
c. The Vice President - Membership shall keep accurate records of the Club membership;
including publishing an Annual Membership Directory and such other Addenda to the
Directory as may be necessary to keep the membership informed and up to date. The Vice
President - Membership shall be the chairperson of the Membership Committee for which
they may select and recruit members to help them in their duties. They shall also work with
and encourage all of the Club Members to increase the Club membership.
d. The Club Secretary shall accurately record the minutes of all properly convened Business
and Annual Meetings and provide these minutes to the Board of Directors and the
Membership for their approval. Copies of approved Minutes shall be provided to the Editor
of the Club Newsletter and the Club's Webmaster for appropriate publication.
e. The Treasurer shall keep accurate records of the Club's finances. The Treasurer shall present a Treasurer's Report
at the Annual Meeting, as well as a Year-end Treasurer's Report within 30 days of the close of the Club's Fiscal Year.
f. The Member(s) at Large shall be available to carry out those tasks delegated by the
President and Board of Directors. Two Members at Large shall be elected to assure
appropriate member input at all board meetings and business meetings.
g. The primary function of the Immediate Past President shall be to provide continuity to the
Club's administration by serving as a resource for the President as well as being available to
carry out those tasks delegated by the current President and Board of Directors. In addition,
should the President step down, or become unable or ineligible to continue serving, the
Immediate Past President shall assume the duties of the President once more and serve until
the next Annual Meeting at which time they shall be replaced.
2. TERMS OF OFFICE: The elected officers of this Club shall serve a three (3) year term, or until
their successors are elected. Although there are no "term limits," in order to maintain continuity
in the Club administration, and to avoid "burnout" of Club Officers, all of the Club Officers, with
the exception of the Treasurer and the Immediate Past President, are encouraged to step down
after serving their initial term in office to allow for the orderly, staggered, rotation of new
Officers. In keeping with this concept, the terms of office for the President and the two Vice
Presidents shall be staggered at all times so that no two (or three) will end at the same time.
a. NOMINATIONS: Any Member in good standing may be nominated from the floor for any
elective office.
b. ELIGIBILITY: Only Members, have the right to hold office in this Club.
c. OWNERSHIP OF CLUB PROPERTY: No official or member shall become vested of any
right, title to, or interest in any Club property, except as required by law.
3. BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
a. The officers of the Club, including the Immediate Past President, shall constitute the Board
of Directors.
b. The Board of Directors shall have general supervision of the affairs of the Club between its
business meetings. The Board shall be subject to the orders of the Club, and none of
its acts shall be in conflict with the Club or these Bylaws.
ARTICLE V - COMMITTEES
1. APPOINTMENT: Committee members (except for the Nominating Committee) may be selected
and recruited by the respective Committee Chairs, and/or may be appointed by the President.
2. DUTIES: All committees shall function within the policies of the Club and (except the Nomi-
nating Committee) under the direction of their respective Committee Chairs and the President.
Financial reports, vouchers, and monies due the Club shall be submitted on a timely basis.
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3. QUORUM: A Committee quorum shall be a simple majority.
ARTICLE VI - CLUB ADMINISTRATION
1. AUTHORITY: This Club shall be democratically self-governed, deriving its existence and
authority from the consent of its membership assembled in meeting or, in certain instances, by
mail vote on stated propositions.
2. ORGANIZATIONAL YEAR: The fiscal and membership year of the Club shall commence on
October 1, and end on September 30.
3. CLUB MEETINGS:
a. TYPES: The term "meeting" shall include Annual Rallies, Mini-Rallies, dinner meetings, and
any other gatherings suitable to the function of the Club.
b. BUSINESS MEETINGS: The Club must hold at least one business ("Annual") meeting each
membership year at which a quorum is present. Said meetings must be at least 14 days apart
and be duly announced in advance to the membership.
c. ANNUAL ELECTION: At each Annual Rally, an Annual Meeting shall be held at which an
election will be held to fill vacancies created by the expiration of one or more officer's terms.
d. QUORUM: A quorum for the transaction of business at any duly-called Club meeting is 25%
of the Club Members or 15 Members, whichever is less.
e. VOTING: Except as specified elsewhere in these Bylaws, a simple majority vote of Members
in good standing and voting shall be required to approve or disapprove any matter. The Club
has established that voting will be one vote per Member Coach. Balloting by mail may be
`total membership vote is advisable.
f. PARLIAMENTARY PROCESS: The rules contained in the current edition of ROBERT'S
RULES OF ORDER NEWLY REVISED shall govern this Club's proceedings to which they
are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with the Bylaws of this Club.
4. AUDITS: A regularly scheduled, formal audit of the Club's books is not required. In addition to
the two Treasurer's reports, the Treasurer shall make the Club's books available to an Audit
Committee appointed by the Board of Directors in their sole discretion.
ARTICLE VII - ELECTIONS
1. NOMINATING COMMITTEE COMPOSITION:
a. The Chairperson of the Nominating Committee shall be the Immediate Past President.
b. The Nominating Committee shall consist of not less than 2 Club Members in addition to the
Chairperson, who are not Officers or members of the Board of Directors, in good standing,
nominated and elected each year by the Club membership at the Annual Meeting to serve
until the next Annual Meeting.
c. Election of an individual to the Nominating Committee shall not prohibit that person from
being nominated for elected office.
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2. NOMINATING COMMITTEE DUTIES:
a. To nominate candidates for the Club Offices whose current terms are due to expire.
b. If any incumbent Officer agrees to stand for election to another term, the Nominating
Committee shall select and recruit another Member to run for that office, so that no
incumbent shall run unopposed.
c. To obtain clear acceptance of the nominees to serve the Club should they be elected.
d. To make certain that nominated candidates are members in good standing and qualified
under applicable Club bylaws.
e. To nominate candidates to fill vacancies as they occur in elected Club offices.
ARTICLE VIII - AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS
1. AMENDING PROCEDURE: These Bylaws may be amended by a 65% affirmative vote of the
members on a mail ballot, or present and voting at a duly-called meeting, providing that prior
notice of at least 30 days has been given of the proposition(s) to amend.
a. Any Member of the Club may propose amendments to the Bylaws.
b. Approved amendments to these Bylaws become effective immediately upon their adoption,
or at such time as specified in the amendment.
ARTICLE IX – RALLY GUIDELINES
1. ANNUAL RALLIES: Annual Rallies, in addition to being the venue for the Annual Business
Meeting, should be the primary recreational and social event on the Chinook RV Club Calendar.
a. Annual Rallies are planned “down to the hour” with a reasonably full schedule of events such
as sightseeing, museum tours, “tech sessions,” etc., balanced by times for the attendees to
rest or explore “or their own.”
b. The Rally Hosts, in close cooperation with the V.P. Rallies and the Club Treasurer, carefully
compile a proposed budget well in advance, including dates of deposit, final payment and
cutoff date for refund upon cancellation.
c. Those who attend pay a Rally Fee based upon the number of Members per coach that is as
close to “all inclusive” as practical. The fee is payable in advance by initial deposit followed
by the balance in full before the event.
d. Since Chinook owners seldom tow a car, all transportation for events included in an Annual
Rally is provided and paid for out of the Rally Fee.
e. Because of the magnitude of the work involved in planning and executing the Annual Rally,
the Board of Directors voted several years ago to forego charging the Rally Hosts for their
participation, thus granting Annual Rally (only) Hosts a “free pass” to the Rally that they
plan and host.
f. Finally, the location for each new Annual Rally will move from year to year with every effort
being made to balance out the driving distances for all Members west of the Mississippi.
Bylaws of the Chinook RV Club Effective September 21, 2021 Page 6 of 7
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2. MINI-RALLIES: Mini-Rallies are intended to be much more informal and only minimally
structured. They are intended for Members with a particular interest in a given locale to gather
informally under the Club banner for fun and socialization.
a. Any financial involvement by the Club treasury for Mini-Rallies shall be approved in
advance by the Board of Directors.
b. The Members who are going to attend may be asked to call the destination RV Park and
make their own reservations, or the Rally Hosts may make a group reservation, depending
upon the RV park’s reservation policies. Attendees pay for each of their activities “a la carte”
and most Mini-Rallies have no formal schedule.
c. Hosts for Mini-Rallies may have their “site” paid if included in the budget.
d. Mini-Rallies don’t provide any group transportation unless it is paid for in advance by those
attending.
e. While proposed Mini-Rallies are not usually subject to approval in advance by the Board of
Directors, nevertheless their locations and schedules must comply with the Club’s policy that
no Mini-Rally should “pull” participation away from an upcoming Annual Rally.
BYLAWS EFFECTIVE DECEMBER 16, 2007 HAVE BEEN AMENDED AS FOLLOWS:
ARTICLE III – MEMBERS section 7 amended by membership vote entitling Associate
Members to vote. October 2010
ARTICLE II – OBJECT added IRS Code Section 501(C)7 as a social recreation
organization, at the request of the IRS. April 1, 2011
GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR ANNUAL & MINI-RALLIES – The Board of Directors
established Guidelines for the two types of Rallies which will be
sponsored by the Club. April 1, 2011
ARTICLE IX – RALLY GUIDELINES – added the Guidelines for the Rallies sponsored
by the club as Article IX. April 1, 2011
ARTICLE III – MEMBERS sections 3 and 4 to amended from Chinook Camping Club to
Chinook RV Club. April 1, 2011
ARTICLE IV – OFFICERS section 1f amended to include two Members at Large.
December 7, 2017
ARTICLE III – MEMBERS, SECTION 8 DUES AND FEES,
c. INITIAL APPLICATION changed to align our bylaws with Chinook Camping
Club (CCC) and promote member retention. September 21, 2021.
Bylaws of the Chinook RV Club Effective September 21, 2021

