[FLARES] Local ARES groups formal structure issues

[Keith Kotch]

We, Seminole County ARES, is in the process of obtaining a
Not-for-profit Corporate status and have a couple of sticking points in
drafting our Bylaws. One in particular deals with a membership issue.

I don't know how many of you have a formal corporate structure to your
ARES groups but you may still have answers/opinions to the following:

Do you have members of your group that may actually live within the
boundaries of another ARES group's "territory"?  Do you allow or
prohibit "dual-membership"?  If you've addressed this issue formally,
please share your wording with me.

We do have some members that live in another county just across the
border but are actually closer to our meetings and are more active here.
However, they do informally participate in their "home county" and keep
in touch with what's going on with that ARES group.

My contention, as well as my staff's, is that we need to be able to
count on our member's "loyalty" from a participation standpoint when
activated, as much as feasible.  We can't have people listed, and
active, as "dual members" yet when the activation occurs, they decide
that this time they'd like to stay at home and help there rather than
travel to help us.

Any comments?

Keith, KF4BXT
Seminole Co ARES/RACES EC