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The name of this organization shall be Family Trauma Survivors Network, Inc. For business purposes Family Trauma Survivors Network, Inc. may do business as FTSN, Inc. or FeToSaN, Inc.
A. The mission of FTSN shall be for support, education, and advocacy on behalf of Survivors of family related trauma whether that be from abuse or neglect that is intrinsic to the family or has its origins outside the family.
B. Human dignity for all is the spiritual principle underlying all the works of FTSN and members are asked to place this principle above personality issues.
A. Membership shall be open to anyone who identifies with the problem of living and developing in an environment of family trauma, or is a family member or friend of a Family Trauma Survivor and who is in compliance with the Preamble and Bylaws of this charter.
B. Members of FTSN shall annually elect the officers of the Board of Directors, herein referred to as the Board and approve the organizational budget.
C. All powers not otherwise delegated by this charter are reserved for the membership and may be exercised in accordance with the provisions set forth herein.
Article IV ~ Charter Affiliates
A. Upon submission of an application and subject to approval by a majority vote of the Board Charter Affiliation shall be granted to any local affiliate that is committed to the philosophy, goals, and objectives of FTSN and which agrees to function under the Charter of this organization.
B. All local affiliates shall be completely autonomous except in matters affecting FTSN as a whole or other FTSN affiliates.
C. The Board shall reserve the right to terminate Charter Affiliation to any organization when the best interests of FTSN shall be served by that termination.
Article V ~ Organizational Structure
A. FTSN shall in perpetuity remain an organization for, by, and of family trauma Survivors. Special workers may be employed as necessary to carry on the function of FTSN.
B. FTSN shall maintain a national site with access available to all affiliates.
C. All the work of FTSN nationally shall be managed by a Board of Directors. This board shall consist of no less than a National Coordinator, Financial Manager, and Records Manager.
D. Subject to the powers of the members, as set forth herein, all corporate powers of FTSN, as provided by law, shall be allocated to the Board in order to carry out the mission, manage the affairs, and preserve the resources of the organization.
E. No deed, mortgage, bond, contract, or other instrument which the Board shall have authority to execute by law shall be deemed valid unless approved by a 2/3 majority of the Board and signed by 2 or more members of the Board.
F. FTSN shall indemnify its Board and former Board Members to the full extent permitted by law.
G. No officer or former officer of the Board shall be personally liable to its creditors for any indebtedness or liability of the corporation, and any and all creditors shall look only to the assets of FTSN for payment.
H. Any officer may be removed from office, with or without cause, by a simple majority vote of the members or by a 2/3 majority of the Board.
I. Any officer who fails to carry out his or her duties as a Board member for a period exceeding 60 days shall be deemed to have resigned without further action by the Director or the Board. Such resignation shall be reflected in the minutes of the Board.
J. Temporary absences by any member of the Board may be filled by appointment of the Board to cover duties as necessary to conduct the business of the organization.K. Any vacancy of an officer of the Board, whether caused by death, resignation, removal, loss of membership, or otherwise shall be filled as follows: In the event of the loss of the Coordinator any other Board member may be nominated to and voted into that office by the members of the Board until the next annual membership vote. In the event of the loss of any other officer, the Board may receive nominations for candidates to fill that position. And the Board shall elect an interim officer to fill the position until the expiration of the term.
A. The ultimate authority in any FTSN meeting is the conscience of its individual members.
B. Membership in FTSN is based on interest and not proselytizing, however, schedules of meetings and events may be posted in the community.
C. FTSN national shall have an annual conference for it's members. The agenda for this meeting must be sent to the local affiliates no later than one month prior to the conference.
D. Each member shall have one vote. No member may have a larger share in decision making than any other member. A quorum shall consist of 2/3 of the members present at a duly called meeting.
E. Minutes of all business meetings must be available for review by the membership.
F. Confidentiality of person and content within FTSN shall be preserved at all times. Individual members may share their own experience outside a meeting so long as it does not infringe on the confidentiality of other members.
Article VII ~ Financial Management
A. FTSN National and every local affiliate shall be financially self-sustaining.
B. There shall be no dues or fees for membership, however, donations may be accepted for special projects.
C. Neither FTSN National nor its local affiliates may engage in any fundraising activities that violate federal, state, or local laws or Article II of these bylaws.
D. All monies collected at any and all functions of FTSN shall be routed through an operational account and all disbursements shall be made by check. FTSN shall require at least 2 authorized signatures on any and all disbursements of funds.
E. No loans shall be made by FTSN to any of its officers, directors, or members.
F. Reports on all FTSN accounts shall be made at least quarterly and shall be available for public review.
G. An annual audit of all FTSN accounts shall be made by a qualified Certified Public Accountant who is other than the treasurer and the preparer of tax records.
H. An annual fiscal report shall be prepared by the financial manager and presented at the annual conference.
A. If FTSN shall become dissolved all property on hand, if any, shall be donated to a non-profit organization as approved by the Board in compliance with the laws governing 501 (C) (3).
B. No part of any proceeds of the organization shall inure to the benefit of any director, officer, or any private individual (except that reasonable compensation may be paid for services rendered to or for the organization affecting one or more of its purposes), and no director or officer of the organization, or any private individual shall be entitled to share in the distribution of any of the assets on dissolution of the organization.
Article IX ~ Adoption and Amendments
A. The Initial Charter of FTSN shall be adopted by the initial Board and shall become effective immediately.
B. Amendments proposed by the membersip to the Initial Charter shall be submitted to the Board and allowed at least 60 days consideration prior to being voted on by the membership.
C. The Final Charter of FTSN shall be ratified upon approval by a simple majority of the members after adoption of the Initial Charter.
D. Upon ratification this Charter may only be amended, repealed or replaced by a two-thirds majority vote of the members of FTSN. Two annual conference meetings consideration must be given to any proposed amendment before the vote is taken. Such proposed amendment must be submitted in writing 60 days prior to its addition to the agenda of the annual conference at which it is introduced. Notice of the vote on this change shall be given by the Records Manager to the membership at least 6 months before the voting conference.
by Adkins - Peterson
