Independent Living Association

The Village at Sprenkle Drive Resident Council By-Laws

Revised February 29, 2017

By-Laws of the Independent Living Association of The Village of Sprenkle Drive are in accordance with references in the SpiriTrust Lutheran Prepaid Rental Agreement Handbook and the Residential Living Handbook (the “Blue Book”.)

ARTICLE I
Name
The name of this organization shall be the Independent Living Association of The Village at Sprenkle Drive, hereinafter called the Association.

ARTICLE II
Membership

Membership in the Association shall include all residents of the cottages and apartments, excluding assisted living and memory support residences, in The Village at Sprenkle Drive.

ARTICLE III
Purpose

1. The Association shall represent residents of the cottages and apartments in the Village in matters related to the policies and operations of SpiriTrust Lutheran, The Village at Sprenkle Drive.
2. The Association shall serve as liaison between village residents, The Executive Director of the village and other SpiriTrust Lutheran personnel, including corporate headquarters.

ARTICLE IV
Organization

The Association shall elect a seven-member Independent Living Association Council, hereinafter called the Council, which will represent the interests of the Association and derive any and all of its powers from the Association-at-large.

1. The Association shall elect annually enough new members to the Council to bring the total to seven.
2. Each representative to the Council shall be elected for a two-year term.
3. Members of the Council may be elected to serve a maximum of two consecutive full two-year terms. A member may be re-elected after he or she has been off the Council for one year.
4. Outgoing Council President will remain on Council as a non-voting member in advisory position for one extra year.
5. If a Council vacancy occurs, the Council shall appoint a resident to fill this vacancy. If possible, this resident shall have been nominated at the last election and shall have received the next highest number of votes. If the office cannot be filled in this manner, the Council shall appoint any other qualified person willing to serve. The appointment shall be for the completion of the vacated term.

ARTICLE V
Elections, Duties and Responsibilities of the Independent Living Association Council

1. Each year the Council President shall appoint a nominating committee of three, including one Council member as acting Chairperson. This committee will present to the Association at its January meeting a list of nominees for each Council vacancy.
2. Names, addresses, and brief biographies of nominees shall be presented by the nominating committee at the January Council meeting and shall be published in The Village at Sprenkle Drive Newsletter at least twice in the three weeks before the January quarterly meeting.
3. Nominations for vacancies on the Council may also be made from the floor at the January quarterly meeting. Persons nominated from the floor must consent to such nomination.
4. A quorum for the meeting for nominating Council members shall be no less than forty members of the Association.
5. The election shall be held, starting at the conclusion of the January quarterly meeting.
   • Voting shall be by written ballot.
   • Absentee ballots will be made available at the Glatfelter Center office five days before the January quarterly meeting of the Association. Ballots must be returned to the Glatfelter Center office by noon on election day.
6. The Council shall meet at a regularly scheduled time on the second Thursday of each month. This time may be changed temporarily, unless objected to by four of the seven voting members of the Council.
7. Newly elected persons shall take office at the first Council meeting following the election. The new Council shall hold elections for its officers at this meeting.
8. The Council shall elect a President, Vice President, and Secretary and Treasurer (Secretary/Treasurer).  The remaining council members will be appointed to serve as liaison/or committee chairpersons depending on the structure of each committee. (See Page 4, Par.14 a, b, c, d for committee descriptions.)
   • The President shall preside at all meetings and appoint all committees.
   • The Vice President shall perform all the duties of the President in his or her absence or inability to serve.
   • The Secretary shall take minutes at all meetings and handle all correspondence pertaining to the business of the Council. If the Secretary or other Council members are unable or unwilling to take minutes, then Council may appoint any qualified resident to act as a Recorder of minutes, in which case that person shall have voice but no vote.
   • The Treasurer shall handle any financial matters necessary to running the Council. If the elected Treasurer needs help fulfilling the requirements of the office, the Council may appoint any qualified Association resident to serve as Assistant Treasurer, who shall have voice but no vote.
   • Disposal of Council Funds must be approved by the Council. All checks drawn on Council funds must be signed by the Treasurer or the Council President. The Council shall not give any of its funds to charitable causes except to memorialize Association members or their spouses.
   • A separate line item will be designated for funds deposited by the Garden Club. These funds are generated by the efforts of the Garden Club and are deposited into the council treasury for the sole purpose of being visible to the community and to maintain integrity. A $1,000 minimum balance is to be maintained in this account at all times. The Garden Club may request approval by Council to distribute funds in excess of that balance for charitable purposes or for purchase of, or repair of garden equipment needs. If the Garden Club elects to disband, the Council with the approval of the community will disperse all remaining funds for charitable purposes.
9. Normally, the President shall call for and preside at the Association and Council meetings. If the President is unable to call for or preside at these meetings, the Vice President shall serve these functions. In the event that neither President nor the Vice President is present, the elected Secretary or the Treasurer, in that order, shall preside.
10. A majority of the elected members of the Council presently serving shall comprise a quorum.
11. The regular monthly meetings of the Council shall include: Council members and the Executive Director of The Village at Sprenkle Drive.
12. The meetings of the Council will be open to the membership-at-large, who will be afforded an opportunity to speak at the invitation of the person chairing the meeting. Only members of the Council shall have a vote.
13. Special meetings of the Council may be called by the President, provided that each member of the Council is given both a 24-hour notice and the purpose of the meeting.
14. The Council shall appoint the following standing committees with their respective responsibilities:
    • Social and Recreation: Plan for and promote social and recreational programs for the residents.
    • Buildings and Grounds: Receive and study ongoing problems relating to housing and grounds and present them to the Council for action.
    • Sunshine: Welcome new residents; visit, send cards to, and telephone residents who are ill or have moved to a different level of care.
    • Dining Committee: Review current dining experiences, plan future events and discuss resident suggestions and concerns.
15. The Council may appoint temporary committees when necessary to meet the purposes of the organization.
16. Other Council Responsibilities
    • The Council will have the responsibility of performing annual reviews of the By-Laws, making recommendations for changes and approval.
    • The Council will address resident’s concerns, complaints and grievances by serving as an advisor to residents in clarifying administrative policies, practices and procedures.
    • The Council will require that all formal concerns, complaints and grievances be in writing, signed and dated.
    • The Council will review applicable sections of the Handbook for Independent Living Residents (also known as The Bluebook) relative to the grievance procedure and work toward the resolution of problems.
    • The Council will provide input to the development and revision of the handbook as needed.
    • The Council will provide for an audit of the Council’s financial books annually or as needed.

ARTICLE VI
Association Meetings

1. The Association shall meet quarterly in January, April, July and October.
   1. In case of cancellation of a quarterly meeting, the makeup meeting shall be held within 30 days.
   2. The Corporate Administration of SpiriTrust Lutheran shall be invited to meet with the Association at one of its quarterly meetings.
2. Special meetings of the Association may be called by written petition from at least 10 members of the Association with at least seven days written notice given every member, provided the Council has had an opportunity for prior review of the petition.

Section VII
Amendments

These by-laws may be amended at any regular meeting of the Association upon a two-thirds vote of members present, as long as the request for the amendment has been given to each member at least thirty days in advance. A quorum of 40 Association members is required for this meeting.

President

• Jim Labonty

Vice President

• Bill Gerber

Secretary

• Joe McGuire

Treasurer

• David Hunter

The Independent Living Association meets on the 2^nd Thursday of each month at 9:00 a.m. in Rachel & Reuben’s Patio Room.