West Valley Fair Board Constitution

Article 1  Name

The Name of this club shall be the West Valley Fair and Fat Stock Sale, Inc.

Article 2  Purposes

(a)  promotion, encouragement, and development of the Agricultural, Home Economics in the Upper Yakima  Valley, Yakima County.

(b) Specifically, 4-H, FFA, FHA, and Adult exhibitors

Article 3  Membership         

Participation shall consist of all people living North of the Gap at Union Gap as designated by the Fair Board, in the Upper Yakima Valley, Yakima County.

Article 4  Officers

The officers shall consist of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Reporter.

(a) A committee composed of three members chosen by the president shall make nominations and nominations shall also be recognized from the floor.

(b) Officers shall be elected by secret ballot at the first meting of the New Year.

(c) Simple majority shall be 5 members and shall constitute a majority at one election.

(d) All officers and directors shall be of good standing in the community and not be convicted of a crime.

Article 5  Meetings

(a) Meetings shall be held on the second Thursday of the months of February, March, April, May, June, July, and September.  Special meetings shall be called at the discretion of the President, at BBQ time in May, Fair time in August, and in October for special awards meeting.

(b) Robert Rules of Order shall govern the meetings.

Article 6  Committees

The President shall choose Standing Committees at the beginning of the year.  The Committees are as follows:

Beef, Cat, Dairy, Dog, Goat, Horse, Rabbit, Poultry, Sheep, Llamas, Swine, Ag Mechanics, 4-H Home Economics, Open Home Economics, Photography, Trophies, Ribbons, Fat Stock Sale, Parade, Round Robin, Royalty, Hay King, Tractor driving, Livestock Judging, Police & First Aid, Booster Club, and Extra Events, i.e. BBQ, Rodeo, etc.

Executive Committee shall be the five (5) main Officers and the immediate past president or person nominated by the President.

Article 7  Quorum

A Quorum shall consist of 51% of the board. The general membership shall be an advisory to the Board of Directors and the Board of Directors shall have the final vote on any policy or amendment to the West Valley Fair and Fat Stock Sale, Inc.

Article 8  Amendments

This set of constitution and by-laws may be amended by a quorum.  Amended to original West Valley Fair Board Constitution 24 July, 1997.

West Valley Fair Board By-Laws

Article 1    Duties of the Officers:

(a)    President -  The President shall preside at all meetings of the board, shall be exofficio member of all committees, shall be presiding officer at all meetings of the Board of Directors, and shall perform all such duties as are incidental to the office of president and are properly required of him/her.

(b)    Vice-President - In the absence of the Presided, he/she shall exercise all of the functions of the President and shall be vested with all of his/her powers.

(c)    Secretary - the Secretary shall have charge of all papers, keep such records, make such reports, and perform such duties as are incidental to the office and properly required of his/hers by the organization.  

(d)    Treasurer -  The Treasurer shall have charge of the funds of the club, shall conduct its banking business and credit all accounts, shall provide a financial report each year for the files.  The books shall be audited each year by an auditing committee appointed by the Board of Directors.

(e)    Reporter -

Article 2    Duties of the Superintendents/Committees.  

(a)    Livestock:  Entry blanks made available, stall cards ready, bedding for stalls, loading chute made available, sun shade for stalls, bleachers ready, pens ready, work with the Fat Stock Sale Committee, should appoint division superintendents, arrange for the judging contest, arrange for weighing the animals in.

(b)    Royalty:  Queen candidates must be 14 years of age on January 1 of the current year and enrolled in 4-H, FFA, or FHA and not be over 19 years of age by January 1 of the current year.  Set date for record books to be turned in and set date of judging of candidates, purchase crowns, arrange for flowers, look after royalty at the fair and parades, work with the reporter, arrange for transportation.   Last years queen shall crown the new queen and the princesses will crown the new princesses.

(c)    Trophies:  Obtain sponsors for each trophy and award, obtain a price check yearly on all trophies and   awards to secure comparable prices, secure "thank you" cards to trophies and awards for the awards presentation, provide a list of trophies to be presented.

(d)    Publicity:  Contact all TV stations, Yakima Herald Republic and other newspapers, as well as several radio stations at fair time.  Report a "Thank You" to the newspapers and radio stations after the fair.

(e)    Parade:  Arrange for judges, line up parade, have ribbons and trophies available for parade.

(f)     Blue Barn (Home Ec.):   Arrange for judges, make information available to those interested, arrange for  show cases and display tables, accept exhibits, display exhibits, keep watchful eye on room during the fair.

(g)    Fat Stock Sale:   Arrange for turn prices on market animals, contact buyers, arrange for ear tag numbers, arrange for clerk, arrange for auctioneer, make arrangement for scales for weighing, arrange for hauling to market.

(h)    Ribbons:  Keep accurate count of ribbons and order for the next years use, store balance of year end ribbons appropriately, obtain a price check yearly on all ribbons to secure comparable prices.

(i)     Remaining Superintendents:  Arrange for judges (judges shall be approved by the Board), arrange for entry blanks, stall cards, bedding, pens, and necessary items for your division.

(j)     Extra Events:   Plan and take charge of extra events for the Fair.

(k)    Policeman:  Arrange for patrols during the Fair and during the night, ask for permission from the State Patrol for the parade.

(l)    Clean Up:  All 4-H, FFA, and FHA members will be responsible for the clean up of their area and the removal of bedding and decorations at the end of the Fat Stock sale.

Article  3    Election of Officers:

(a)    Officers may not be elected to the same office more than once consecutive year in a row unless the person so desires and is elected.  Any officer may hold another office or the same office in two years. Any person wishing to decline may do so with good reason.

(b)    In case of resignation, election will be held at the next regular meeting.

(c)    The retiring president shall be on the executive committee one year.

Article 4    Robert's Rules of Order shall govern in all matters not covered by this Constitution and By-Laws.

Article 5    Liability of members:

(a)    No officer or member shall be personally liable for any bill or obligations of the club, past or present.

(b)    No officer, member, or employee of the club shall disburse any funds or moneys in his/her keeping and belongings to the club without authorization of the Board of Directors.

(c)    No one member shall be liable in case of accident.

(d)    To the full extent permitted by the Washington Non-profit corporation Act, RCW 24.03, the personal liability of a Director to the corporation and its members shall be eliminated and the corporation shall indemnity any person made a party to any proceeding by reason of the fact that he or she is or was a director, against judgment, penalties, fines, settlements, and reasonable expenses actually incurred by him or her in connection with such proceedings.  Provided, however, that the corporation shall neither indemnify a director, nor shall the Director's liability be eliminated for acts or omissions that involve intentional misconduct by a director or a knowing violation of law by a director, or for any transaction from which the director will personally receive a benefit in money property, or services to which the director is not legally entitled.  The corporation shall also indemnify any officer, agent, or employee who is or was not a director, to the same extent, and with the same limitations, that the corporation is authorized to indemnify directors.  The Board of Directors may, from time to time, approve by general or specific action of the Board, or by contract, the indemnification of any other person which the corporation has the power to indemnify under the Act.   The indemnification provided by this article shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which a person may be entitled as a matter of law or by contract.

Article 6    Amendments