Constitution and By-Laws of the Monticello Association
Article I - Name
The name of this Association shall be THE MONTICELLO ASSOCIATION.
Article II - Purpose
(A) The purpose of the Association shall be:
(First) to preserve, care for, and adorn the graves and grounds comprising the Monticello
graveyard; and
(Second) to endeavor in every practicable way to protect and perpetuate the reputation and
fame of Thomas Jefferson; and
(Third) to encourage, by means of meetings of the Association, publication of annual
reports, and appropriate activities, bonds of association and friendship among the
descendants of Thomas Jefferson.
(B) The property rights of the lineal descendants of Colonel
Thomas Jefferson Randolph as owners of the original Monticello graveyard are affirmed and
shall be defended by the Association; and no proposition looking to the transfer of
ownership from said descendants shall be initiated or supported by the Association until
it shall have received the approval in writing of two-thirds of the adult descendants of
said Colonel Thomas Jefferson Randolph having proprietary interest in the graveyard.
(C) The Association affirms the rights of the descendants of
Thomas Jefferson to burial in the addition to the Monticello graveyard as provided in the
covenant under which this property was deeded.
Article III - Membership
(A) Regular Members. Any lineal descendant of Thomas Jefferson
who applies for membership, and annually pays dues as stated in the By-Laws of this
Association, shall be a Regular Member of the Association, provided that a regular member
whose dues are more than one year in arrears shall not be considered a member in good
standing. Regular members shall be entitled to participate in all proceedings of the
Association, except that the right to vote and to hold office is limited to regular
members in good standing who have reached the age of 18 years.
(B) Honorary Members. Persons in an official position, who in
that position have assisted the Association and shown interest in furthering its aims, may
upon nomination by the Executive Committee of the Association, be elected Honorary Members
by a two-thirds affirmative vote of the members present at any duly called meeting at
which a quorum is present.
(C) Associate Members. Adopted children, step-children and
spouses of regular members, including widows and widowers of regular members, who assist
the Association and show interest in furthering its aims, as evidenced by making
contributions to the Association, or by attending its meetings, or by corresponding with
the Secretary of the Association, may be elected Associate Members by an affirmative vote
of a majority of the members present at any duly called meeting at which a quorum is
present.
(D) Honorary and Associate members may attend and take part in
meetings of the Association, but they may not vote or hold office.
(E) Nothing in Article III of this Constitution shall change the
status of Honorary or Associate members enrolled at the time of its adoption.
Article IV - Officers
(A) The officers of the Association shall be a President, a
Vice-President, a Secretary, and a Treasurer, who shall be elected annually at the Annual
Meeting, or by mail ballot if no meeting be held.
(B) The President shall preside at all meetings of the
Association, approve the minutes thereof, shall be the chairman of the Executive
Committee, shall appoint a Custodian of the graveyard, and shall appoint committees as
stated in the By-Laws of the Association.
(C) The Vice-President shall preside in the absence of the
President from meetings, and shall perform the duties of the President when authorized by
him, or when the presidency shall become vacant.
(D) The Secretary shall record the minutes of the meetings of the
Association, shall publish its annual report, and shall keep a record of the names and
addresses of the members of the Association. The Treasurer shall keep the accounts of the
Association, shall collect and hold its funds, and shall disburse the same under the
direction of the Executive Committee.
(E) The President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer,
and the immediately preceding Past-President, shall constitute the Executive Committee of
the Association, which shall transact the business of the Association in accordance with
its Constitution and By-Laws, and as may be directed by the vote of the Association.
(F) There shall be a Custodian of the graveyard, appointed by the
President. The Custodian shall have custody of the keys of the graveyard, and shall
maintain and care for the graveyard under the direction of the Executive Committee of the
Association.
(G) There shall be an Historian of the Association, elected at
the annual meeting for a term of one year, or until a successor is elected and qualified.
It shall be the duty of the Historian to receive and preserve all documents, articles,
papers, or other data of a genealogical or historical nature pertaining to the purposes of
the Association, which may from time to time, be given to the Association.
(H) There may be two Trustees, appointed by the Executive
Committee subject to confirmation by a majority affirmative vote of the next meeting of
the Association following such appointment. They shall serve at the pleasure of the
Executive Committee, or until their successors are appointed, as above. These Trustees
shall be, (1) an Individual Trustee who shall be a member of the Association, not a member
of the Executive Committee, and (2) a Corporate Trustee, which shall be a Bank or Trust
Company in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It shall be the duty of the Trustees to receive
and hold in trust such funds as shall be delivered to them by the Association, to invest
and reinvest as they deem best, without being restricted to those securities expressly
authorized by law for fiduciaries, and to exercise such powers as may be necessary for the
management of such invested funds, and to pay therefrom the expenses thereby incurred.
They shall pay to the Treasurer of the Association, annually or more frequently as may be
agreed, the net income of the trust fund, and shall render a report annually to the
Association.
Article V - Proxies
(A) General proxies shall not be recognized, but members not able to attend any meeting shall have the privilege of filing with the Secretary their votes for officers and upon specific questions upon which they may desire to record a vote in case such questions may be brought before the meeting. Any such vote in writing, except for officers, will be subject to challenge by any member present as to its applicability to the question before the Association, and it may be thrown out by a majority of the votes of the members actually present, if not deemed pertinent to the question under consideration.
Article VI - Amendment
(A) Amendments to the Constitution shall require the affirmative vote in writing of a majority of the voting members of the Association. Such amendment shall become effective three months after the affirmative vote of such majority, which shall be announced by the President.
1. - Fiscal Year.
2. - Dues.
(A) Dues of Regular Members, except Regular Life Members, shall
be assessed at twenty dollars per year for adults, one dollar for juniors.
(B) Dues shall not be assessed Associate or Honorary Members.
3. - Meetings.
(A) The annual Meeting of the Association shall be held on a
Sunday in May, selected by the Executive Committee, at such hour and place in the City of
Charlottesville, Virginia, or in its vicinity, as may be designated by the President.
(B) Called meetings may be held at such time and place as may be
designated by the President, upon application in writing of ten voting members of the
Association in good standing.
(C) Due notice in writing of all meetings of the Association shall be
sent to members, not less than fifteen days in advance of the designated date.
4. - Quorum.
(A) Ten voting members in good standing shall constitute a quorum for
the transaction of business of the Association.
(B) In case the attendance of ten voting members cannot be
engaged by a date one week in advance of the annual meeting, or if a quorum is not
obtained at an annual meeting, the election of officers shall be held by mail ballot, the
results of which shall be certified to the Association by the Executive Committee.
5. - Order of Business.
(A) The order of business at meetings of the Association shall
be:
1. Roll Call
2. Reading of the Minutes of
the last meeting
3. Report of the Secretary
4. Report of the Treasurer
5. Reports of other Officers
and of Committees
6. Unfinished Business
7. Election of Officers
8. Miscellaneous and New
Business
9. Adjournment
(B) The order of business may be changed for any meeting by vote
of a majority of the members present.
6. - Life Membership.
(A) Any Regular or Associate Member who makes a donation of two
hundred and fifty dollars or more to the Association shall thereafter remain in good
standing as a Life Member of the Association.
7. - Termination or Suspension of Membership.
(A) Regular members who become more than three years in arrears
in the payment of dues; and Associate Members who for a period of three years have failed
to show interest in the Association as evidenced by the making of a contribution, or
attendance at a meeting, or correspondence with the Secretary, shall be dropped from the
active rolls of the Association.
(B) Associate Members so dropped may be re-elected to membership
upon appropriate qualification for such re-election, and Regular Members so dropped are
automatically reinstated as members in good standing upon payment of current dues.
8. - Committees.
(A) Standing Committees of the Association shall be as follows,
the members and chairmen thereof being appointed annually by the President, subject to the
limitations established by these By-Laws.
(B) A Committee of Interments; to consist of the Custodian (ex
officio) and not less than two nor more than four other members who shall serve for
one-year terms. The Committee on Interments shall undertake to determine space allotments
in the graveyard desired by individuals and family groups, and shall advise members
regarding locations for interments, to guide them in accordance with stated policy of the
Association, and to promote an orderly and desirable plan of the graveyard. It shall make
a report annually to the Association.
(C) A Membership Committee; to consist of a Chairman, the
Secretary (ex officio), the Treasurer (ex officio), the Historian (ex officio), and such
other members as may be necessary. The Membership Committee shall work to interest
eligible persons in the Association and to encourage them to enroll as members. It shall
make nominations at the annual meetings for election of associate members, and it shall
make a report annually to the Association.
(D) On Standing Committees, ex officio members shall not serve as
chairmen; appointed members may be re-appointed.
(E) The President may, from time to time, appoint temporary
committees as needed.
9. - Amendments.
(A) These By-laws may be amended by a two-thirds affirmative vote
of the voting members in good standing at any duly called meetings of the Association at
which a quorum is present. Such amendment shall become effective three months after such
affirmative vote, which shall be announced by the President.