September 13, 2025

Dear AHBC Member,

The AHBC Board would like to inform you about proposed changes in the documents that govern how our Club operates, and to provide a timeline for how the AHBC membership will vote on the changes.

Bylaws

In short, the Board determined that many existing bylaws are really operating procedures and policies that require more flexibility to administer than bylaws that should remain constant over time.

The existing Bylaws by which the Board governs the AHBC are eight pages long, contain some obsolete policies, and should be updated for our current procedures.  The proposed new Bylaws consolidate the necessary Bylaws into a complete rewrite that is three pages long and requires a membership vote for approval.

Because the proposed amendments are comprehensive, we are not presenting them in the usual “line-by-line ALL CAPS/strikeout” format that would be quite complex for the entire document.  The Board is providing AHBC website links to the existing Bylaws (1) and the Proposed new Bylaws (2) to allow you to read and compare clean copies of both documents.  Key changes include:

• updating AHBC purposes,
• shifting from an annual membership renewal cycle (one date for all) to an anniversary date cycle (based on when the person is initially approved for membership on any date throughout the year),
• defining required standing committees in the Bylaws while allowing more flexible appointment and discontinuation of other committees based on needs at that time, and
• extracting bylaws that are more appropriately defined as policies and as procedures into separate documents.

Bylaws Amendment Process

Article X – Amendments in the existing Bylaws states:

The by-laws of the AHBC may be amended or revised by the affirmation vote of at least two-thirds (2/3) of members present at an amendment meeting, provided that a notice of such meeting is sent via email containing a summary of the proposed amendments.  Proxy voting may be arranged upon request by members in good standing by contacting the secretary three days prior to the amendment meeting.

This communication fulfills the notice requirement in the existing bylaws.  Also, the September 24, 2025 AHBC Membership Meeting will begin with a time when any member can offer comments and questions for further consideration.  The actual vote on the proposed Bylaws will take place at the October 22, 2025 official Annual Membership Meeting.

Policies and Procedures

Items that the Board determined are not needed in the proposed Bylaws were extracted, modified as necessary, and included in separate documents for Policies (3) and for Procedures (4), and some new items have been included.  These documents do not require a vote of the AHBC Membership for approval; however, the Board welcomes any AHBC member’s comments and questions now and throughout the year.  Comments and questions about the upcoming Bylaws amendment process and any future thoughts regarding these documents can be directed to:

AHBC President Pete Schmelzer at president@cyclearlington.com

AHBC Secretary Kim Heuer at secretary@cyclearlington.com

On Behalf of the AHBC Board,

Pete Schmelzer, President

Mike Paulson, Vice President

Kim Heuer, Secretary

Bill Kragh, Treasurer

Rebecca Frank, Director

Roger Hitchings, Director

Mary Pat Krones, Director

Paula Matzek, Director

Mitch Polonsky, Director