Page 28 - 2021 SPRING Sojourner Newsletter

28 THE SOJOURNER

a.Issue a letter of complete exoneration to the party(ies) al- WHEREAS It also fosters the notion that we are in fact not a
legedly involved, with distribution ofinformation copies Veteran's Order, but a retired, rich man's officers/NCO club,
where appropriate. at least at the National Level and
b.Issue a directive to cease and desist from activities WHEREAS This is a crucial step on the road to relevance of
deemed to be inappropriate. our Order, and our interactions with all Grand Jurisdictions
d.Counsel, reprimand, or remove the individual from ap- and appendant bodies and
pointed or elected office. WHEREAS It is a necessary step in creating an environment
g.Charges preferred against National Officers shall be re- that fosters the lasting endurance of the Order. It will change
ferred to the National Board of DirectorsPresident for action the constituent membership that comes to national meetings,
for Trustees and National Line and Staff Officers. The National in due course, and make it much more representative of the
President will generally resolve the matter as provided in membership at large.
NR18.3 for other officers. If the Board of Directors or Na-
tional President deems it appropriate, either will direct the Therefor be it RESOLVED that NR 6.1, paragraph 3.g
temporary suspension of the accused and refer the matter to 3.QUALIFICATIONS OF NATIONAL PROGRESSIVE LINE OFFIC-
the Board of Directors to a special trial committee consisting ERS: The selection of allcandidates for the national progressive
of at least five Sojourners to be appointed by him. In the event line shall be governed by the minimum requirements set forth
the committee determine if the evidence supports the charge. below:
If not, a letter of exoneration shall be issued over the signa- g.Be prepared to undertake the financial burden associated
ture of the Chairman of the Board of Directors or National with election as well as thetravel required to satisfy the addi-
President with information copies distributed where appro- tional responsibilities.
priate.
If the charges are substantiated, the Board of Directors, com- That subsection g of paragraph 3 of NR 6.1 be rewritten as
mittee for Trustees and National Line Officers, and the Na- follows:
tional President, for all others, shall issue an appropriate ac-
tion in accordance with paragraphs a through g above. g.Be prepared to personally pay reasonable expenses associ-
4.APPEALS/FINAL AUTHORITY/REPRESENTATION: ated with the office intowhich you may be elected to serve,
a.All individuals disciplined in accordance with paragraph 3a with the understanding that a reasonable amount of money
above shall have the right to appeal to theNational President, will be set aside for necessary travel and expenses as part of
the Board of Directors, and the National Convention, in turn. the National Sojourners national budgeting process annually.
Such appeals, directed to National Headquarters (Attention:
National Judge Advocate), must be made within ninety days of Be it further resolved that on passage of this resolution any
receipt of formal notice of disciplinary action. other provision of the National By-Laws and National Regu-
d.The National Convention, acting by secret written ballot is lations affected by this resolution and not specifically
the final appellate authority on alldisciplinary actions ap- amended or referenced in this resolution shall be amended
pealed to it. Acting in its appellate capacity, the National Con- to read and shall be interpreted to be in conformity with
vention may: this resolution.
(1) Sustain the action of the Board of Directors or National ____________________________________________________
President. (2) Sustain the recommendations of the Board of _
Directors/National President/Chapter. 2021-4 By-Laws ARTICLE 1.2 Board of Directors
2021-3 Resolution Financial Obligations of Elected Na- WHEREAS National Sojourners is incorporated under the
tional Officers laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia and by law is required
to have a Board of Directors. Directors cannot be Elected Line
WHEREAS Our Masonic Military Veteran's Order is almost five Officers of the Corporation as a matter of common law and
years old, and it is time to directly address a few of the cultur- WHEREAS The Articles of Incorporation require that a Board
al changes that will allow the very best leadership to work of Directors, be elected, a process for which is not addressed
their way into the highest positions of the Order and in NSI By-Laws or National Regulations and
WHEREAS For 97 years it was a written, but unregulated, WHEREAS The Board of Directors is currently made of up
requirement that those running for National Line or Trustee National Elected Line Officers which is a common law viola-
offices pay their own way, as a function of Noblesse Oblige and tion of the duty of Officers not to be Directors in the same
the fact that all of us who could run for office were either of- Corporation, and vice versa. This has been ignored for years,
ficers or higher-ranking NCOs. All well and good then. Not so and the National Elected Officers have not conducted busi-
now and ness as a Board of Directors in at least the last ten years and
WHEREAS Like most other veterans' organizations, we need WHEREAS The National Trustees have been the defacto
to reimburse the cost of necessary food, travel and lodging of Board of Directors for decades, in order to deal with selected
our senior leaders to attract the most excellent talent we can directors duties as then determined by the Trustees, but with-
get from ALL economic levels of the Order. Those that are out guidance or authority. It is therefore necessary and ap-
well-heeled can simply not request reimbursement if they propriate that the Board of Directors and the National Trus-
want. To not accept this cultural change is simply unfair to tees be merged into one unit, with the duties of both the
the general membership and