Our Governing Documents — Something We All Share

Something at our last General Membership Meeting made me realize that we need to do a better job of talking about our Constitution, our Processes & Procedures, and the important role they play in OCSC. As the President and Parliamentarian referred to the Constitution during the meeting, members asked questions about why things were being handled differently than they may have been in the past. Those were important and relevant questions.

For many years, a lot of things at OCSC were handled based on tradition and simply knowing how things had always been done. As our club has grown, our current club management is making a conscious effort to use our Constitution and Processes & Procedures as the foundation for how we conduct club business. And we want the
membership to be part of that.

These documents aren’t something that belong to club management. They belong to all of us. Think of the Constitution simply as our common rulebook. It provides the foundation for how OCSC is governed. Our Processes & Procedures help put that foundation into everyday practice by providing more detail on how club business gets done. Together, they give our members a meaningful voice, set the rules that club management must follow, and help keep all of us on the same page.

There may be times when our governing documents guide us in a different direction than past practice. That’s not about saying the old way was wrong. It’s about recognizing that OCSC has grown and making sure we are doing what’s best for the club today and for its future. And if something doesn’t make sense, ask about it. We want those questions. We want members involved in the conversation. If something in our governing documents needs to be explained, let’s explain it. If something should be reconsidered, let’s talk about it and use the proper process to address it. That’s how this should work.

While conducting club business at future meetings, I hope we can look at our Constitution and Processes & Procedures as something that helps all of us work through the issues and make good decisions together. Not as club management telling the membership what it can or cannot do, but as all of us saying: “This is our club, these are our governing documents, and together we’re going to use them to make the best decisions we can for OCSC.” That’s the relationship I believe we should be building.

There isn’t a management side and a membership side. We’re all on the OCSC side. We want the friendships and traditions that have made this club special to continue. We want members to have a voice. We want good ideas
brought forward. And we also have a responsibility to the members who will come after us. We inherited an incredible club because generations of OCSC members before us built it, supported it, and took care of it. Now
it’s our turn.

Our goal should be to leave OCSC even better than we found it, so future generations can enjoy the same ranges, grounds, activities, friendships, and opportunities that we enjoy today. Our governing documents help us do that. Tradition tells us where OCSC came from. Our Constitution and Processes & Procedures give us a common foundation for where we go next. And I hope all of us will be part of that journey.

Mike Stailey
1st Vice President OCSC