January 1, 2024

Dear Members of ACBL Unit 559, 

	Our annual Election Party will be held in March and I wanted to give each of you a chance to volunteer to serve on the Board of Directors.  We can have 12 members of the Board, but currently only have 8.  4 of them will be going off in March, since the terms are for 2 years. We really need more help.   We have a Zoom Board meeting once per month and then plan and help out with the Holiday Party, and this year we will be hosting the John Waken Sectional on July 27-28, so will need some help with that.  If you are willing and interested in serving on the Board, please email me (see address and phone at bottom) and your name will be passed on the the Nominating Committee.  If you are willing and able to help with the Sectional in July, please let me know that as well. 

	According to our current By-Laws, a Nominating Committee needs to formed consisting of 5 members who are not a majority of current Board members.  If you are interested on serving on the Nominating Committee, please let me know.  

		Nominations
1.	The Hoard of Directors, at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of election, shall
select a Nominating Committee, composed of five (5) persons, a majority of whom
shall not be members of the current Board of Directors.   Said Nominating
Committee shall prepare a slate of Directors to be place in nomination by it.
2.	The names of the persons nominated as Directors by the Nominating Committee shall
be made known to the members at least twenty (20) days prior to the election date.
3.	Additional nominations may be made by the membership, but such nominations must
be in writing, signed by at least ten (10) members and must be mailed to the
Secretary of the Unit within ten (10) days after giving notice as provided in 2.
above.

	We do not have a current Directory.  The reason for this is that according to new law, we cannot share people’s personal information without their consent.  This means that you have to OPT IN, or give us written permission to include your name and address, phone and email address in a directory.  If you would like to be included in the Directory, please email me directly to give your permission.  You may have noticed that the Directory has also been removed from  the website.  That again is to protect your personal information.  Only those who have given their permission, or OPTED IN, will be included in a future directory. 

	Speaking of websites, we have an amazing website that is updated almost daily.  Roy Wilson created our website and is responsible for its upkeep.  However, Roy is now 88 and would like some help, specifically to work with someone with the goal of them taking it over in the future.  If you have any interest in this, again, please email me at the address below. 

	Before the  pandemic, we had a robust membership of over 450 members.  Now, through attrition and loss, we are at 355.  Our club directors are working on building up the membership by offering classes and novice games.   Bridge as a whole has taken a big hit with the pandemic and the popularity of BBO and other bridge playing sites.  We all know that the social aspects of bridge are important to our isolation and connection with other people.  Please renew your membership in the ACBL when it comes due and think about serving the unit in whatever capacity you can.  

	The current Board of Directors has rewritten the Unit By-Laws to bring them up to date.  I am attaching a copy of the revised By Laws for your information  This item will also be included on the ballot in March.  We need a majority of the members present at the March meeting to ratify the revised By Laws for them to take effect.  Please read and feel free to ask questions about anything in them that you may be interested in or have concerns about.  

	Thanks for reading this and for continuing to be a part of our Unit.  We the Board look forward to seeing you all at the bridge table!

UNIT 559 Board of Directors

By:

Lisa Walker, President	lisawalkerlac@gmail.com	818-321-1789