SUVCW--General Orders No. 22 of 2011-2012

Sons of Union Veterans of The Civil War

Office of the Commander-in-Chief

Donald D. Palmer Jr., Commander-in-Chief

147 Lucerne Place

Ballwin, MO 63011

cinc@suvcw.org

General Order #22

SERIES 2011-2012

22 July 2012

Per Article IX of the SUVCW Constitution, all proposed amendments to the Constitution are to be submitted to the Commander-in-Chief at least 40 days in advance of the National Encampment and are to be published in General Orders prior to the National Encampment.

The Department of Rhode Island, having met these requirements, is proposing two amendments to the SUVCW Constitution. The first is a change in wording in the Preamble. The second is a change in the requirements specified in Article VII, Section 2(c).

The change proposed for the Preamble is as follows:

From: We, the descendants of soldiers, sailors, or marines who served in the Army or Navy of the United States of America during the War of the Rebellion of 1861 to 1865…

To: We, the descendants of soldiers, sailors, or Marines who served in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, or Revenue Cutter Service of the United States of American during the War of the Rebellion of 1861 to 1865…

This change is needed to recognize all the members of the United States Armed Forces that served in the American Civil War 1861-1865, as the membership requirements of the GAR and the SUVCW, per Article III of the SUVCW Constitution, stipulate that the Marine Corps and Revenue Cutter Service were different branches of the Armed Forces.

The second proposal changes the required maximum 2 to 1 ratio of Members to Associates to 1 to 1 while keeping in place all of the other ratio restrictions. The change proposed for Article VII, Section 2(c) is as follows:

From: The combined number of Associates and Junior Associates in any Camp shall not exceed one-third (1/3) of the total roster of the Camp at the time of election. At no time during a meeting of a Camp, a Department, or the National Organization shall business be transacted if the number of Associates in attendance exceeds forty-nine per cent (49%) of the total attendance then present at said meeting.

To: The combined number of Associates and Junior Associates in any Camp shall not exceed one-half (1/2) of the total roster of the Camp at the time of election. At no time during a meeting of a Camp, a Department, or the National Organization shall business be transacted if the number of Associates in attendance exceeds forty-nine per cent (49%) of the total attendance then present at said meeting.

This change is proposed because Camps are losing out on opportunities to bring in new Brothers due to the current limitation of Associates relative to the number of hereditary Brothers

Also per Article IX, these proposed amendments must be adopted by a two-thirds vote of the members present and entitled to vote at the 2012 National Encampment, and shall become effective when favorably acted upon and ratified by not less than 50% of the Departments, and proclaimed in general orders, whereupon they shall be and become a part of the SUVCW Constitution.

Ordered this 22nd Day of July 2012.

Donald D. Palmer Jr.
Commander-In-Chief
Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War

Attest:

Eugene Mortorff
Secretary,
National Order, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War