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Important Please Read!!!
The following information is for the chapter members.
The Harley Owners Group local chapter is an extension of National H.O.G. All things we do as a local chapter must follow some of the guidelines laid down by National H.O.G. Officers in this chapter follow the guidelines and sometimes, when they have to, will stretch the guidelines a bit to get a particular job done. The membership officer does not have that luxury. The membership officer must follow the H.O.G. Charter guidelines to the letter when it pertains to member renewal or new membership.
For everyone’s information, I want to quote information in the “Chapter Handbook.” I have no intentions on getting anyone mad or upset; but I must follow the H.O.G. by-laws. Here go’s………..
Article VI: “All Harley Owners Group members may join any affiliated chapter. An expired membership in H.O.G. automatically terminates local chapter membership. It shall be the responsibility of each local chapter to ensure that chapter members are current H.O.G. members and to maintain, on file in the chapter records, a signed copy of the annual Chapter Membership Enrollment and Release Form of each chapter member. It shall be the responsibility of any person applying for, or renewing, membership in the local chapter to provide proof of his or her National membership as a condition of eligibility for membership.”
This means that every individual in the local chapter must have his or her own US number. Using another individual’s number in order to join the local chapter is a no-no. There is an exception: A young child that the parents want to be in the chapter. The parents will sign for the child.
Some new members join the local chapter before National H.O.G. can get their numbers processed. Those individuals are accepted into the local chapter because the Harley-Davidson Dealership acknowledges that a US number has not been processed.
Every effort is given the individual member to renew National H.O.G. on an annual basis before the membership officer is forced to terminate membership. If an individual joins the local chapter knowing that their membership in National H.O.G. is not current, their membership in the local chapter is terminated. There is no refund on checks addressed to V.V.H.O.G. for the chapter dues.
A good many individuals join the local chapter at the monthly meeting. Many of these individuals say they do not have their National card with them. As soon as the membership officer can call National H.O.G., he does in order to verify the members US number and date of expiration. If no US number can be verified the membership officer calls the dealership. Usually the National membership can be verified. Very very few occasions National H.O.G. informs me that the individual national membership has expired. Upon hearing this, the members local chapter membership is terminated.
Membership Officer, Bill
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