Name:
Kakish (Qaqish) Family Society, USA
Main Office:
San Diego, California
Founders:
" Kamal Musa Kakish
" Ibrahim Issa Kakish
" Hanna Issa Kakish
" Samir Musa Kakish
" Mazen Freih Qaqish
" Michael Fawzi Kakish
Goals:
- To Bring the Kakish (Qaqish) family together in fellowship and love
2. Make every effort to gather at least once a year via a picnic, potluck, dinner, or any similar activity where the expenses are paid by the members and or the Picnic Fund.
3. Whenever possible, gather the family to celebrate Easter and Christmas. Cost, location, date, or any other detail of the event is determined by the residing administrative council.
4. Provide active and eligible members with death benefits as outlined below.
The General Assembly:
1. Active Members: eighteen years or older and of Kakish (Qaqish) paternal decent, their spouses, and their adult children whose obligations to the society are fulfilled and current.
2. Supporting Members: under 18 years of age whose obligations to the society are fulfilled and current.
3. Honorary Members: male spouses of active members and their children whose obligations to the society are fulfilled and current.
4. Voting Members: any of the above who are 18 years of age or older whose obligations to the society are fulfilled and current for at least one full calendar year.
5. Eligible Members: any of the above who are current and have fulfilled their obligation to the society.
6. The General Assembly will meet once a year.
7. The General Assembly will vote to elect the Administrative Council once every two years.
8. The General Assembly will elect the Administrative Council with the condition that at least three members of the new council were members of the outgoing council.
9. The General Assembly voting meeting is Valid by the presence of at least 35% of the Voting members. If that is not possible, a second meeting is scheduled and will be valid with the presence of at least 25% of the voting members.
10. After the discussion of the various reports at the voting meeting, the president of the council will present the resignation of the outgoing Administrative Council.
The Administrative Council (Steering Committee):
1. Consists of strictly seven active members who are of Kakish (Qaqish) family paternal decent.
2. Administrative Council members are elected by the eligible voting members of the general assembly.
3. All members must be 25 years of age or older.
4. Must be a member of the General Assembly for at least one full calendar year prior to selection.
5. In case of a death or resignation of any of the Administrative Council members, the surviving members have the authority to vote and appoint a new eligible replacement to complete the vacated term. The replacement member is chosen from a list of volunteers who show interest through a written application after publication of the vacated seat to the general assembly.
6. The term of the council shall be two years from date of previous council's resignation.
7. There is no limit on the number of terms served by any eligible council member.
8. The Steering Committee will meet at minimum 4 times per calendar year.
9. The meeting shall be legal and binding by the presence of at least 5 of the members.
10. The Steering Committee may have an emergency meeting if requested by the president or the vice president.
11. At the closing of every meeting, all attending members of the Administrative Council must sign the meeting minutes.
12. The Steering Committee will appoint the positions on the board by majority vote.
13. If any of the members does not attend two consecutive meetings without valid cause for the absence, that member may be removed from the council and replaced at the discretion of the residing Administrative Council. A third consecutive absence will result in immediate expulsion without exception.
14. The Steering Committee will administer all of the society's assets and finances and will provide a financial report at the general meeting, as well as, updates at the Administrative Council meetings.
15. Whenever possible and logistically feasible as determined by the Steering Committee, an available member of the Steering Committee will attempt to visit the sick and the elderly of the Kakish (Qaqish) family.
16. The Steering Committee may not disburse funds of any amount outside of disbursements outlined in these bylaws without a vote by the general assembly. Voting may occur via a general meeting or a mass mailing, as decided upon by the Steering Committee. In case of a mass mailing, a deadline date is clearly specified in the mailing. Members will be provided with a voting form and envelopes addressed to the society. From the returning votes, a majority vote is required for approval. A minimum of 50% of the society's voting members must respond for the vote to be valid.
17. The Steering committee has no right to amend or change the bylaws of the society unless authorized and approved by at least 2/3 of the general assembly.
18. If an Administrative Council member was absent with or without cause at a scheduled council meeting, he/she will not be able to dispute decisions voted upon at the meeting.
Society Dues, Obligations, Finances:
1. Active members are obligated to pay $6.00 (USD) monthly dues. The funds are allocated as follows
a. $3.00 towards the funeral fund.
b. $2.00 towards the annual Christmas party.
c. $1.00 towards the annual gathering.
2. Supporting members 3-17 years of age have an obligation of $3.00 (USD) monthly dues that are allocated towards the funeral fund.
3. New and returning members shall pay $20.00 (USD) admission/reinstatement fee.
4. None of the funds are refundable upon the exit of any member from the society.
5. A member's funds are not transferable to any other member or guest.
6. Members who do not attend a function, lose their right to their monetary contribution to that event.
7. No funds will be disbursed without the signature of at least two members of the Administrative Council.
8. New high school graduates in good standing with the society are eligible for a one-time $400.00 gift. High school gifts will be paid from the Christmas fund.
9. Flowers and/or gifts must be approved by majority vote by the Administrative Council.
10. The society's income is collected from the dues as stated above and any event profit.
11. The society owns multiple grave plots at Forest Lawn, Covina. Plots cannot be sold to anyone. Plots may not be transferred to non-eligible members. An individual plot is released to the family of the deceased person for burial of the aforementioned deceased member at time of death. Plots are released by an authorized current Administrative Council member.
Death Benefits:
- In case of the death of any eligible member who lives in Southern California, and who has been a current member in good standing for five consecutive years or more leading to the time of their death, the surviving family will receive:
a. $1,000.00 (USD) check.
b. A free grave plot for the deceased from the available society plots.
2. Members who have been current for less than five consecutive years but more than three consecutive years leading to the time of their death shall pay $1,000.00 (USD) towards the grave plot should they elect to be buried in the society's allotted plots and will not be eligible for the $1,000.00 (USD) check. Family members of the deceased may decide to forego the plot and receive a check for $1,000.00 (USD) instead.
3. Members who have been current for less than three consecutive years and more than 6 consecutive months leading to the time of their death shall pay $1,500.00 (USD) towards the grave plot should they elect to be buried in the society's allotted plots and will not be eligible for the $1000.00 (USD) check. They will not be given the option of receiving the $1,000.00 (USD) check regardless of their previous selection.
4. Families of the eligible deceased who do not wish to use the society grave plot will be awarded a total of $1600.00 if the deceased member has been current and in good standing for five consecutive years or more leading to the time of their death.
5. Members who have not been current and/or in good standing for at minimum six consecutive months leading to the time of their death will not be eligible for any benefits.
6. New members who have joined the society for six months or less will be eligible for $500.00 at the discretion of the Administrative Council
7. Expenses for roses and/or condolences shall be approved by majority vote by the Administrative Council.
President of the Administrative Council:
1. Represents the society in any government or other official entities.
2. Extends the invitations for the council meeting.
3. Prepares the meeting agenda and leads the council meeting.
4. Votes only as a tie breaker at council meetings.
Vice president:
1. Carries out all duties of the president when the president is not present.
2. Carries out all other duties as needed or assigned by the president.
The Secretary:
1. Records all council sessions and minutes.
2. Prepares the invitations to all eligible members for the general or annual meeting.
3. Keeps a record of all the members and their contacts.
4. Sends out all correspondence.
The Treasurer:
1. Records all income and expenses in an official manner.
2. Assures that the financial records are ready at all times.
3. Deposits all funds as received.
4. Prepares a detailed financial report to present in the general assembly.
5. Prepares and keeps account records for all members.
6. Prepares an annual balance sheet at the end of the year.
Board Members:
1. Carry out all tasks generated at the council meeting.
2. Along with other positions, discuss and vote on all issues brought to the board.
Dissolution and Expulsion:
- The Society: To dissolve the society, the following must occur:
a. A general meeting is called for that purpose.
b. A vote is taken and a minimum of 80% of the voters must approve. All voters must be present at the General Meeting. The meeting will be considered valid with voting presence of 2/3 of the society's voting members.
c. A Committee of 9 active members will be elected to supervise and dissolve the society.
d. All Society funds will be distributed only to the current active members based on the amount of their contribution since their most recent membership date.
e. If any of the grave sites are available, the committee will request and determine a market value. The values are then treated as liquid assets that can be offered in lieu of cash. The committee may decide to sell the plots if no members decide to own them.
- The Administrative Council: To dissolve the Administrative council, the following must occur:
a. A written letter signed by at least 1/3 of the voting members is presented to the board.
b. The president will call for an emergency board meeting.
c. The board will discuss the letter and validity of the request.
d. If approved, the board will call for an emergency general meeting.
e. The general meeting will be valid by the presence of at least 60% of the eligible voters.
f. One of the active members who requested and signed the dissolution is voted by the rest of the requesters to argue and present the case.
g. Based on the general meeting results, the board may be dissolved or re-instated.
h. If the decision is to dissolve the board, the General Assembly will appoint three members to oversee a new election for a new council.
i. The outgoing board will hand over all records to the three representatives.
j. All aforementioned conditions and regulations in these bylaws will apply when electing a new board.
- Member withdrawals:
a. Any member who leaves the society in any manner loses all of his or her rights to any benefit. That member will also forfeit all previously made contributions to the society and will not be refunded those funds.
b. Members may withdraw from the society by submitting a written request to the Administrative Council. Withdrawing members lose all their benefits and contributions.
c. Members may lose their membership if not current for 12 months and after being notified in writing for the default. This expulsion is automatic and without exception. Item. Expelled members lose all their benefits and contributions.
d. Returning and new members will incur a $20.00 (USD) admission/reinstatement fee.
e. Returning and new members will fall under the new membership rules when it comes to benefits with previous membership unaccounted for and forfeited.
Acceptance of the Bylaws:
1. In the 2016 general meeting held on July 24, 2016 in LA VERNE, California, the general assembly unanimously authorized the elected board to revise and approve the bylaws as needed in accordance with the previously active bylaws.
- The bylaws were approved by the incumbent Administrative Council during the meeting held on October 21, 2017 at the house of Musa Ibrahim Kakish
3. A single copy of the bylaws will be distributed to the households of eligible members.
4. These bylaws belong to the Kakish/Qaqish Family Society in the USA.
DATED THIS DAY OCTOBER 21, 2017
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Kamal Musa Kakish - President Maram H Kakish - Vice President
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Mazen F Qaqish - Secretary Shadie M Qaqish - Treasurer
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Musa I Kakish Maher F Qaqish Mays M Kakish