Thursday 10/18/07

Inaugural Meeting

I. Introduction 6:30 pm
1. Josh Friedman called the meeting to order and had everyone introduce themselves. Present on
the conference call:
i. Scott Allardice (NY)
ii. Shana Woolems (AR)
iii.Carl (AR)
iv. Chant Macleod (NY)
1. Had to leave the call at 7:15 pm
v. Robert Sheard (NC)
vi. Josh Friedman (MA)
vii.Peter Robinson (ONT, Can.)
viii.Andrew Vasicek (MA)
II. Leadership
1. Josh explained § 5.2(h) regarding the election of directors (of which six (6) are to be named in
the Articles, § 5.12 regarding the election of the Chairperson, and §6.7 regarding the
election/appointment of officers (in this case the clerk).
2. Board of Directors
i. Three (3) Directors will be named at the first annual meeting and an additional three
(3) will be named at the second annual meeting
ii. Scott, Shana, Chant, Robert, Josh, and Peter were suggested by Josh as the initial six
(6) directors and each was so appointed unanimously
3. Chairperson
i. Set up conference calls and run meetings, and with the same basic rights as the other
directors
ii. Josh put himself forth as an option and was unanimously elected chairperson
4. Clerk
i. Take minutes of meetings, keep records of any votes and other proceedings, distribute
the minutes of the meetings to the Directors, and post relevant information on the
internet website.
ii. Josh nominated Andrew as clerk and he was unanimously elected clerk
III.Bylaws
1. No vote was to be held tonight, rather Josh will send out the edited version of the bylaws for
review, and a later vote to be held via email
2. Name and make-up
i. Decision to include other countries outside of the United States. Demographics:
1. American membership in MyFC numbers in the four digits; 2nd largest group
by nationality
2. Roughly the same level per capita with Canadians
3. Four Mexicans in MyFC; two to three members in Central America
ii. Decision was made to change the name of the group in the Bylaws to MyFootballClub
North American Supporters’ Trust in order to be open to Canadian and Mexican
membership
1. No quotas determined to be necessary for make-up of the Board; service to be
determined by desire/willingness to help
3. Local branches
i. To be determined by local interest, activities, meetings; size greater than ten (10)
members
ii. “Axis” chapters discussed; NYC, Boston
1. Determined best not to be geographically exclusive
 iii.Need formal requirements for creating a branch?
1. No; mostly for social purposes
2. Organized meetings; contact person, funding, autonomy in local sphere
iv. Flexibility is better
1. Require fewer changes later
2. Can always change requirements at a later time by vote
3. Decided to remove Branches article from By-laws, unanimous vote
4. Voting Systems
i. What for and how?
ii. §§ 5.2, 6.2, and 7.2 discussed for elections and removals
iii.No problems with language or voting numbers noted
5. Tax exemption
i. Josh explained the basic idea; non-profit status
1. No compensation for directors
2. Registration with Federal government required
3. More desirable for donors (tax deduction)
ii. Determined best to let this issue wait
1. Keep organization simple for now until determined necessary to file
IV.Committees
1. Josh explained § 5.11 regarding the establishment of committees
2. Ideas
i. Membership
1. Promote the group
2. Italian/Latino populations especially
ii. Events
iii.Web/Posting
iv. Pub
v. Social Action
1. Charitable activities
2. Local community, sponsoring local soccer groups
3. Determined that this would be best if kept with the full board’s attention
1. Face of the group in the community/long term growth issues
vi. Merchandise/Development
3. Committees will also be sorted out later via email as each Director determines his or her
interests/aptitudes
V. Membership fees; § 8.2
1. $30; can be changed later by the directors
2. For many this will make the MyFC commitment $100 total per year
3. What do you get for the fee?
i. Games on TV
ii. Travel aids
iii.Events – NYC, Toronto, etc.
iv. Discounts on events/tickets
v. T-Shirts – money issues, competition with MyFC?
vi. Sponsorship of youth squads
VI.Roadmap
1. Finalize bylaws this weekend for review by directors
2. Articles of Organization
i. Submit to Secretary of State ($35 fee)
ii. Non-profit corporation
iii.These more or less will look like the bylaws
3. Get webspace at MyFC
i. Free webhosting
 ii. No forums of our own
iii.Transparency for the group and more exposure to non-members
4. Registered internet domains by Josh
i. Simply direct users to MyFC site
ii. Content
1. Ideas should be emailed to the group
5. Bank account
i. With a national bank like BOA or TD Banknorth
ii. Business account – linked to PayPal
iii.Elect a treasurer to be accountable for the account
6. PO Box (Boston)
i. Separate legal address ($70 per year)
7. MyFC to send email to all North American users to join with us
8. Next meeting
i. Decided by email at a later date
ii. Up to Josh for now
iii.Accelerate the schedule if a team is announced
1. Expect a large influx of members
VII.Closing
1. Recruit Midwest, West Coast membership
2. Appoint directors to do this?
3. Have FUN!