SECTION 1. The name of this organization shall be the Dixie African Violet Society.

SECTION 2. The region included in this Society shall be the Dixie region, comprised of the thirteen states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia, exclusively.

SECTION 3. This Society shall be an affiliate of the African Violet Society of America, Inc.

SECTION 1. The objects of this Society shall be:

A. To afford members an association with persons of similar interest in African violets within an area not too vast for occasional meetings;

B. To cooperate and work with all organized African violet clubs and societies;

C. To stimulate interest in the propagation and cultivation of African violets, and acquaint growers with other growers and sources of supply in the Dixie region;

D. To provide an annual show and convention;

E. To publish and distribute a magazine to be known as The Dixie News to each member four times a year to keep members informed of work, progress, activities and to share knowledge and discoveries.

SECTION 2. This Society shall be a non-profit organization.

SECTION 1.

A. All persons within the Dixie region with a real interest in growing African violets shall be eligible for membership, but must be sponsored by an active member of the Dixie African Violet Society and payment of dues.

B. Individual and commercial members outside the Dixie region will be welcome upon sponsorship and payment of dues.

C. Life Members may be individuals only (not Commercial, dual membership, or Affiliates), and must pay the appropriate one-time dues specified in Section 16 of the Standing Rules.

SECTION 2. Honorary members may be named at any annual meeting by a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting. The Dixie African Violet Society shall specify whether such honorary membership is for one year or life.

SECTION 3. Affiliate Clubs: Any established African violet club or society, within the Dixie area, may become an affiliate upon payment of annual dues. This entitles them to receive The Dixie News and apply for the DAVS Collection Awards, Silver and Blue Rosettes, awarded to DAVS members for the best and second best collections of three different standard DAVS-registered plants and for best and second best collections of three different miniature or semiminiature DAVS-registered plants; and entitles their members to exhibit and/or register at conventions.

SECTION 4. Any membership will be terminated if dues are not paid by the renewal date.

ARTICLE IV - OFFICERS AND DUTIES

SECTION 1. Elected officers of this Society shall be president, vice president, recording secretary, corresponding secretary and treasurer; preferably the officers will come from different geographical areas in the region.

SECTION 2. The president shall:

A. Preside at all meetings and perform all duties pertaining to the office.

B. Appoint one or more directors for each state, chairmen of standing and special committees with the approval of the executive committee.

C. Sign warrants drawn on the treasury; have authority to sign checks and pay bills in the inability of the treasurer.

D. Be an ex-officio member of all committees except the nominating committee.

SECTION 3. The vice president shall preside in the absence of the president and perform duties as assigned. The vice president shall assist the local convention chairman in arranging convention programs, if requested.

SECTION 4. The recording secretary shall keep accurate minutes of all meetings, shall send a copy of the minutes of the Board of Directors meetings and annual meeting to the president within three weeks following meetings.

SECTION 5. The corresponding secretary shall handle all correspondence designated by the president.

SECTION 6. The treasurer shall be responsible for all monies of the Society, collecting dues, paying all necessary and authorized bills; keeping an accurate account of all receipts and disbursements; and presenting a financial report at the annual meeting.

SECTION 7. Officers shall be elected and installed at the annual meeting in even numbered years and shall hold office for two years or until successors are elected and installed. Except for recording secretary and treasurer, no officer shall succeed himself.

SECTION 8. Each officer, each director and each committee chairman shall make a full report in writing for the annual meeting, a copy to be kept in the president's file.

SECTION 9. Each outgoing officer, director and committee chairman shall deliver to their successor such books and records as belong to that office.

SECTION 1. The Board of Directors shall consist of the elected officers, state directors, chairmen of standing and special committees, editor of The Dixie News, advertising manager, the two immediate past presidents and a parliamentarian appointed by the president. This board shall carry on the business of the Society.

SECTION 1. The Executive Committee shall consist of the elected officers. These officers shall act on any emergencies between conventions and shall approve or disapprove of all appointments by the president.

SECTION 1. There shall be a nominating committee of five members, two of which shall be appointed by the president. One of these shall be chairman of this committee and shall be from the previous nominating committee. Three shall be elected at the annual meeting in odd-numbered years. Only one member from any geographical area shall serve on the nominating committee. No member shall serve more than twice in succession. Vacancies shall be filled by the Board of Directors.

SECTION 2. Duties of the nominating committee shall be to present one name for each office. The president nominee should be consulted in selection of the corresponding secretary, and submit a report to the president in time to be included in the issue of The Dixie News with the "Call to Convention" at which the election is to be held.

SECTION 3. Elections shall be held at the annual meeting of even-numbered years by ballot or by acclamation if there is only one nominee for each office. A majority vote shall elect.

SECTION 4. Vacancies occurring during terms of office shall be filled by the president and approved by the Board of Directors, except in the office of president.

SECTION 1. There shall be one or more directors, appointed by the president, for each state. Their duties are: To represent Dixie at African violet functions in their state, obtain new members and assist the membership in securing membership renewals.

SECTION 1. The standing committees are: Awards, Auditing, Bylaws, Budget and Finance, Convention Director, Plant Registration, Commercial Division, Editor of The Dixie News, Membership, Historian, and Magazine Distributor.

SECTION 2. DUTIES OF COMMITTEES:

A. Awards shall administer the awarding of DAVS silver and blue rosettes by affiliated clubs; shall obtain ribbons for convention shows and shall advise and assist the local awards chairman.

B. Auditing shall examine the accounts of the treasurer for accuracy and completeness at the end of each administration and report the results of the audit to the Board of Directors.

C. Bylaws shall present proposed amendments to the Bylaws and Standing Rules as the need arises.

D. Budget and Finance shall annually prepare a budget for presentation to and approval by the Board of Directors and shall advise the president on financial matters requiring Board of Directors' action.

E. Convention Director shall secure venues for the annual conventions and shows, and shall work with local convention/show chairs, and their committees, as needed. With Executive Committee approval, the Convention Director shall be reimbursed for reasonable automobile travel expenses to and from prospective convention venues, if requested.

F. Plant Registration shall maintain the list of African violets registered with the Dixie African Violet Society; assign numbers to newly registered plants and provide the editor of The Dixie News with descriptions of these plants. A fee of $1.00 per plant registered will be charged. Only plants hybridized by members within the Dixie area may be registered.

G. Commercial Division shall establish guidelines to be followed in the commercial division of convention shows.

H. Editor of The Dixie News shall be responsible for printing and mailing four issues of The Dixie News per year; and, in coordination with the Executive Committee, appoint associate editor, art editor and advertising manager as needed.

I. Membership Secretary shall receive dues, maintain a current list of members, send state directors lists of members in their states, send out renewal notices, prepare the mailing list for The Dixie News, and send certificates to new life members..

J. Historian shall keep an accurate and complete record of the activities of the Dixie African Violet Society, such as newspaper clippings and pictures and have available at the annual convention.

K. Magazine Distributor, in coordination with the Editor of The Dixie News, the Treasurer, and the Membership Secretary, shall be responsible for mailing The Dixie News in a timely manner.

SECTION 1. The annual meeting and show shall be held each Spring, either by invitation from one of the regional states or as determined by the Convention Director. The place for the following year shall be announced at the regular business meeting. A special meeting may be called by the president or the Board of Directors in the event of an emergency.

SECTION 2. Twenty-five percent of the members registered and attending the annual convention shall constitute a quorum at the annual meeting. Three officers and five members shall constitute a quorum at Board of Directors' meetings.

A two-thirds vote of the members present and voting at the annual meeting shall be necessary to authorize any change of these bylaws, previous notice having been published in The Dixie News, at least 30 days prior to the meeting.

Standing rules may be amended at the annual meeting by a majority vote of members present and voting, provided notice of the proposed amendment was given at the previous annual meeting or submitted to the president in time to be published in an issue of The Dixie News before the next annual meeting, or they may be amended without notice by a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting at an annual meeting.

Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the deliberations of this Society in all cases not provided for in these Bylaws or in the Standing Rules.

The properties and assets of this nonprofit society are irrevocably dedicated to public or charitable purposes. No part of the net earnings, properties or assets of Dixie African Violet Society, on dissolution or otherwise, shall inure to the benefit of any individual or private person or any member, officer or director of this society. On liquidation or dissolution all properties and assets and obligations shall be distributed and paid over to one or more organizations which is and continues to be recognized as an exempt organization as specified in Internal Revenue Code Section 501C-5.

1. Minutes of the Board of Directors meetings will not be read at the annual meeting, only recommendations.

A. The recording secretary shall provide the editor of The Dixie News with a summary of the minutes of the annual business meeting for publication in The Dixie News.

2. Commercial members will be listed in a separate column of The Dixie News at no extra cost to them.

3. DAVS will advance each convention the amount of $200 to be repaid out of receipts (registration fees, commercial fees, etc.). In the event these aforementioned revenues do not meet the $200 advance, DAVS will assume the difference. The net profit will be divided equally between DAVS and the host club.

4. At all conventions shows, exhibitors and judges must be DAVS members registered at the convention. Commercial members requesting a display table must be from those states listed in Bylaws ARTICLE I, SECTION 2.

5. Any person registering at a Dixie African Violet Society convention must be a member in good standing of DAVS.

6. Judging school and/or arrangement courses will be held at the annual convention-show ONLY if 10 members apply for either or both three months in advance of the convention date. Those taking the judging school need not be DAVS members registered at the convention, but must be current AVSA members.

7. Registration fee for the annual convention-show is $45.00 per person. A late fee of $15.00 will be charged after registration deadline. Hosting group will determine deadline date.

8. A Dixie Hybridized Registration Committee, to be appointed by DAVS president, shall handle registration of plants hybridized in the DAVS area. A fee of $1.00 per plant registered will be charged for this service.

9. DAVS will offer a $10.00 cash award to the member of host club who exhibits the best Dixie hybridized African violet in the annual convention-show.

10. A one-half page order blank for Dixie Silver and Blue Rosettes will be included in the Winter issue of The Dixie News.

11. An expense account, not to exceed $50.00 per year, is established by DAVS to cover miscellaneous expenses in connection with the office of the president.

12. The host club shall provide adequate space to commercial members selling plants and/or supplies at each convention. The chairman of the Commercial Division shall assess the commercial members selling at said convention $30.00 per table space until such time as the said fee shall warrant change. This fee shall be forwarded to the convention treasurer to be used to help cover convention expenses at each year's convention, reporting final accounting to the DAVS treasurer.

13. The president shall be given a president's pin at installation to be worn during tenure of office and presented to the newly elected president. The outgoing president, upon completion of a two-year term, will be given a past-president's pin and an honorary life membership in DAVS, or a gift not to exceed $50.00

14. At each convention the Dixie African Violet Society shall award $10.00 to the State Director who enrolls the most new members for the Dixie African Violet Society between conventions.

15. At each convention the Dixie African Violet Society shall award $10.00 to the member, other than a State Director, who enrolls the most new members for the Dixie African Violet Society between conventions.

16. Dues:

A. Annual dues for individual membership shall be twelve dollars ($15).

B. Annual dues for affiliate club membership shall be fourteen dollars ($20).

C. Annual dues for commercial membership shall be nineteen dollars ($25). Commercial dues shall be due and payable on February 1 each year.

D. Individual life membership fee shall be one hundred and fifty dollars ($175).

E. Two individual members residing at the same address may elect dual membership and receive one copy of each magazine for annual dues of fourteen dollars ($20).

F. International dues will be twenty dollars ($30).

17. DAVS affiliates shall submit a $10.00 check, payable to DAVS, to cover shipping and handling fees for both DAVS Collection Awards. A copy of the show schedule, specifying a separate DAVS standard collection class and a separate DAVS miniature/semiminiature collection class, must accompany the request.

18. A Membership Secretary shall be appointed by the DAVS President to be responsible for maintaining a current list of members, sending out renewal notices, and preparing the mailing list for The Dixie News.

19. DAVS will offer a $50 award for the Best Standard DAVS Collection and a $50 award for the Best Semiminiature/Miniature DAVS Collection. DAVS will also offer a $25 award for the Second Best Standard DAVS Collection and a $25 award for the Second Best Semiminiature/Miniature DAVS Collection entered in the DAVS Convention Show.