Reminder: Annual General Meeting

Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the upcoming Annual General Meeting. Please join us on at 4pm on Saturday, November 30, 2013 at 11321-166a St, Edmonton, AB.

Agenda:

  • Call to order
    • Minutes from Previous AGM and Oct 20 By-law Special Meeting
  • Old Business
    • Reports of Committees in General
  • New Business
    • Presentation of financial report
    • Committees
    • Serenity screening
    • Election of Board of Directors

We will be electing the 2014 Board of Directors at the AGM. Interested members may self-nominate via email using their registered member email address between October 21 and November 22, 2013. The board may contain up to 7 members.

To be eligible to be elected to the Board as a Director a person must have served at least one year as a member in good standing.

2014 Memberships will be available for purchase at the meeting.

By-laws, AGM and knitting notes

By-law Special Meeting Results
On October 20, 2013 our membership voted unanimously to accept the new by-laws. The new by-laws will be filed with the Province of Alberta this week.

Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Board Member Elections
In addition, we set the date for the Annual General Meeting (AGM). Please join us on at 4pm on Saturday, November 30, 2013 at 11321-166a St, Edmonton, AB. A meeting agenda will be emailed to all members and posted on this website in the coming weeks.

Among other agenda items, we will be selecting the 2014 Board of Directors at the AGM. Interested members may self-nominate via email using their registered member email address between October 21 and November 22, 2013. The board may contain up to 7 members.

Potential board members must:

  1. Be a 2013 general member in good standing.
  2. Consent to having their name and address appear in public Government of Alberta documents (Corporate Registry Database) and on our website
  3. Attend 4-6 Board meetings in addition to any general meetings.
  4. Actively participate in a minimum of one committee or extra duty.
  5. Commit to and complete a minimum of 24 volunteer hours with ABS.

Please note: This election is for general board members. Executive positions (Chair, Vice-Chair and Secretary/Treasurer) on the board are determined by the elected board members at a future board meeting.

All members, 18 years of age or older, in good standing as of November 22, 2013 will be eligible to put their name forward for a position on the board of directors. Members wishing to be elected to the Board of Directors must be present at the AGM.

A member is elected to the Board of Directors when they put their name forward for nomination and receive sufficient votes on the ballot from the general membership in an election vote held during the AGM .  In the case of a tie, a secondary vote may be held until a minimum of 6 positions on the Board of Directors are filled.

Registered members who live in Edmonton and surrounding area must be present to vote at the AGM.

Registered members who do not live within 100 kms of Edmonton, as indicated in our member database, may record their vote on any agenda item via email using their registered member email address between November 23 – 29, 2013. Eligible in-absentia voters should indicate which agenda item they are voting on (use agenda item number), along with their choices, in the body of their message

We are currently working on a method for out of town members to dial into the meeting via internet based calling service. Details will be posted once testing is complete.

Special thanks to Leavitt Machinery General Partnership for use of their space for the Special Meeting and AGM.

Knitting Projects – Donation Drop-offs
We will be collecting poppies for the Valour Place Poppy Project and knit items for the Bissell Centre at The Carrot Community Arts Coffee House (9351-118 Avenue, Edmonton, AB) on the following date:

  • Saturday, October 26 from 11:30am – 2pm

October Knitting Projects

We’ve been knitting a certain toque for a few years now. At nearly every convention we attend it been a popular seller. In fact, it’s been one of our largest fundraisers over the past 3 years. Now that Edmonton Expo is over and Calgary Expo is still many months away, we’d like to take a quick break from yea auld pattern and participate in other knitting projects with a big community impact.

For the month of October, we’re asking the members of the Alberta Browncoats Society knitting group – and anyone else in the community who wants to participate – to join in our upcoming projects.

Bissell Centre
The Bissell Centre works in the community to empower people to move from poverty to prosperity. We enable people to meet their own basic daily needs, participate in community, have sustainable livelihoods, feel hope for the future and make plans for a prosperous life. Winter is coming. Let’s try to make it a little warmer for their clients and member of the community.  We’ll be making/collecting the following hand knit items:

  • Children’s hats, mittens and scarves
  • Adult hats, mittens and scarves
  • Baby blankets
  • Single-bed sized blankets

Note: The Bissell Centre distributes children’s items and blankets directly to clients through their programs. Adult sized items are provided to inner-city schools for distribution to parents in need.

Valour Place Poppy Project (#knitmonton)
#knitmonton is looking for poppies for a yarn art installation at Valour Place in Edmonton. Valour Place is a temporary home-away-from-home for Canadian Forces members, families of the Fallen, Veterans and RCMP, along with their families, when medical treatment is required in Edmonton. Please visit their website for complete details. Suggested poppy patterns are available here and here. Poppies may be knit or crochet in any size. Requirements are the poppies be created in washable yarns and contain 4 red petals with black centres.

Drop Off Details:
We will be collecting poppies for the Valour Place Poppy Project and knit items for the Bissell Centre at The Carrot Community Arts Coffee House (9351-118 Avenue, Edmonton, AB) on the following dates:

  • Wednesday, October 9 from 6:30 – 9pm
  • Wednesday, October 23 from 6:30 – 9pm
  • Saturday, October 26 from 11:30am – 2pm

If you don’t have a pattern handy, a number of great patterns can be found for free online. You can visit Ravelry, Canadian Living’s free knitting patterns and the Free Vintage Knitting website for some great ideas.

Can’t, or don’t want to knit, but still want to help? We’re always looking for donations of yarn (or funds to buy yarn). Contact us to discuss the details of your donation.

October 20: Special Meeting – By-law Review

On October 20, 2013 at 2pm we will be holding a special meeting at 11321-166a St, Edmonton, AB. The purpose of this meeting is to vote on proposed changes to our society’s by-laws. When we were founded in 2009 we accepted the Government of Alberta’s generic by-laws document. In 2013, we struck a committee to review the existing by-laws in order to add additional clarity around the way the society is organized and the rules surrounding all of our activities. This review has been completed using the Government of Alberta’s Special Resolution Bylaw’s Checklist (pdf) as a guide.

The existing (pdf) and proposed (pdf) by-laws have been publicly posted. Please review these documents in advance and come prepared with any questions. Copies will also be available at the meeting.

All members, 18 years of age or older, in good standing as of September 11, 2013 will be eligible to vote on the proposed by-laws. As this is a special meeting, you must be present to vote if your registered mailing address includes Edmonton and surrounding area.

Registered members who do not live within 100 kms of Edmonton, as indicated in our member database, may record their vote via email using their registered member email address between October 14 – 19, 2013. Eligible in-absentia voters should indicate “YAY” to accept the new by-laws or “NAY” to reject them.

Special thanks to Leavitt Machinery General Partnership for use of their space for the meeting.

Browncoats Return to the Range – Sept 21

Ever wanted to play cowboy or shoot not-so-shiny black guns? Now you can. We’re returning to Genesee range for a fun & safe day of “competitive” shooting. Instruction can be provided.

You can run through to course of fire as often as they wish (until the ammo runs out). The course of fire usually includes Hog Leg (revolver), Saddle Gun (lever rifle) & alley sweeper (shot gun) at various reactive targets at varying distances.

Start time: 9 am.

Fees:

  • Range Insurance Fee: $10. This is a mandatory insurance fee that must be paid to the CHAS representative when you sign in to the event.
  • Competition Fee: Both the Cowboy Action and 3Gun shoots are “competitions”. Don’t worry, you don’t have to be experienced to participate. There will be entry fees to participate above and beyond the range’s mandatory insurance fee. Expect to pay $15-20 per course of fire.
  • Ammunition Fees: There will be a pay-per-use fee on ammunition. This will be based on which guns you choose and how many times you run through the course of fire. Estimated costs for ammunition will be $10 per course of fire. Please bring sufficient cash to cover your ammo costs.

Additional Info:

  • Range Behaviour: For this shindig we will be the guests of one of our main sponsors, CHAS. The members of CHAS have sponsored the AB Browncoats since the beginning of our endeavours. Please respect the rules and regulations of their range. ONLY authorized targets are allowed to be shot. If you are caught shooting other than authorized targets or behaving in a dangerous manner you will be required to leave the range.
  • Personal Weapons: Registered gun owners with the proper transit permits may bring their own weapons and ammunition to the range. Please respect any limits that the CHAS representatives place on the use of their range.
    • Existing CHAS members may bring any weapons and ammunition that meets their CHAS range requirements.

Bring:

  • Cash & Coins. CHAS does not have a portable debit machine at the range. The insurance and ammo fees will need to be paid in shiny monies. If possible, bring smaller bills. Change may be scarce. The Insurance fee is $10 and is collected separately from the ammo fees and competition fees. In short, it’s best to bring smaller bills than larger ones as fees are paid to different groups.
  • Camp Chair. Due to the flooding a few months back, previously existing benches and picnic tables have gone walkabout, were destroyed, or were damaged to the point where they are unsafe to use. It’s best to bring a camp chair to sit on when you get tired; you’ll be eating at your chair as well.
  • Food & Water. We’ll have some water on hand, but if you’re the type to drink 3L in an afternoon, it’s best to have some extra bottles with you. We will not be supplying food. Bring a lunch and some snacks to keep you going.
  • Bug Spray. You’ll be out in the back of beyond. Bugs will likely appear. If you don’t want to be eaten alive, bring your favourite brand of bug spray.
  • Sun Screen (& hats). It may get hot.
  • Umbrella. Or drizzle.
  • Appropriate Clothing: Keep in mind that you’ll be shooting outdoors at a range and that brass for bullet’s (once shot) can be very warm. Do not wear a low neck or v-neck shirt; Ladies, this means you! Ensure to wear closed toed shoes. Sneakers are fine.

Map & Driving Directions to Genesee Range

Please Note:

This is an open, public shoot. It will be run differently than the closed Browncoat Range Day event in August that was organized by members of CHAS. Fees are set by the event organizers and may be charged on a pay-per-use (e.g. every time you go through the course, should you choose to repeat it) basis. Shooting order will be set up the 3 Gun and Cowboy Action shoot organizers.

As with our previous day at the range, some of our generous fellow Browncoats have offered to allow us to use their personal weapons under their supervision. We will need an estimated number of individuals and whether or not you plan to shoot in the 3 Gun or Cowboy Action events so they bring sufficient guns for us to share.