MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY
— Founded 19 April 1889 —

SONS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION

Governance

Submitted by admin on Fri, 03/19/2010 - 22:39
Our state society elects a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, registrar, chancellor, and chaplain from its active membership, and appoints additional officers such as parliamentarian, surgeon, genealogist, historian and sergeant-at-arms. In addition to these officials, we nominate a national trustee and an alternate trustee who are confirmed by the Annual Congress of the National Society. These officers are joined with our chapter presidents and others within our Board of Managers, the governing body of the organization. The duties of our officers are similar to those of their counterparts in other organizations, in accordance with our bylaws.

State Officers for 2010-2011

The state officers of the Massachusetts Society for 2010-2011 are:

RoleOfficer
PresidentWilliam E. Battles, III
First Vice PresidentPeter S. Benton
Vice PresidentsChristopher E. Mellen, Richard F. Orluk
Alternate National TrusteeMichael E. Fishbein
Assistant ChancellorHenry Curtis II
Assistant CuratorPeter S. Benton
Assistant LibrarianBeth Kauczka (non voting)
Assistant SecretaryGeorge A. Lewis III
Assistant TreasurerJames C. Lundy
AuditorPeter S. Benton
Awards and MedalsMichael E. Fishbein
Chancellor JudgeJoseph J. Reardon
ChaplinRaymond F. Fleck
Color Guard CommanderLee David Day
CuratorClarence J. Williams
EditorNorman E. Wheeler
HistorianWilliam E. Battles, III
LibrarianPeter S. Benton
MASSAR TrusteesMichael E. Fishbein, Jay E. Bailey, Stephen B. Jeffries
Marketing and CommunicationDouglas F. Dell
MarshalRichard F. Orluk
National TrusteeRichard R.Stanley
ParliamentarianHenry Curtis, II
Recording SecretaryJames M. Mitchell
Registrar / GenealogistBrian M. Thomson
SecretaryWilliam E. Battles, III
SurgeonJoseph L. Andrews, MD
TreasurerDavid Bowie

Some of the duties of the elected officers are:

  • The President of a state society fulfills the customary duties of the office and supervises the affairs of the state society.

  • The Secretary has charge of the records of the state society, gives notice of all meetings and keeps an accurate written record of the proceedings of meetings. He signs all application papers.

  • The Treasurer has custody of the funds of the state society and is responsible for the collection and transmittal of membership dues to the National Society, as specified in the bylaws of the National Society.

  • The Registrar examines all applications for membership and approves them, if found acceptable, before submitting them to National Headquarters for final approval and registration. A duplicate copy of each application is retained by the state registrar for the archives of his state society.

  • The Chancellor is an attorney-at-law, who gives opinions on legal matters affecting the society when such questions are referred to him by the proper officers.

  • The Chaplain, an ordained clergyman, gives the invocation and benediction at state society meetings and ceremonies, and furnishes the membership with spiritual guidance. He conducts any religious service that occurs at state functions.

Board of Managers

The Board of Managers is the governing body of the society. It consists of all the officers above, chapter presidents, and additional members appointed from the membership. Appointed members serve three year terms. The terms are staggered so that the board maintains continuity.

The following appointed members are serving terms which expire in 2010-2012:

201120122013
Daniel W. Kraft
David W. Lambert
Allan D. Van Wert
Donn. R. Heath
James O. Garrison
James K. Nurse
Fr. Vincent E. Daily
Mark Pommrehn
T. William Ryerson
Eric R. Dahlberg
John A. Cunningham
William W. Storff
Stephen L. Watts
Corwin A. Brown
Marshall Stocker

Committees of the Society

The committees serve in support of the Board of Managers, either directly for the board or by implementing one of the initiatives of the National Society locally. The members of each committee appear here .

  • Awards Memorials and Markers (National Program)
  • Committee on Chapters
  • Color Guard (National Program)
  • Communication and Information Technology
  • Eagle Scout Award (National Program)
  • Essay & Oration Contests (National Program)
  • Finance Committee
  • House Committee
  • MASSAR Militia
  • Membership Committee
  • Nominating Committee
  • Publications and Printing
  • Recruiting and Volunteers
  • Security
  • Training