How to Join the USNMC
You are cordially invited to take a step in the right direction and start your journey as an Associate Member of the United States Neapolitan Mastiff club today! The cost of Associate Membership is $35 and it currently includes quarterly issues of the Neogram, which is the official magazine of the Neapolitan Mastiff, which will further your interest in the Neapolitan Mastiff. Also, you will receive discounts (when applicable) for Neapolitan Mastiff-related merchandise sold at our up-and-coming web store as well as our Ways and Means table at the National Specialty, along with the opportunity to network with our great members throughout the entire United States! (Please note that you will need the sponsorship of one (1) Full Member in good standing in the USNMC who knows you. Also, Associate Members do not have voting privileges at this level).
After you have served one (1) year as an Associate Member, you may apply to the USNMC for Full Membership (with the sponsorship of two (2) Full Members in good standing in the USNMC who know you). Full membership includes all of the benefits of Associate Membership INCLUDING the right to vote in USNMC general and special elections!
We encourage you to join the USNMC so that you can learn more about the Neapolitan Mastiff and represent your priorities in the protection of our breed which will ultimately lead to the betterment of the USNMC!
Membership Procedures
Revised by the Board at the December, 1999 meeting.
Revised again by the Board of Directors at the May, 2003 Meeting
Amended in 2005 to reflect the 2005 bylaws.
Processing Membership Applications
The Membership form is received by the Treasurer, who records the receipt of the payment and deposits the payment.
As soon as payment has cleared (we give the bank approximately a week) the treasurer forwards the form to the Secretary for further processing and for record-keeping in the club archives.
Initial Processing For Membership Applicants
The Secretary records the applicant on the database.
If the applicant is new to the database, their current status is given as "Associater" and they are noted to be an Applicant for Associate Membership.
If the applicant is already an Associate Member, their current status remains Associate and they are noted to be an Applicant for Full membership.
A packet is sent to brand-new applicants acknowledging receipt. Packet contains:
- Letter thanking them & explaining the membership approval process
- Club Constitution and Bylaws
- USNMC breed standard
- Information booklet
- Any back-issues of the Neogram already published this year
The purpose of sending the packet is to make sure new people realize that their form was received. Because of the process, and occasional delays, it can be up to eight - twelve - sixteen weeks between receipt of an application, publication of the Neogram, subsequent notification of the results of voting. The board wanted people to receive a "welcome" packet no less than 1-2 weeks after their form was received.
Reviewing Applicants - Voting For Members
(Per our Bylaws, the board of directors must vote on accepting applicants as members in a secret ballot. Because not all board members know all applicants, the following procedures have been established for this process) (modified as of the May, 2003 board meeting).
- By the deadline for submittal to the next issue of the Neogram, Secretary prints out a list of Applicants (name, state, type of applicant and name of sponsor(s)) and sends it to the editor of the Neogram
- The list of applicants is published in the Neogram, and all USNMC members are asked to provide feedback of any kind to the board members.
- Two weeks after publication of the Neogram, the Secretary sends to each board member a ballot asking them to vote on each applicant. The Secretary will also send copies of the entire membership application to the board members.
- Board members vote on accepting or not accepting applicants. They vote by writing on the form sent to them by the Secretary.. They send the original form, in a double-blind envelope, to the Secretary within two weeks of receiving the ballot or by faxing back to the Secretary. The Secretary tallies the returned ballots. A two-thirds affirmative vote of the returned ballots is necessary for an applicant to be accepted as a member. (Not returning a ballot is equivalent to abstaining).
- The Secretary updates the database indicating status of all applicants and sends a second letter to each applicant, either congratulating them, or reporting that they have not been accepted.
Applicants for Associate Status remain as Subscribers unless they ask for a refund of their membership fee. The fee is refunded on a pro-rated basis depending on how many Neograms were already mailed (unless, of course, they return them all!)
Applicants for Full membership Status remain as Associates unless they resign their membership by replying in writing that they no longer wish to be members of the USNMC. As a courtesy (this is not required by our bylaws) we have always refunded a pro-rated amount of the fee, depending on how many Neograms have already beeen sent out to that person that year.
Membership Renewal
These procedures are per our newest (2005) Bylaws.
In December of each year a notice in writing is sent by the Treasurer to every member reminding them that they need to renew their membership for the next year. All current year memberships are up for renewal, no matter when they became a member initially.
Members are supposed to renew by January 31 plus 30 days, which makes the "real" deadline for renewal March 2 (March 1 in Leap Years.)
The bylaws allows the board to give an additional 30 days, which we have always allowed, This means that if dues remain unpaid by April 1, the membership is considered expired.
Expired members who want to renew their membership must re-apply on a new membership form with the required sponsor(s).
Note: If someone just has a Subscription to the Neogram, this is NOT a membership, and they can let their subscription lapse, and can re-new it at any date or anytime in the year.
Chapter Club Membership
The 2005 Bylaws include a Membership for local clubs called the Chapter Club Membership.
A local club, approved by the AKC to hold B Matches, can apply to become a USNMC Chapter Club Member by filling out the Chapter Club Form and submitting it to the Board of Directors.
No sponsorship is required for a Local Club to become a Chapter Club Member.
Upon review of the Chapter Club Application, the Board of Directors can vote, via secret ballot just like voting for any member application, on the application. This vote can be part of the rest of the voting for members if that timeframe is convenient, or can be done separately.
Once a Local Club is a Chapter Club Member, that designated contact will be mailed all announcements and a Neogram in the club's name. When any item is brought up for membership voting, the chapter club designated contact will be mailed a ballot just like other members.
Chapter Club renewals must be done on the same timeframe as any other membership renewal.
Honorary Members
In late 1994 the Board of Directors established a status of 'honorary' member to recognize the contribution to the breed by individuals in the United States and elsewhere. These individuals get a free copy of the Neogram. They cannot vote in elections or take any office. When we set up the database, we used "H' for "Honorary" status to indicate anyone to whom we want to send a free Neogram. Several AKC people were later added as 'H' so that they will receive the Neogram
The following are currently listed on the database as "Honorary"
- Guiseppe Alessandra - Italy
- Antonio Di Lorenzo - Italy
- Juan-Mark DuPuis - France
- Guido Vandoni - Italy
- Walt Weisse - Germany
- AKC President
- AKC Library -
- Richard Meen - Canada