The GCOMMUNICATOR - August 2004 Edition 
Newsletter for gamers issued by Games Club Of Maryland
 
GCOM Board Elections Announcement
 
To all GCOM Members,
The Election meeting of all GCOM Board Members will take place on Sunday December 5th, 2004 at 7PM at GCOM Reisterstown.
 
The Election of GCOM Board Members takes place every two years.  All GCOM Supporting members are eligible
to run for any or all Board postions.  The election procedures and methods are detailed in the GCOM Bylaws, and the section regarding elections is copied below for your review. Only GCOM Patron or Supporting Members are eligible to run for a Board Position. 
All Board Postions are open for new or returning Supporting Members to fill them.   Article V-"Board Members and their Duties" is copied below for your review.  By expressing your interest in running for a GCOM Board position you are agreeing to abide by
ALL bylaws set by the GCOM Board of Directors.  You must devote a significant amount of your personal time and energy in order to fufill the required duties of a Board Member, including frequent participation in e-mail discussions and face to face meetings.  All Board postions require a two year term of service. 
 
Steps to take if you wish to run for a GCOM Board position.
1. You must ensure that your Supporting Member status is current or purchase a Supporting Membership.
Go to  http://www.gamesclubofmd.org/memberlist.asp  and click on Supporting Membership for details.
2. Express you desire to become a GCOM Board Member to a fellow GCOM Supporting Member and to Keith Levy at gcom@gamesclubofmd.org . 
3. You must be nominated to the Board by a fellow GCOM Supporting Member or you may seek a nomination from a current Board member or by e-mailing Keith Levy at gcom@gamesclubofmd.org . 
4. Upon your acceptance of the nomination you must submit a list of ALL Board Positions that you wish to run for and fill if elected to the current GCOM Secretary, Eric Haas at erichaas@comcast.net .
5. Nominees are encouraged to submit a written statement not to exceed 300 words to accompany your submission for a Board position(s).  Any statement that you choose to make will be made available to all GCOM members, so that they may ascertain your qualifcations for a position on the GCOM Board of Directors.
 
***The Deadline for nominees to submit there list of Board positions and thier written statement is October 15th, 2004.
Ballots will be made available at GCOM locations, in printable form on the website, and at the Election Meeting. Once completed they may be mailed to the GCOM Secretary, given to your location host (who will mail them to the Secretary), or turned in at the Election Meeting on Sunday, December 5th, 2004.
 
Keith Levy, GCOM President
 
============================================ 
 
ARTICLE V - Board Members and their Duties

The officers shall be the President, the Vice-president, the secretary, and the treasurer.

  1. The President shall:

    1. preside at all business meetings of the Board of Directors,
    2. recommend appointment of chairpersons and committees,
    3. represent GCOM in matters of importance to GCOM,
    4. authorize special expenditures of GCOM for operation of GCOM and in keeping with the resolutions of the Board of Directors and its budget, and
    5. prepare agendas and communicate with the members of the board.

  2. The Vice-President shall:

    1. serve as acting President, Secretary and Treasurer to the maximum extent possible when any of those officers are temporarily unable to serve,
    2. assist the President in any presidential duty as requested by the President,
    3. automatically assume the office of President in the event that office is vacated.

  3. The Secretary shall:

    1. keep a record of all GCOM meetings and other Board activities, and facilitate communications with member,
    2. prepare a ballot to be provided to the membership in accordance with the stipulations in Article VI (Elections),
    3. record duly enacted changes to these by-laws,
    4. provide each Board member with a copy of the minutes of each meeting,
    5. provide each GCOM member with a current copy of GCOM's bylaws upon request, and
    6. maintain membership records.

  4. The Treasurer shall:

    1. establish account(s), bank or otherwise, of GCOM, as approved by the Board,
    2. establish procedures for the depositing of funds and the maintenance of GCOM properties,
    3. receive and disburse all funds of GCOM as authorized by the Board of Directors whether authorized individually or as part of a budget,
    4. maintain a record of all financial transactions, make all financial records available to all Board Members, and provide a financial report at every meeting in such detail and form as approved by the Board.
    5. provide additional financial reports as directed by the Board or as required by law.

  5. All Officers and Directors at Large shall:

    1. be present at all Board Meetings, discuss present matters and vote their consciences in accordance with the best interests of GCOM.
    2. be reponsible for assisting with duties, promotions and tasks to further the causes of GCOM.


ARTICLE VI - Election of Board Members

  1. Elections shall be held every even numbered year during an Election Meeting scheduled between November 1st and December 15th . The day of the Election Meeting in which elections are held shall be known as Election Day. The Board shall schedule Election Day at least 30 days in advance.
  2. Any Supporting Member may be nominated to the Board by any other Supporting Member. Upon accepting the nomination, each nominee shall submit to the Secretary a list of Board positions for which he or she is running. If running for multiple positions, the candidate shall list the positions from most to least desired. All nominations must be submitted to the Secretary not less than 30 days prior to Election Day. Nominees may include written statements, not to exceed 300 words, along with this submission.
  3. The method of election shall be the "Approval Method", whereby voters shall indicate approval or disapproval for each candidate of every board position.
  4. A suitable ballot shall be made available to the membership not less than 30 days before Election Day. The ballot design must ensure confidentiality, such that individual voter preference is concealed, and security so that only qualified voters are able to submit ballots, and that qualified voters can submit only one ballot.
  5. The ballot shall provide instructions for return to the Secretary prior to the Final Call for ballots during the Annual Meeting on Election Day. All ballots returned to the Secretary shall remain sealed until after the Final Call for ballots, at which time they shall all be unsealed and counted.
  6. In the order of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Directors at Large, the Board positions are evaluated as follows:

    1. If the candidate winning the highest approval count for the office has not won any other office, the candidate shall be awarded that office.
    2. If the candidate winning the highest approval count for the office has also won the highest approval count for any other office, that candidate shall be awarded the won office listed highest on the list previously submitted to the Secretary as per section 2.
    3. In the event two or more candidates are tied for a single office, the winner shall be determined by having a die rolled for each tying candidate in view of all attendees at the Annual Meeting. The candidate credited with the higher value shall be considered the winner of the highest approval count for that office. Ties shall not be resolved until the disposition of one of the involved candidates is being considered.
    4. If the candidate winning the most votes for an office has been previously awarded a different office, that candidate shall be disqualified from that office, and the next highest vote winner shall be considered the candidate winning the most votes for the office.
    5. The award process shall be repeated for each office until it is awarded to a candidate.
    6. In the case of Directors at Large, candidates (the number of which correspond to the number of available positions) with the highest approval counts shall be awarded the office.

  7. Preexisting officers shall retain their positions on the Board until 12:01 AM of the first day of the first day of January, at which time the newly elected Board Members shall assume office.
  8. Any vacant Board position except president shall be filled by appointment approved by a simple majority vote of the Board. The appointee must be a Supporting Member and be willing to accept the appointment. Such appointments shall take effect immediately upon appointment and acceptance.
 
New GCOM Location: Germantown.
 
GCOM Germantown.  Host:  David Fair. E-mail: dafair@bellatlantic.net
Cell #: 240-832-3820.  Co-Host: Bob Jones E-mail:  RCRBJones@aol.com
Phone#: 301-916-4023. Borders Bookstores, Milestone Center,  20926 Frederick
Rd. Germantown, MD. 20874. Store Phone: 301-528-0862.
Sessions Schedule: First, Third, and Fifth Monday evenings from 6PM to10pm.
First Offical GCOM session: Monday 10/04/2004.
Upcoming Schedule: 10/04, 10/18, 11/01,  11/15, 11/29, 12/06, 12/20.

Directions: Take I-270 to the Father Hurley Blvd exit (#16) towards
MD-27/Damascus.   After the first light, move into the right turn lane and
turn into the  Milestone Center parking lot. Take an immediate left. Park in the lot
ahead;  Borders is on your right. Gaming will take place in the Borders Café area.
 
 
New GCOM Discussion Forum
 
http://Forums.gamesclubofmd.org is up and running
 
What is http://Forums.gamesclubofmd.org ??
 
Our webmaster, JP Roberts has implemented an open source forums product called “Yet Another Forum”, YAF for short. 
You have to register yourself.  Please use the same info (both username and password) as your current GCOM login, so I’ll know it’s really you.  If you don’t have a current GCOM login, use whatever email address you received this message on.
 
I already have forums set up for the GCOM Board (private), Euro Quest (public and private), Game Days (public and private), and a couple others.  The public ones are readable by everyone; the private ones are only available by an admin granting permission (I will do so as soon as I can after I see your username registered).  If at any point you can see or do something you probably shouldn’t be able to see or do, drop me a line (I think I have all of the necessary security set up correctly!)
 
GCOM Webmaster, JP Roberts, webmaster@gamesclubofmd.org

New GCOM Supporting Membership - Discounted Level

Effective immediatly. All GCOM members age seventeen-17 and under are eligible to become a GCOM Supporting Member for a Ten Dollar-$10 annual fee. Go to http://www.gamesclubofmd.org/memberlist.asp for complete Supporting Membership detials.

Supporting Membership is an OPTIONAL level of annual membership open to all GCOM members.
Current GCOM members who pay the yearly dues of $20 become Supporting Members.
The $20 covers Supporting Membership for one Calendar Year.

All Supporting Memberships are valid for one year from the date of purchase.
Your money goes towards helping GCOM exist, thrive and grow.
Some GCOM operating expenses are: -Website -Advertising -Flyers -Operating supplies (such as paper, copies, files ect.) - Seed money for GCOM conventions & products.
Help support the Hobby you enjoy!
The additional benefits to becoming a Supporting Member are:
1. A standing discount of $5 for each GCOM event where a fee is charged. This includes Game Days and Euro Quest. 2. One order of Free GCOM business cards. (For more details click on services on the GCOM website )
3. Discounts on GCOM merchandise. (See website for details)
4. Ability to run for office to serve on the GCOM Board of Directors.
5. Voting rights on matters the board puts forth to supporting members.
6. Ability to recommend new GCOM locations and host.
7. Ability to be on a GCOM committee.
8. Invitations to GCOM Board of Director meetings.
9. As a Supporting member you have been given access to GCOM website to do the following.
 including additional GCOM website access to:  Add/Edit a Link and Add/Edit an Event(limited to special events). 
REMINDER: 2003 Memberships expired on December 31, 2003, so if you want to renew
your membership for 2004, please send us your membership fee as soon as possible. 
*Don't forget that ONLY Supporting Members in 2004 will be able to VOTE for the new GCOM Board of Directors in November.**  Associate Members will not be allowed to vote, as they were allowed to in 2002.

Euro Quest GMs Wanted

All GCOM Supporting Members and All BPA Members are eligable to GM tournaments at EQ.
Main GMs and multiple assistant GMs are still needed for several main events.
Main GMs are needed most of the current list of Wild Card events.
Deadline to Volunteer: September 30, 2004.

Main Events- [Coordinator: Mark Guttag]
1. Puerto Rico- GM: John Weber
2. Carcassonne Combo - GM: JP Roberts III
3. Princes of Florence- GM:Dan Hoffman
4. Settlers Combo (Including Catan, Stone Age)- GM: Scott Buckwalter
5. Medici-GM: Danial Broh-Kahn
6. Tikal-GM: Arthur Field, Assistant 1: Dan Hoffman.
7. Ra- GM: Michelle Goldstien
8. Euphrat & Tigris- GM needed.
9. Alhambra - GM needed.
10. Goa: GM: David Fair
Hot New Game: Ticket to Ride: Tom McCorry
 
Wild Card Events [Coordinators: John Weber & Stan Hilinski]
Ten titles chosen so far. Five more titles will be added.
1. Amun Re- 
2. Attika
3. Lost Cities- 
4. Power Grid-
5. San Juan-
6. St. Petersberg-
7. Transamerica- GM: Michelle Hymowitz
8. Traumfabrik 
9. Taj Mahal -GM: Brian Stallings
10. Union Pacific - GM: JP Roberts Jr.
 
For Complete Details Contact:
Keith Levy       gcom@gamesclubofmd.org
Mark Guttag    mguttag@erols.com
John Weber     jcw222@earthlink.net
Scott Buckwalter  sbuckwalter@comcast.net
Stan Hilinski      stan@hilinski.net
 
E-mail Change
The main Games Club e-mail adress has changed to gcom@gamesclubofmd.org
All e-mail sent to this address will be recieved by the GCOM Presidient, Keith Levy.
 
All E-mail sent out by GCOM Presidient, Keith Levy will be from a Verizion ISP.
The E-mail address being sent from is gamesclubofmd@verizon.net
 
The e-mail adress gamesclubofmd@comcast.net will be closed in Early September.
 
 
2005 GCOM Event Preview 
 
Game Days 2005
April 14th-17th, 2005
Days Hotel
9615 Deerco Road 
Timonium, MD.
 
GCOM Family Picnic
Sunday, July 10th, 2005.
Centennial Park
10000 Route 108
Ellicott City, MD 21043
 
Stay tuned to the GCOM website at http://www.gamesclubofmd.org
for more details on these and other GCOM events as they become available.
Have Fun, Learn, Share, Grow, Play
Keith