SAMPLE INFORMATIONAL LETTER FOR NEW ELECTED HOA BOARD MEMBERS
Date
Ms. Elected Perso
n
1
23 Any Street
Anytown, Illinois
RE: Welcome New Board Member
Dear Insert Person’s Name and HOA Board Office (if applicable):
C
ongratulations on your recent election to the Board of Directors of the OUR Lodge Association, Inc.
We appreciate your willingness to serve.
It has been my custom as the general manager of the OUR Lodge, to acquaint new members of the
Board with the basic duties they have to discharge in this important responsibility. I have humbly
called this the “Top Ten Duties of a Board Member.” Although there are many more duties than
these ten, they represent the ones that keep raising their heads over the years, in meetings and
o
perations of the association. Familiarity with these will go a long way in helping you carry out
e
ffective Board serv ce.
i
Duty Number One: Know the documents that govern our non‐profit corporation. They include the
condominium documents (“condo docs”), which include the Articles of Incorporation and the
bylaws of the association, and the rules and regulations. We are enclosing our updated printing of
t
his booklet and a CD version, for your reference. The law charges directors with knowledge of
t
hese documents and
they ar
e often a key resource to
Board discussion and analysis of issues.
Duty Number Two: Plan to attend all board meetings. This is perhaps the most important element
in discharging your duty of care to the association (see also Duty Number Three, below). Although
our by‐laws do permit attendance by teleconference, we strongly urge that you attend in person, if
at all possible. Meetings dates and times are polled to the Board members, to attempt the best
result that fits everyone’s schedules. Meetings are called approximately in January/February (our
winter meeting), March/April – in conjunction with the ARDA Convention, by teleconference in July,
and in October – combined with the owners annual meeting. You will receive written notice of all
meetings. Meetings are held in various locations and states. If you are not able to attend a particular
meeting, please let us know. Proxies cannot be used at the board meetings, so we need at least four
o
f the seven directors to be personally present or attending by telephone, in order to achieve a
q
uorum and conduct t
he meeting.
Duty Number Three: The law imposes on directors of non‐profit associations a standard of care
similar to that of directors of a for‐profit corporation, and you have both a duty of care and a duty of
loyalty in your role as a director. Get informed on the matters on the agenda. You can generally rely
on reports from committees of the association or from retained professionals. You must always
exercise your independent judgment. Don’t be afraid to speak out on any issue. That is why we have
seven directors, thus assuring that decisions are at least by majority vote.
Duty Number Four: Act always in good faith and make sure the decisions you make are in the best
interests of the Association, which is our common constituency. We were all elected by the
members, and we owe our duty of care and loyalty to them, not to the Board. If you have a conflict of
interest, make sure it is disclosed to the Board in advance of discussion on an issue. Remember, a
conflict of interest occurs when you or a family member has a material personal interest in the
outcome of a vote. The most common conflicts are financial. Our bylaws prohibit board members