By Linda Patten, D57 Finance Manager
Question: How can clubs spend the money they would usually use to pay for meeting room rentals and food / beverage? One idea was to create a new membership promotion by offering a green screen for a limited number of new members. The cost is $20 (to $50) each. Would this be an acceptable way to use club funds?
Answer: I would change who gets them. I would have a membership drive / contest for the members of your club. You can “win” a green screen for the most new members joining the club in a specific period of time. Something else that could be a good prize would be books like Talk Like TED: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds or something like that. As a speaker gift, I have received some really cool masks too. I personally gave a chocolate thank you gift to my guidance committee and other key people on my team.
Question: Can you use the funds to participate/donate to other charities (e.g. as a teambuilding event)? Could you use the funds to host an educational event for club members (e.g. external expert)?
Answer: Unfortunately, you can’t use the funds for supporting a charity. Here is what the policy says:
Unauthorized uses include:
- Donation of money or goods:
- to outside causes or individuals
- to individuals at any level of the Toastmasters organization
- You can however, provide
- Donations to the Ralph C. Smedley Memorial Fund
- You can use the funds for educational /administrative materials for club/member use. However, under no circumstances will a district pay for speaker fees. This would be true at the club level as well. This is covered in the SPEAKER/PRODUCT SALES AGREEMENT
The following examples are representative of non-routine expenses, but are not all-inclusive.
Category | Limit |
Tokens of Appreciation |
|
Expressions of Sympathy |
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Incentives |
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District Finance is in the process of filming three coffee chats with Michelle Peticolas, Chris Scrivani and myself. The series will cover opening a bank account, how to accept money, and of course, Concur.