Duties of Past President

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The past president at any level of the League shall:

serve her council and president in a consultative capacity. She may advise and assist the president using her experience and expertise as a member of the council concerned.
be responsible for the archives and history of her council. If a public archives facility is used as a repository for items of historical value, the past president should identify all items in a catalogue format, retaining a copy for the council records. The history of a council is preserved through scrapbooks, photo albums and council minutes. The past president should be responsible for these important books, so members will have a permanent record of the work accomplished by their council.
facilitate and encourage the study and implementation of the Constitution & Bylaws.
The past president should encourage members to become knowledgeable about the Constitution & Bylaws and to conduct the affairs of the council accordingly. Any questions related to the interpretation of the Constitution & Bylaws shall be referred to the national past president..
forward to national office any proposed revisions to the National Manual of Policy and Procedure by December 1st of each year.
be aware that updated pages to the National Manual of Policy and Procedure are forwarded annually to presidents at all levels.
be prepared to assist the council in developing a parish council manual of policy and procedure if it does not have one or reviewing it annually if it does have one. The vice-president at the next level can provide assistance in developing or revising this document. (See appendix).
submit an annual report to the next level (parish to diocesan, diocesan to provincial, provincial to national), summarizing her activities for the year (see Guidelines for Reporting). A copy of her monthly and annual reports must be filed with the secretary.

Archives

Archives are important historical material from which information, inspiration and enthusiasm for the League may be derived. They also serve as permanent, lasting records of the achievements of the organization.
For the League, archives are the complete records of the organization―minutes, accounts, correspondence, Constitution & Bylaws, handbooks, manuals and all items used in the administrative work of the League.
The National Manual of Policy and Procedure, Appendix 5: Archives Guidelines for League History Provincial, Diocesan and Parish Councils provides detailed information on archiving all types of League materials.
The records of the organization must be reviewed every two years and material of significant and lasting historic interest selected, while items considered temporary or of no intrinsic value are discarded.
When this work has been completed, remaining material should be arranged so that all material pertaining to each officer is filed together and the file is clearly marked with the name of the officer and appropriate years. Names of executive members and years in office should be marked on the outside of each file folder.
As the archives are complied, categorized and placed in marked files, an index of all materials contained in the archives should be prepared by the past president and passed on to her successor. This provides continuity so that the system and order will be continued. It is the duty of the executive at each level to provide for the safe storage of these valuable records, preferably in a permanent location.
In addition, the past president should keep a scrapbook in which she keeps press clippings, photographs and other publicity items pertaining to her term of office. This scrapbook should record the name and date of the newspaper from which the clippings were taken and indicate on the cover the subject, dates, years and name of the president and chairperson.

Parish, Diocesan and Provincial Levels

Archives should be kept in a locked filing cabinet on church property or in a secure facility at the diocesan/provincial archives location.
A review of all archival materials should be undertaken by the immediate past president or by a member with archival interest appointed by the president, who could serve as ongoing archivist for the council.
Every two years, an index of archived items should be updated and submitted to the president and noted in the minutes.

Parish archives should include:

the original charter framed and displayed, if possible
minutes of executive/general meetings; these are the permanent record of council activities and should be kept in dated binders
- Note that the secretary should retain minutes and motion books from the previous two terms only; these should be transferred to the archival binders after six years
all accounting records (including cheques and receipts) should be kept for five years
a separate binder for other important information related to the life of the parish council
a list of parish presidents/spiritual advisors/council executives with names and terms of office
a list of recipients of maple leaf service pins/League pins/diocesan and provincial awards/life memberships with names and dates of presentations

Other possible inclusions:

a two- to three-page summary of highlights of each past president’s term
annual reports
sample of newsletters
scrapbooks and/or albums and/or electronic storage devices labelled with dates and events
special project file with financial statements
written histories

The National Manual of Policy and Procedure, Appendix 5: Archives Guidelines for League History Provincial, Diocesan and Parish Councils provides detailed information on archiving all types of League materials.