Join the HCCC Board Today!
Our Board
Without the Board, there would be no Haute Couture Club! The Board members set the direction for the club each year. Board positions are limited to two (sometimes three) consecutive years. This year, Liz Houlihan has offered to serve a President for 2024-2025. We are grateful to Sue Heiss for the wonderful job she has done leading the club for the past 3 years.
If you are interested in filling one of the OPEN positions for the coming year, please click the button below to send a quick note to the board. Please include your name, email address and the position you are interested in. Feel free to also reach out directly to a current board member.
If you are interested in filling one of the OPEN positions for the coming year, please click the button below to send a quick note to the board. Please include your name, email address and the position you are interested in. Feel free to also reach out directly to a current board member.
President - Filled
Serving in the position of president is an honor. I work closely with each board member, and offer guidance when needed. It is my responsibility to conduct the board meetings, as well as the general meetings. Due to the fact that we have such wonderful women who volunteer to serve on the board, the position of president is most rewarding. It is a position that I encourage you to consider.
Without a board, there is no Haute Couture. There are a number of board positions that will be available for the upcoming year. I hope that you will consider serving, and continue to take our legacy of Haute Couture into the future. Treasurer - Filled
The job of club treasurer consists of keeping the Checkbook up to date; this means assuring deposits are made in a timely manner. Prompt payment of all bills of the Club. Filing the Corporate Taxes and the annual State of Illinois report.
The treasurer is the Insurance contact person who is responsible to keep insurance policy and pay the invoice annually. The treasurer is also required to keep information from previous years. The treasurer should also be bonded if possible. Workshops - Filled
If you are in the market for taking your craft to a new level and sharing the experience with our club, consider becoming our next workshop chairperson. It is customary to organize at least two workshops during the club season. Organizing the workshops includes workshop identification, publicizing, and enrolling participants. The time commitment is not overwhelming. Our current board already has workshop ideas for you to explore.
As workshop chairperson position I have made and deepened friendships with club members and have made new connections within our fiber arts community. We have indulged in several workshops together and have learned new skills. |
1st VP, Programs - Filled
In my position, a chose to spend some time over a couple months talking with the Board President to find out what her vision was for the year and what programs she’d like to see.
We had may delightful discussions on fashion, sewing and our memberships interests. We worked together coming up with a list of presenters, I then went about the work of contacting them. I enjoyed interacting with each proposed presenter, expressing our interests, their interests, and brainstorming with them. It was an enriching activity. Outside of meeting, I spend between 3-8 hours a month in the role. I have enjoyed the job. I love the camaraderie of the board and I’ve grown from the experience. Secretary - Filled
The duties were defined by the president and left to me to develop my methods, with the offer of help from the president and former secretary as needed.
I have been responsible for planning my method of doing the job, taking notes during the meeting, writing the formal report after the meeting, and sharing the minutes of each meeting. I use a short concise board meeting template. It is important to be on time to record the meeting from the time of the president's Call to Order, recording participants and absentees. I share the minutes by emailing a copy to all Board Members. Fashion Show - Open
The Fashion Show Chairperson is lucky. Theirs is, at least partly, a highly creative job. Subject to the board’s approval, the Fashion Show Chairperson gets to come up with their very own concept for the show and mold it to their liking. They imagine show segments that will fit in with their concept and inspire our members to sew. They also develop challenges to encourage our members to explore and expand their skills.
Being the Fashion Show Chair is a super way to meet people and develop relationships within the club. Everybody wants to know about the fashion show! And (almost) everybody is more than happy to help. They just need to be asked. If you are an extrovert, you probably already know this. And if you are an introvert, it is the perfect way to get out there and interact because you have the perfect reason to make that call. |
2nd VP, Members - Filled
The membership chair is responsible for encouraging Club membership, seeking out new members, promoting fellowship among Club members, maintaining membership records and updating and distributing the membership directory. On the technical side, the job requires attention to detail, a working knowledge of the fundamentals of Microsoft Excel and the ability to produce the membership directory, have it printed and get it out to our members. The other important requirement is to be a welcoming presence at meetings and to act as an ambassador of sorts at events and in situations where there are potential new members. I also keep track of member participation in wearing and showing their work.
Newsletter - Filled
The Newsletter editor is responsible for publishing and distributing our monthly publication, Tailored Tales. The document is distributed electronically to all members. The editor is responsible for documenting upcoming and past events for the membership. The newsletter editor gathers pictures from and information from the board and members to include each month. This may involve taking photos or Sew and Share at each meeting.
The editor should be proficient in a publishing program to create the newsletter. They will work closely with the Membership chair and Website manager to assure information is accurate and to distribute the newsletter to all current and new members. Website - FilledThe primary tasks of the Website and Social Media position are: manage and create content for the HCCC website; create and distribute email messages, as needed; upload current membership email list to MailChimp site; monitor and contribute content to the HCCC Facebook page and manage Group membership requests; maintain and contribute to content for HCCC Social Media sites, such as Instagram
This role takes a few hours at the beginning of the membership year to update the Website with information on programs and events, and then just a couple of hours a month to refresh content. As the fashion show ramps up, you may need to devote an extra hour a month. With the tools the HCCC uses, most of the work can be done by simply filling in a template, but you have the option to be even more creative. |