Board of Directors
Role Description
What you are being asked to do, what it costs you in time, what you are legally responsible for, and what protects you. Read this before you agree to serve.
What Monte Verdi is
Monte Verdi is a 100-acre historic property in Rusk County, Texas, near Cushing — the surviving core of what was once a 10,721-acre plantation. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and carries three Texas Historical Markers, including one dedicated in 2018 to the Monte Verdi Plantation Family Slaves.
It is the ground where Scott and Tabby, born 1792 and 1787, were held, and where the written record of this family begins. It is privately owned and currently for sale.
Regenerated Hope, Inc., a Texas 501(c)(3) of roughly twenty years, proposes to acquire, preserve and interpret it — governed by the board described here.
The board you would join
| Seats | Constituency | Who serves |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Descendants | Descendants of the people enslaved at Monte Verdi and descendants of Julien Devereux — any surname, not only Bowens. Includes those holding the records, documents and knowledge of the property. |
| 3 | Elected officials | Elected officials from around the State of Texas, or one named individual each appoints to hold the seat. |
| 3 | Independent experts | Subject-matter experts bringing professional and historical expertise, and East Texas community leadership. |
Nine is an odd number so votes cannot tie. Three equal blocs mean no constituency can carry a decision alone — anything that passes has had to persuade somebody outside its own group.
Both descendant lines share the same three seats, deliberately. The people held at Monte Verdi and the family that held them are not two opposing camps on this board. They are two halves of one history, and they sit together or the story stays incomplete.
Appointees to the elected-official seats
An elected official who cannot serve personally may name one individual to hold the seat. That person becomes the director, with the same fiduciary duties, the same signed acknowledgment and the same conflict disclosures as anyone else.
A seat cannot be filled by a rotating proxy. Whoever sits in the chair is personally and legally responsible for the decisions made there, so the seat is held by one named person until that person is replaced in writing.
Service and terms
These first nine seats are filled by volunteers and are interim. They hold until the first elections.
| Item | Proposed |
|---|---|
| Interim term | From seating until the first elections, targeted within 18 months of the board being constituted. |
| Elected terms | Three years, staggered so roughly one third of seats turn over each year. |
| Term limits | Two consecutive full terms, then one year off before eligibility returns. |
| Board meetings | Quarterly at minimum. Monthly during an active acquisition or capital campaign. |
| Format | Video conference, with at least one in-person meeting each year in East Texas. |
| Committees | Each director serves on at least one — governance, finance, preservation, programs or development. |
| Realistic time | Four to six hours a month in ordinary periods. More during acquisition. |
| Compensation | None. Directors serve without pay. Reasonable documented travel may be reimbursed if the board adopts a policy. |
Every figure above is a proposal. The board adopts its own bylaws and can change any of it. It is written down so nobody agrees to serve without knowing what is being asked.
What you are legally responsible for
A director of a Texas nonprofit corporation owes three fiduciary duties. They are not ceremonial. They apply from the day you are seated.
Duty of care
Pay attention and use good judgment. In practice: attend meetings, read the materials beforehand, ask questions when something does not make sense, and do not approve what you do not understand. You are not required to be an expert. You are required to be diligent.
Duty of loyalty
Act in the organization’s interest, not your own. Disclose any conflict, and step out of the room and the vote when one exists. Given that this project involves family members, a family-led operating company and property transactions, conflicts will arise. Disclosed and managed, they are normal. Hidden, they are a serious problem.
Duty of obedience
Keep the organization inside its charitable mission and the law. Charitable assets serve the charitable purpose. They cannot be distributed to directors, officers, family members or insiders — not as profit, not as a bargain lease, not as a favor.
Conflicts of interest
Every director signs a conflict-of-interest policy and completes a disclosure form annually. You will be asked to disclose any financial, business or family relationship that could affect a board decision; declare a conflict before discussion begins; leave the room and abstain from the vote; and accept that the minutes record all of it.
Three situations are known in advance and are handled the same way every time:
- Any lease, concession or service agreement between Regenerated Hope and the family-led operating company — independently appraised at fair market value, documented, approved by a majority of disinterested directors.
- Any transaction involving a director, an officer or a member of their family — same treatment, no exceptions, regardless of size.
- Any grant, contract or funding decision involving a governmental body a director serves in or was elected to — disclosed, with that director recused from discussion and vote.
Political activity
Regenerated Hope, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) and is absolutely prohibited from intervening in political campaigns. Officials serving on this board do so as individuals. The organization makes no endorsements, and its name, property, mailing lists, events and funds are never used for any campaign purpose — by a director or on a director’s behalf. Every director signs this acknowledgment.
What protects you
D&O insurance
Directors and Officers liability coverage, purchased by the organization before the board is seated. Pays defense costs and covered claims arising from board decisions. No director should agree to serve without confirming it is bound.
Indemnification
The bylaws indemnify directors acting in good faith within their authority, to the extent Texas law allows.
Volunteer protections
Texas and federal law provide liability protections for uncompensated nonprofit volunteers acting within the scope of their duties and without willful or criminal misconduct.
None of these protect a director who acts dishonestly, self-deals, or ignores an obvious problem. They protect a director who shows up, pays attention and acts in good faith.
What we ask, and what you can expect
Show up and mean it
Attend the meetings. Read what you are sent, before the meeting. Say what you actually think in the room, and support the decision once it is made. Disclose conflicts without being asked. Keep board discussion confidential until the board speaks publicly. Serve on one committee. Give as you are able and help open doors — no amount is set and no director is required to give. Represent Monte Verdi honestly, including the parts of its history that are hard to talk about.
To be treated seriously
Materials circulated at least a week before every meeting. Financial statements you can actually read. An orientation before your first meeting, with the bylaws, conflict policy and current financials in writing. D&O coverage bound before you are seated. Meetings that start on time, follow an agenda and end on time. Straight answers — if something is going badly, you hear it from us first.
You do not need to be an expert
You do not need to be a lawyer, an accountant or a historian. You need to care about this, show up, read what you are sent and vote your conscience.
If you do bring professional experience — preservation, law, finance, education, agriculture, hospitality, museums, construction, fundraising, genealogy — say so, because it is needed. But the most valuable thing a director brings is attention.
Interested in serving? Write to Tracie Reed at treed@bowensfamilyportal.com, or use the interest form on the Monte Verdi page of the Bowens Family Portal. This is an inquiry, not a commitment — we will come back to you with specifics before anyone is seated.