African-Canadian Heritage Tour- Underground Railroad Network- Letter of Intent

Core Members 

The Black Heritage Network is composed of six core members including Nathaniel Dett Chapel & Norval Johnson Heritage Library; Salem Chapel – St. Catharines BME Church; St. Catharines Museum; Bertie Hall; Griffin House; (and Stuart Memorial Church – Hamilton) 

Purpose 

The letter of intent outlines the realistic goals, actions, and measurable results of the network prior to the completing the business plan and Cupertino agreement. 

The agreement among the five core members mentioned above will enable them to: 

1) provide a formal structure for the Black Heritage Network 

2) bring to realization the concept 

3) continue and consolidate the alliance concept 

4) develop, implement and manage the network in a collaborative way. 

Terms of the Agreement 

1- Members and Membership 

Core members will include Uncle Tom’s Cabin Historic Site, Buxton Historic Site and Museum, WISH Centre, North American Black Historical Museum, and the Historic Sandwich Baptist Church. 

The network will consider other sites/organizations for membership provided they share in the same vision of the network, add value to the network and receive the support of a majority of the core members. Other membership categories will include the following: 

Associate Members may include other historical sites and/or organizations which may contribute or add value to the network or benefit from being part of the network. 

General Members may include individuals that may contribute or add value to the network or benefit from being part of the network. 

Corporate Members may include organizations, companies, foundations wishing to contribute to the network. 

The fee structure for the various memberships categories is as follows: 

Membership Category         Fee Structure 

Core Member  $25

Associate Member  $50

General Member  $25 

Corporate Member   To be finalized 

Benefits of Membership for consideration by group 

2- Organization/Structure 

General – The African-Canadian Heritage Tour – Underground Railroad Network will operate as an equal partnership among the five core members. The members recognize that the strength of the network lies in its collective membership. 

General – The core members will respect the right of the individual sites to develop their initiatives that are not specifically related or identified by the African-Canadian Heritage Tour Network. 

Core Committee – The African-Canadian Heritage Tour – Underground Railroad Network will operate under the direction of a Committee comprised of one representative from each core member of the network. The representatives include: 

Each core member will have one vote regarding any decision made on behalf on the African-Canadian Heritage Tour – Underground Railroad Network. Whenever possible, the members will use a consensus model rather than a majority vote model to make decisions.