Volunteer cooperative
A volunteer cooperative is a cooperative that is run by and for a network of volunteers, for the benefit of a defined membership or the general public, to achieve some goal. Depending on the structure, it may be a collective or mutual organization, which is operated according to the principles of cooperative governance. The most basic form of volunteer-run cooperative is a voluntary association. A lodge or social club may be organized on this basis. A volunteer-run co-op is distinguished from a worker cooperative in that the latter is by definition employee-owned, whereas the volunteer cooperative is typically a non-stock corporation, volunteer-run consumer co-op or service organization, in which workers and beneficiaries jointly participate in management decisions and receive discounts on the basis of sweat equity.A mutual, mutual organization, or mutual society is an organization (which is often, but not always, a company or business) based on the principle of mutuality. Unlike a true cooperative, members usually do not contribute to the capital of the company by direct investment, but derive their right to profits and votes through their customer relationship.[dubious – discuss] A mutual organization or society is often simply referred to as a mutual. A mutual exists with the purpose of raising funds from its membership or customers (collectively called its members), which can then be used to provide common services to all members of the organization or society. A mutual is therefore owned by, and run for the benefit of, its members - it has no external shareholders to pay in the form of dividends, and as such does not usually seek to maximize and make large profits or capital gains. Mutuals exist for the members to benefit from the services they provide and often do not pay income tax.[1] Profits made will usually be re-invested in the mutual for the benefit of the members, although some profit may also be necessary in the case of mutuals for internal financing to sustain or grow
he organization, and to make sure it remains safe and secure.A social club may refer to a group of people or the place where they meet, generally formed around a common interest, occupation or activity (e.g. hunting, fishing, science, politics or charity work). Note that this article covers only two distinct types of social clubs, the historic gentlemen's clubs and the modern activities clubs. This article does not cover a variety of other types of clubs having some social characteristics, for example specific single-activity based clubs, military officers' clubs, country clubs, and fraternities and sororities. Working men's clubs developed in Britain during Victorian times as institutes where working class men could attend lectures and take part in recreational pursuits. The Reverend Henry Solly founded the Working Men's Club and Institute Union (CIU) for this purpose in 1862. Many middle class social reformers founded these clubs during the temperance movement as a place to relax without alcohol, but in time this changed. They became a combination of public houses (pubs), music-halls, and clubs, becoming places to be entertained, to drink socially, and to play bar games. Their mainly working-class patronage is not seen as fashionable among some sections of society today[citation needed], and they have come under increasing pressure regarding attitudes to membership rights for women and ethnic minorities. The CIU was heavily involved in resisting the banning of smoking in private clubs; it remains to be seen how many survive the change of law. Modern clubs include San Francisco's Urban Diversion which opened in 2003 as a general adventure and activities social club and Soho, London's Groucho Club, which opened in 1985 as "the antidote to the traditional club." The "traditional club" referred to is the elitist gentlemen's club, a fixture of upper class male British society. This is not to be confused with the modern use of the phrase, which now stands as a euphemism for a strip club.