South Seminole Optimist Newsletter October, 2015 District:60…Promise Yourself…Promise Yourself…Promise Yourself…Promise Yourself…Zone: 5 In This Issue Upcoming A Message from the Prez Happy autumn and the start of our new Optimist year 2015-2016. Wow! This last year went really fast. We had most of our usual events, the largest growth in membership we have had in quite a few years. As this is being written we are still looking for that one last member so we can be a distinguished club for a second year in a row. We were really busy with Marty being Governor and myself being her assistant. This time last year we were not only planning our installation banquet, but also getting everything together for Marty’s first conference. We have a few new events coming up and we will be missing some of our usual events. We will be assisting and sponsoring the Save the Mudwalk 5K. It is on October 31, 2015 early in the morning. We will be passing out water, helping with cutting fruit and whatever else they need us to assist with. You do have the option to participate in the run or come out and volunteer. Mike Spalding has sent out several emails to see who will be available. Please let him know by October 1 if you are volunteering so he can give Tammy at the Environmental Center a count. We will not have Safe Trick or Treat this year. If you live in Altamonte or around Cranes Roost you might have noticed that the walkways that go over the lake are detached and blocked off. The city is doing some major renovations and they are going to have parts of the park closed at times. The word is they are resurfacing them to make them non-slip. The city is also supposed to be building a pavilion for weddings and other events. In closing I wish everyone an Optimistic year, filled with positive ventures. We are going to have a great year! Bring a friend into the club and show them how much fun they can have helping others. Susan Harvey, Distinguished President
Vice President: Logan Tompkins Secretary: Bethany Roberts
Secretary: Max Skinner Treasurer: Rayvon Charles
Treasurer: Chris Onyiuke
Sgt. At Arms: Aiden Rubino
When you encounter any of these JOOI kids at an event, please indicate to them your gratitude for their involvement in community service with our club.
Coupon Book Fundraiser IF you or anyone you know eats food, then this
coupon book is for you-or them. Everyone likes a
discount on their dining out experience. This year’s
Seminole County coupon book is chocked full of food
coupons. In addition to the food discounts, there are
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet. To make all your friends feel that there is something in them. To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true. To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best. To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own. To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile. To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
Installation Banquet Coming up This is the time of year where we salute the outstanding members from the past year and welcome aboard new members and install new officers for the upcoming year. Our SSOC Installation Banquet will be held this upcoming Saturday (Oct. 3) at the Deer Run Golf Country Club. You should have received your invitation in the mail and hopefully responded by now. If not, call Susan Harvey and let her know. Chicken marsala is on the menu so come out and enjoy the camaraderie as well as the good food. Cost is only $25 with social Hour beginning at 5:00 pm and Dinner at 6:00 pm sharp. Our own Immediate Past Governor Marty Ritter will induct the new members and install the new officers and the incoming Board of Directors as well. Hope to see you there wearing your “night of stars” attire.
Guest Speakers If you haven’t been to an Optimist meeting lately,
you’ve missed some fine programs. Thanks to Marcia Fitzgerald, our Secretary, we had two very informative speakers in September. At our first meeting in September, Kate Kruse, the Philanthropy Events Manager at Kids House, presented a program about
the Kids House Child Advocacy Center. Kids House of Seminole investigates and treats approximately 2,000 cases of abuse annually, but this fiscal year there has been a greater need for their services. With a 33% increase in medical examinations; 110% increase in after hours’ responses to abuse cases; and a 40% jump in the number of children needing some
type of Kids House service, the situation is much more dire than our community realizes. Kate
went on to say that since 1999, Kids House has embodied a place of hope and healing—where children and their families find the support, resources, and resolution to recover from the horror of abuse. However, this nonprofit’s ability to operate is dependent upon individuals and community partners. Kids House offices are located at 5467 N. Ronald Reagan Blvd. Their web site is www.KidsHouse.org.
At our most recent meeting on September 24, new member James Buckland gave
a presentation on fundraising. James and two partners, guests John Dickl and
Scott Arnett, are in the developmental stages of a program to make fundraising an
ongoing pursuit by using the internet. The site is
called ChingDing Fundraising
(www.ChingDing.com). At this site you can type
“optimist club” into the second “search” box and it
will take you to a page explaining what Optimist International is and how we help
kids. Also, it will show a listing of what items are available for purchase to help
our programs. Since they are in the forming stages
of this program, there aren’t too many items listed
yet, but James says they are adding more as they
develop this endeavor. Shipping is free as of right
now and they hope to keep it that way as they
expand their product list. I encourage you to take a
look at the site. You might see something you like.
Optimist Cheer Starting October 8th For the 24th year, we will be collecting food for our annual “Optimist Cheer” program to help out 25 needy families in the area. Every year our JOOI programs along with our support collect food and money to run this program to help these families have a festive Thanksgiving dinner—and more. Milwee Middle School kicks off their non-perishable item collection on October 8th. Along with monies collected at Lyman and Lake Brantley, the South Seminole Optimist Club will strive to not only put food (including a turkey for each family) on the table for 25 local families, but also will give gift cards and inspirational cards designed and drawn by our JOOI members. If you would like to help out in any way (money or food), please contact Mike Spalding (407-921-2063) and he will be more than happy to pick up whatever it is you may wish to help with. We will be delivering the food on Saturday, November 21—meeting at Milwee to organize the delivery process.
Membership Over the last two months, your Optimist club has been busy putting in new
members. It appears that we may be a “distinguished” club again this year.
Hooray!! Here is a list of new members that you may read about in future
editions of this newsletter: Preston Crapps, James Buckland, Debbie Beaver,
Joan Johnson, Deanna Rossow (college member), Bert Whigham (college
member), Eric Mas, Graciela Blanco, Horatio Gonzalez, Gwen Ganv (college
member), Cliff Austin, and Ricardo
Rivera. We welcome these new
members and look forward to
inducting them formally into the
club at the Oct. 3rd
Banquet.
Meetings:
Meetings are held
every 2nd
and 4th
Thursdays of the
month at Panda
Hibachi Buffet at
800 Hgwy. 436 in
Altamonte Springs.
Meetings start at
7:00 pm
Prez Susan presents Creed to
John, Scott and James
Great Quote “An optimist is someone
who gets treed by a lion,
but enjoys the scenic
view from there.”
Walter Winchell
I ain’t makin’ this stuff up:
Our new leader at OI,
Dave Bruns is from the
White Lakes Optimist
Club of Topeka, KS
Good Luck to the New JOOI Board
As I finish up this newsletter, I would like to
wish safe travels and good luck to our JOOI representatives traveling to St. Louis to be involved in their first Board meeting of this new Optimist Year. President Logan Clemente and Board Member Tamara Gluck got an early start to their weekend by leaving from OI (Orlando
International) heading to OI (Optimist International). In St. Louis, they will
continue training and organizing as they set out to make a difference in the organization that they help lead. We are indeed proud of these two as we are of all of our JOOI members and we look forward to seeing their impact on the JOOI organization.
