It's pretty simple. Children should not be left alone to run through a deserted subway station. Nor should they be left alone to run through a crowded one either. However, every day, children are left alone while parents work and other less than positive reasons.
Boys and Girls Clubs, among other organizations, have stepped in to ensure that latchkey kiddos have a place to go after school; but so many more are still left alone to fend for themselves. Sometimes it seems that there are just not enough adults to go around. That's where an Optimist Club can help.
The motto of Optimist International is "Friend of Youth." The organization demonstrates its friendship through more than 65,000 projects conducted annually throughout North America and the Caribbean.
Optimist Club projects are based on what adults see is needed in their own community. When they come together as an Optimist Club, these adults share hopes, dreams and friendship. They make plans and carry them out to make a positive difference in their community. Projects might be as simple as a bicycle rodeo or as complicated as developing a city park to host a youth football program. The point is, the adults make them happen, and along the way they make certain that youths are not left alone.
When an Optimist Club is formed, it makes a promise to its community that together they will care about what children do and they will work to make sure they are reaching their full potential, one child at a time. Don't you want to be a part of that promise?
Join an Optimist Club today. Click here to find an Optimist Club in your community or contact me and I will help you get one started.
