Happy to give

Did you know that Optimist Club members are happier giving away money than the groups that receive the assistance? Sometimes, and that certainly looks true in this great picture captured by the Halton Hills Optimist Club. 

In the photo, President Helen MacCormack presents a check for $1,570 to Jason Claringbold of the Halton Hills Mosquito Eagles Baseball team. Helen knows that her club's donation is helping young people develop into well-rounded adults by learning teamwork, sportsmanship and improving their physical wellness. 

More important, she knows that she and her fellow club members are serving their purpose of providing service to youth and community through the Optimist Club. That makes me smile too! How about you?

Photo courtesy of the Halton Hills Optimist Club.

That will be a quarter, sir

Optimist Clubs and Districts will generally appoint one member to serve as Sergeant at Arms. This position is a social role that goes to work anytime a group of Optimist Club members gather. Its purpose is to increase fellowship by poking innocent fun at members for innocent infractions. Its goal is to collect fines in the name of fun.  Examples of times that a fine that might be levied include:

• Being late to the Optimist Club meeting
• Talking out of turn 
• Not wearing your Optimist Club pin when your picture is in the paper
• Telling a bad joke
• Forgetting to shake hands with the other members when you arrive
• Being the first person to receive their meal 
• Getting a haircut 
• Dressing too casual or too formal for the average Optimist Club meeting 
• Wearing a cap or other apparel from a rival sports team

Or anything that will make others, and the person being fined, giggle. Such infractions will typically cost the miscreant a quarter; however, a very grievous infraction might call for a silent fine indicating that the person being charged is expected to put in a dollar.

Again, it's all done in fun and never is anyone meant to feel that they are being punished. Instead, they should know that the fun being shared with them builds comaraderie in the group and the fines are being donated to a worthy cause.

Of course, the Optimist Club members pick the cause each year, and at twenty-five cents a charge, it takes a while to accumulate enough to donate.

In Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, the Riverside Optimist Club just made their fine pot donation, just in time for Christmas. They gave over $100 to Santa's Sporting Christmas fund, a project that raises money for the Salvation Army's Christmas hamper program.

This is just one creative way that Optimist Clubs encourage giving and fellowship.

My #GivingTuesday post

Please join me in giving a hat tip today to the folks who are participating in #GivingTuesday. As an active Optimist Club member, I take the opportunity to give time and make donations to different causes every day. Making the time to write on this blog and the PNW District Optimist Clubs blog is one such commitment. I take neither lightly.

Other ways that I give are supporting the projects that Optimist Clubs choose to do. Sometimes that is with money, but most often it is merely with attendance. Being present means so much to children, parents, grandparents, spouses and friends. We become so busy with our lives, or our smartphone, we forget just being there really makes a difference.

As holiday consumerism takes its place in American culture with Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it is only fitting that we take time to show American philanthropy as well. Take some time today find a cause that truly speaks to you and make a donation and then go one step further and pledge some of your time in the very near future. You'll be rewarded with good feelings for doing so.

Find out about #GivingTuesday here.

Find out about Optimist Clubs here.

Technology and optimism

Technology - we take it for granted, but two years ago Optimist International's Oratorical Contest asked students to consider "High speed internet: is it a right or a privilege?" It was a tough topic and although I don't know accurate numbers, from my experience in Idaho, the participation declined.

Shirley Zurfluh (R) of the W. Tacoma Optimist Club
presents Emily Stevenson with a Braille Notetaker.

However, one segment of students found the topic intriguing. Deaf students and students with hearing impairments knew exactly how to respond to the question. For them, technology, such as smartphones and computers, becomes their voice as it connects them not only to those without hearing deficits, but also to each other. Quite a compelling case can be made why high speed internet is essential to their full integration into school, work and society and it is therefore a right, not a privilege.

Since that time, I have become especially interested in how technology is used by all and this note caught my eye today: "West Tacoma Optimist Club presents braille computer to high school student."  Awesome, I thought, but what is a braille computer?

Well it turns out it isn't exactly a braille computer. This young lady received a braille note-taking device (approximately $6,500) that allows her to take notes in class and then connect to her home PC to continue complete her homework. Have you ever thought about what it would be like for a blind student to take notes?

The PC itself can be equipped with different devices including braille keyboards and braille display for reading. Of course there are also read/write programs that allow the user to hear and speak to the computer and a number of magnifying options for those who have not completely lost their vision.

I love learning new and different things, don't you? Many thanks to the West Tacoma Optimist Club for your donation. According to the full news report in the club's bulletin:

"Emily Stevenson, a blind student at Curtis High School was presented with her new Braille Computer/Calculator last week. Her classmates applauded and their were smiles all around. Emily is an outstanding student who works hard and plans to go to college and get an engineering degree. She was very happy and grateful since her 7 year old computer was on its last legs."

Knowing how fast technology changes, this was a special donation indeed.

Thanks to Dick Disney, W. Tacoma Optimist Club for the photo and story idea.  

It's all in how you say it

In a feature known as "Good Morning Hartland" in the Hartland Patch, ladies from the Optimist Club of Hartland, MI sent a message to their community to encourage them to help with the holiday gift giving program by adopting a family this Christmas.

Of course we know that please and thank you go a long way in showing respect. In another part of the country, the Optimist Club of Perdido Bay, Alabama came together with members of their community to say thank you for being "Friends of Kids" and to award them with donations to help carry out their projects in the coming months. Approximately $7,000 was given to local organizations including the Lillian-Perdido Bay Library, Baldwin County Special Olympics, Alabama Sheriff's Ranch, Baldwin Tech Center and more. Read all about it in the BaldwinCountynow.com

What do Optimist Clubs raise money for?

The Optimist Club of North Pensacola, Florida is celebrating their 48th anniversary this year.  During the annual club officer installation they recognized the groups and organizations who have benefited from their fundraising efforts. This year alone more than $30,000 was given to:

• Take Stock in Children  
• The Leaning Post Ranch  
• Just Say No to Drugs program at five elementary schools  
• Camp Happy Sands  
• Westgate Center  
• West Florida High School Football and Girls Softball  
• Gull Point Dancers  
• Boy Scouts of America (Challenged) Troop 409  
• Bill Bond Boys Baseball  Girls Softball  
• Workman Middle School Cross Country  
• Wings of Hope (Children's Cancer)  
• Federal Naturalization Ceremony 
• Spencer Bibs School Reading Program

The North Pensacola Optimist Club gets involved hands-on with programs as well by coordinating the Optimist International Essay and Oratorical Contests and Bicycle Safety Programs. 

It's always good to see a list of Optimist Club beneficiaries. Yes, Optimist Clubs touch all areas of our lives.

Social media makes it easy to care

Here's a great way to make a small donation that will make a difference.  It's called Skip1.org: Skip something. Feed a child.

The concept of Skip1 is to foster and enable a community of giving around hunger and related causes. It asks you to give up something like a dinner, coffee, or snacks and instead donate the amount you would have spent to the Skip1 cause.  Their cause changes occasionally as they team up with others like the Caballona Kitchen Project and Invisible People. Through the end of November, they have a matching challenge from Karen Kingsbury who has pledged to match up to $10,000 in donations through 11/30/10.

Please check out the site and consider making a donation.

If you are a service club, consider the value of social media in driving donations for this cause. Think about how it is creating a community around caring. How can you do that at home? How are you doing this at home? I would love to hear your thoughts. Please leave a comment below.

 

Large and small donations are appreciated

A smaller donation, but every bit as important and appreciated as the donation in the previous story, is being made in Corpus Christi, Texas by the Junior Optimist Octagon Club of Collegiate High School.

They are contributing $400 towards the gardens at Mary Grett School.  Mary Grett School serves  special needs students by providing tools and resources to help them move successfully and independently into the community.

The Junior Optimist Club is supported by the Corpus Christi Optimist Club.

Victoria Optimist Club donates to Jenecee Place

Technology is making it so much easier to share information.  I was excited to see that I had a Flickr alert for new Optimist Club pictures.  I was doubly excited to see that the picture set was about the Optimist Club of Victoria, British Columbia; my home district.  Great pictures: please take a look.

But here's the challenge of ubiquitous technology.  I grabbed the link.  I enjoyed the pictures of my Optimist friends, but at the end of the photo set, I was confused.  I had no idea who the people in the pictures were or what the cause was they donated to.  Yes, I could see that it went to Jenecee Place and I could event tell that Jenecee Place was the organization that posted the photos.  However, I still don't know why or who the young lady was that collected the donation.

So I have a tip for you today.  When you set out to tell a story in pictures, please be sure to provide captions.  Your viewers will appreciate it.