Seniors will party on

KBR - Keep the Ball Rolling is an annual celebration for high school seniors that takes place after the senior ball. The Optimist Club of Baldwinsville, New York is a proud supporter of the fun and games along with the Baker High School Parent Teacher Association.

Shown making a contribution to the party is Joyce Ramseyer, Ron Rumpf, Jim Johnson, Pat Dickman and Susan Ranous.    They will be assisting with the festivities on Friday, May 28.  Other volunteers are still needed.  Email jkeim@twcny.rr.com for information.  

Optimist Club paints storefront windows

This project makes me feel a little nostalgic because small town rituals were the beginning of my involvement as a volunteer for Optimist Clubs.  When I read that the Optimist Club of Baldwinsville, New York would be painting windows in the storefronts of their downtown community I was reminded of crisp autumn evenings and parents who worked too many hours at our family owned appliance store. 

But the reason for my post is not to indulge in my memory, but rather to say how awesome!  The Baldwinsville Optimist Club has bought up all the paint in town and on this Saturday they will take interested artistic students with them to paint Halloween scenes on storefront windows.  Ghoulish masterpieces will add to the charm of the town and the enchantment of All Hallow's Eve.  But what this project really does is give lasting memories to those involved in painting and those involved in admiring their artwork.  Thanks for sharing your paint, your creativity and yourselves with the Baldwinsville community. 

See the full article at cnylink.com.

Free stuff offered at Community Night

I was drawn to the headline "City of Lockport: Community Night to feature a lot of free stuff" admittedly because it was both funny and intriguing.  First of all, "a lot of" is an indeterminate amount.  I wondered is there enough free stuff to go around? Second, what kind of "free stuff" are they handing out?  Is it stuff I want?

The key to this headline really shouldn't be the offer of free stuff; but instead, our attention should be drawn to community.  It is somewhat sad that it takes the lure of receiving something material to get us to recognize the many intangible benefits that our community offers us every day.

At this event in Lockport, New York, residents will learn first hand about Boy Scouts, Girl scouts, YMCA, the city youth and recreation department, Care Net, Lockport Cares, several Optimist Clubs and churches that offer non- sectarian outreaches such as GED programs. 

Don't forget, those organizations that will help you grow both personally and professionally will also offer you some free stuff just for attending and learning more about living in Lockport.  After all, it is a learning fair complete with fair food, family -friendly activities, and details on how to access city services.

I hope the residents have fun at the fair on Thursday, October 1, 5:00 to 8:00 pm at Genesee and Waterman Streets, Lockport; I hope they get their free stuff,  but I also hope they join a club and get involved too. 

Optimist Club raffles a dollhouse

Raffles are a popular fundraising activity for many Optimist Clubs. This post is to highlight a dollhouse raffle for the Optimist Club of Baldwinsville, New York.  The dollhouse was donated to the Optimist Club. Members will be selling tickets until October 10 when a lucky winner will be drawn at during the community's Octoberfest celebration.

Shown in this picture are Baldwinsville Optimist Club members Charlie Ebner (seated), Patricia Dickman and Donald Varn.  While the primary purpose of hanging out in front of the M&T Bank is to sell raffle tickets, the side benefit is they get to talk about the great projects that the Optimist Club does in the community year-round.  Good luck!