UW-Whitewater/Community Optimist Club

Happy August, Optimists!

We are 10 months into our Optimist year and have lots to celebrate.

Here are just a few updates for this week:

Thank you to those who were able to attend the summer Optimist potluck at Angie’s and my house last Tuesday.  See the attached photos.  We were happy to have two guests—John and Lori H.  The weather was beautiful, and the food and company were great.  Some folks even stayed to play a couple rounds of a new game.

Our next club meeting is on Aug. 12 in UC 259A.  Jeanine will be facilitating our discussion—looking to our next year.  We do not have a meeting this week.

Dave, Jeanine, Kelly and I are in the process of planning other promotions for the club, and Kelly has drafted two write-ups about our Optimist Park and Trivia Night.

Please mark you calendars for Trivia Night—Friday, Feb. 20 in the Hamilton Room.  Doors will open at 6:30pm and the event will begin at 7:00pm.

Jeanine and I will be meeting with Lanora Heim and Joe Lynch this Tuesday to discuss setting up a NOW meeting for teachers in the Whitewater Unified School District this September.  Lanora has also pledged to rejoin our club and wants to be an involved member.

Lastly, please send your positive energy to the Burkina Faso Group.  They head out on their journey on August 15.  Thank you to Duane who is helping to drive the group to the Chicago O’Hare Airport.  They are in need of one driver with a moderate to bigger vehicle to help transport them home on Aug. 27.  If anyone is able to assist with this task, please call or email me.  They will be arriving in Chicago at 3:30pm on the 27^th.  Thank You!

For the next two weeks, I will be participating in the Yellowstone Travel Study and will have very limited access to email.  I am hoping to continue our weekly emails through our Optimist Board.

Thanks—and enjoy your week,

Kim

Happy 4th of July Week, Optimists!

We have a lot happening these few weeks.  Here are the highlights:

June 28 –thank you to Jan and Kate for chairing our Relay for Life Team.  Thanks, too, for our other Optimists who supported our team by walking and staffing our site.  Don and Lou, Hans and Carla, Carla’s daughter and son, Angie, Kate’s daughters Shelli and Laura, Jim Mc. and I were all involved at different times.  Our intern Kelly also helped to set up our site–which included hauling all of the pavers.  I learned from Jan that our team came in third place with the fund raising, bringing in a total of $3,098!  Way to go team.

This Tuesday (July 1), we will have a meeting to set up and clean the gyro stand at Cravath Lake.  We will also have an informal social meeting and will order food the the crew.  Duane will send out an updated work schedule for the 4th of July festivities this week.  Duane–could you please confirm what time you would like folks to show up?  THANKS!

On Wednesday, July 9, we will be staffing the Jefferson County Fair (for “Kids’ Day).  PLEASE check your calendars to see if you can volunteer for even a few hours.  There are still many open slots and we can’t put all of the pressure on the Zahn family to staff the entire event.  I have reattached the sign up sheet for the fair.

Kelly is doing a great job sending out updates on club activities via Facebook.  She just sent out another update.  Feel free to check it out!

Our next board meeting is Tuesday, July 8 at 5:30pm at Jessica’s.  If you haven’t responded to me yet, please email me to indicate your attendance.

July 15 at 12 noon will be our next on-campus Optimist meeting in UC 259A.  Our guest speaker will be Steve Bertagnolli who will discuss our campus grounds–current and future projects.

We will have another paver painting gathering on Sunday, July 20 from 12pm-6pm at Kim and Angie’s House.  We have some orders to complete from Relay for Life yesterday.  Please email me to let me know if you would like to participate. We had a great time last Sunday.  It’s a fun fellowship activity.

Thank you–and Happy 4th!

Kim 🙂

Greetings Optimists,

This will be a short update as I am out of town this week.

Please note that we do not have a meeting this Tuesday. Our next meeting will be on June 24 from 5:30pm-7:00pm at the Lakefront Pub.

Anyone wishing to join Angie and me with painting pavers for Relay for Life, feel free to stop by (our home) anytime between 10am-6pm on Sunday, June 22 to share your creativity. Lunch will be provided, as will the pavers, paints and brushes for our project.

We still need fundraising and walkers for our club’s Relay for Life team on Saturday, June 28. Kelly Holck will be assisting with putting our list of volunteers together.

On Tuesday, July 1, we will also have an evening meeting at Cravath Lake at the Gyro Stand–while we clean up the trailer and get it ready for the 4th of July activities. Please plan on 5:00pm for this gathering. We will be ordering sub sandwiches this evening. More info to come next week. Duane will also send a updated Gyro Stand sign up sheet. Helpers are still needed for the three-day event.

Finally, please see the attached Jefferson County Fair Sign Up 2014. Don and Lou are also seeking additional helpers for the afternoon and evening shifts. PLEASE check your calendars and let them know if you are able to cover a shift. We will take help of club members, family members and friends of our club. It is important that we fill the time slots.

Thanks–and have a great week,

Kim 🙂

Happy June, Optimists,

This is a friendly reminder that we are now on our summer schedule and we do not have a meeting this week.  That being said, we do have one addition to our summer schedule–an evening meeting at Cravath Lake on Tuesday, July 1 to help prepare the Gyro Stand.  We will have some food on hand and will give some club updates as we enjoy each other’s company in gearing up for our largest fund raiser of the year.  A big thank you to all those who have already signed up to work the Gyro Stand–and especially to some new folks that are getting connected with our club–Kelly Holck, Anna Bahr, and Kelly Strait (all copied on this email).

We do have the Fishing Derby this coming Saturday.  Jeanine will be sharing a flyer that Kelly (our intern) designed for the event.  Thank you to Rick, Mike and Al–as well as the student members of the UW-W Fishing Club who have joined forces to help coordinate this fun event for kids of all ages.  Any helpers who are able to to head to the lakefront, please come down between 8:00am and 8:30am to help set up for the event.

Thank you to all of the helpers (Frank, Don, Hans, Carla, Joyce, Jeanine, Angie, Kate, Shelly–Kate’s daughter, and Kim A.) for highway clean up this past Thursday.  We had a beautiful day, a strong workforce, tall blooming weeds, and many bags of trash collected.  See the attached photos!  I have left a message for the Rock County Adopt-A-Highway coordinator indicating that we have several bags of debris collected and on the sides of the highway.  We can celebrate a lovely stretch of clean highway on 59!

Also attached is a brief request from Kelly related to promoting our club.  Please help share our events via social media.  You will also find updates on our club activities more frequently on the Whitewater Banner.  Kelly will be submitting stories and photos on a regular basis.

Jeanine and Angie will be making contacts very soon related to our slate of officers.  It is a great privilege to serve this organization–and it’s fun to do when there is a good working team of officers and board members. Please consider what your role could be for the next Optimist year.

Lastly, please join the UW-Whitewater Student Optimist Club on June 11 from 5-8pm at a Culver’s Night in Whitewater.  This is a fund raiser for shipping the ambulance to Burkina Faso.  The ambulance, Hassimi and some of the travelers will be on hand to visit with folks, take pictures of groups by the ambulance, and gladly accept any other donations.  This is the night before Hassimi and Scott Sippel drive the ambulance to Baltimore to be shipped to Burkina Faso.

With gratitude,

Kim 🙂

Good Monday, Optimists,

I will start off my weekly note by reminding you that we do not have a noon meeting on May 20. Rather, we will meet from 5-7pm at the Lakefront Pub in the Whitewater Room. Our new student intern, Kelly Holck will be joining us for this meeting.

Thank you to all who helped with baseball ticket taking this past week/weekend. And…thank you to our rummage sale coordinators! It was a beautiful weekend for outdoor activities.

When you have a chance, check out the “This Week in Whitewater” link. There is a nice story about the “Ambulance for Africa.” Jeff did a great job of capturing Hassimi’s story. (Please disregard the bit about the rummage sale. I tried to explain that our students were selling hotdogs at the rummage sale for the ambulance, not running the rummage sale for the ambulance.)

Please note our summer meeting schedule below. Our meeting on May 27 will be our last catered meal of the season. Please note, that all other meetings, you are encouraged to bring your own lunch (at the UC), order off the menu (at the Lakefront), or contribute to our summer party/potluck on July 29.

MEETING SCHEDULE…

• May 20, (Lakefront Pub), 5:30pm, individuals order off of menu
• May 27, (UC 259A), Noon meeting; last catered meal of the season
• June 10 (UC 268), Noon meeting, bring your own lunch
• June 24 (Lakefront Pub), 5:30pm, individuals order off of menu
• July 15 (UC 259A), Noon meeting, bring your own lunch
• July 29 Summer gathering/potluck at Kim and Angie’s; 5:30pm – 8:30pm
• August 12 (UC 259A), Noon meeting, bring your own lunch
• August 26 (Lakefront Pub), 5:30pm, individuals order off of menu

I have attached the Optimist Board Minutes, May 13, 2014 on Tuesday, May 13. We will be following the discussion suggestions listed in the minutes. Note that the meeting locations for the UC are correct in this email. I just confirmed them with Room Reservations.

I have also attached the Jefferson County Fair Sign Up 2014. Please get back to Don and Lou on that event. Duane has been sending out the Gyro Stand sign up info. We need more helpers–PLEASE. I will email the sign up over the weekend regarding highway clean up. Right now, it looks to be a good group for May 29 at 4:45pm. Rick, Mike and Al have the Fishing Derby well in hand for Saturday, June 7 at Cravath Lake. Willing helpers are encouraged to jump in on this event. Jordan Hammer of the UW-W Fishing Club and some of their members will be assisting, as well.

Next week’s meeting will feature Youths of the Month, as well as guest speakers Maggie and Dick Winz on the Ten Chimneys of Genesee Depot.

Thanks for reading. It was a lot to report this week!

In Optimism,

Kim 🙂

Good Morning Optimists,

I encourage you to look back at last week’s email for the dates and information on various activities we have coming up this spring and summer. Several sign ups are also starting to circulate.

Please continue to respond to Duane regarding the Gyro Stand, respond to Therese regarding the Baseball Regions that are this week, respond to Jan and Kate regarding your progress on funds raised for our Relay for Life team, and respond to Lou and Don for the Jefferson County Fair. I have also attached the fair sign up for folks to see the open slots.

Please note that there is a board meeting this Tuesday from 5:30pm-7:00pm at Jessica’s. Remember that all past presidents are also invited to attend the meeting–and really anyone else interested in rebuilding our club is welcome to attend. We will be discussing the future direction/leadership of the club. Some different ideas are being explored, and your active participation and creative problem solving is encouraged to help our club develop a sound direction for this next year.

I am excited about our guest speakers this Tuesday as we will be hearing from our outgoing intern Seth Arp and incoming intern Kelly Holck. Jeanine, Dave and I met with these two dedicated students this past week and are looking forward to them sharing their insights and suggestions for the club at our noon meeting.

Thanks–and enjoy your Sunday. Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers, step mothers, grandmothers, Godmothers, Aunts, etc.!

In Optimism,

Kim 🙂

It’s May, Optimists!

As we welcome in the signs of warmer weather, I invite you to join in many of the upcoming opportunities.

Here’s a preview of what’s coming:

• Tues., May 6–guest speaker Angie Alesci–on creating home-made gifts on a low budget and with resources on hand. (This will include a tasty treat for members to enjoy at the meeting.)
• Tues., May 13–Guest speaker TBD. I am just waiting for a confirmation.
• Tues., May 13–Board Meeting, 5:30pm – 7:00pm at Jessica’s. All former presidents of the club are invited to this gathering. The main focus of the meeting will be the future of our club, including leadership for 2014-15. We need a slate of officers for the new year–including someone to take the helm as president in October. Anyone wishing to step forward to serve as president, please contact me. I will gladly chat with you about how to make a smooth transition–and I promise I will be a good support as Immediate Past President.
• May 14-18–Ticket Taking for Baseball Regionals. Please contact Therese if you can assist with taking tickets. This will serve as an extra fund raiser for our club. Therese emailed a sign up sheet this past Friday.
• Sat., May 17–City Wide Rummage Sale. Jeanine is taking care of one more “promotional blast” this week.
• Tues., May 20–Evening Meeting at the Lakefront Pub, 5:00pm-7:00pm. Meet our new student intern–Kelly Holck!
• Tues., May 27–Youths of the Month, plus guest speaker TBD. If you have a suggestion for a guest speaker, please contact me.
• Thurs., May 29–Highway Clean Up. Meet by the UC (metered parking lot) at 4:45pm if you want to caravan to our two-mile stretch of highway. We will begin our clean up at 5:00pm. Garbage bags, vests, and gloves will be provided. Feel free to bring your own gloves, as well.
• Sat., June 7–Fishing Derby, Cravath Lake

Enjoy your week–and hope to see some of you on Tuesday.

In Optimism,

Kim 🙂

Happy Monday Optimists,

This note is coming to you a little later than usual as we were trying to work out the details of our rescheduled Easter Egg Hunt earlier today. Unfortunately, the somewhat short-lived rain on Saturday came at just the wrong time and we were “locked out” of our Plan B at Whitewater Middle School.

So here’s the scoop: The Easter Egg Hunt will indeed take place this Saturday from 11am-12pm at the Whitewater Middle School (rain or shine). Connie will have the key ahead of time so we know we will be able to get into the school if need be. If the weather is reasonable, the hunt will be set up outside on the grounds of the school. If it is raining or too windy and cold, we will set up in the school. For those able to help set up (at 10am) and to work at the event, please “reply all” to this message indicating so.

Our meeting tomorrow includes Youth of the Month for the Middle School, as well as two guest speakers related to some fun, upcoming city events, sponsored by the Whitewater Chamber.

Please also mark your calendars for our evening meeting, which will be held at the Lakefront Pub on Tuesday, April 29 from 5-7pm.

I look forward to seeing some of you at the meeting, as well as on Saturday at the Easter Egg Hunt. The Easter Bunny will be busy this weekend!

In Optimism,

Kim 🙂