Larry Blackburn is the Governor of the Pacific Northwest
District – Optimist International and a member of the Caldwell and Middleton Area Optimist Clubs. This year, he is supporting the Middleton Area Optimist Club’s
Free Movies in the Park program with an on-screen advertisement, but it was
important to Larry that the ad talk about Optimist Clubs rather than his
business. He wanted people to know that
he is proud to be an Optimist because, “You get more out of life when you put
more into it.”
Being an Optimist Club member allows you to stay connected
to your community, but as Larry discovered, you have to work at it. He
explained that he had been a member of the Caldwell Optimist Club for 30 years,
but many of those years he was inactive because he was working in Boise – 20 minutes
away. As he became semi-retired, the
opportunity to reacquaint himself with his Optimist Club appeared and he became
its club president, for the second time. This time, he decided to learn more. He
went to district meetings, helped start a new Optimist Club, and was named
Optimist of the Year by the PNW District for his unwavering enthusiasm. He also
attended his first Optimist International Convention and was bitten by the
leadership bug. Larry, an energetic
cheerleader, would be the first to say that leadership is not about being in
charge. It is about helping others do more.
Optimist Club members do amazing things in their
communities. Sometimes the projects are recognized in the press, but most often
they are not. This extra push on “Why I’m Proud to Be an Optimist” will be
shared on Facebook and other social media channels including the PNW District
blog. We hope that you will join us in sharing your picture, and your one or
two-line reason for belonging to the most inspirational service club in the
world.
And today, for our first "Proud to be an Optimist Day," we ask that you change your profile picture on Facebook for one day. Show your pride. Thank you.
