JOYA observed by the Lebanon Optimists

The good news today comes from the Lebanon Optimist Club. Each year, it recognizes students with the JOYA awards, the Junior Optimist Youth Appreciation program. With innovation, club members were able to reach out to keep this annual tradition going. Most importantly, they were able to interact with and show their pride and appreciation in some well-deserving young people.

 

The photos show a modified drive-through ceremony where kiddos from Cascade School and East Linn Christian School were honored by the Lebanon Optimists for scholarship and service to their community. 

We send congratulations to all the recipients and to the Lebanon Optimist Club for its innovation and respect.


Click on the photos to enlarge. Photos courtesy of the Lebanon Optimist Club.

Mission Optimist Club highlights children's talents

File this under my bad. I knew that the Mission Optimist Club had talent shows occasionally and that's where I went wrong.

Please allow me to correct the record and congratulate the Mission Optimist Club on 20 years of hosting the Mission's Got Talent contest.

The most recent contest was held Saturday, February 23, 2019. The winners were highlighted in a full-page spread in the Mission City Record.  Shown here are:

Top row, left to right, Senior Category

• Third place - Taeryn Berg - Tairen sang and played an original song, "Mess"
• Second place - Jarom Fischer - Jarom sang "A Million Dreams"
• First place - Taylor Crowdis - Taylor sang "Everybody Knows"

Bottom row, left to right, Junior Category

• Third place - Serenity Gibson and Samara Dejong Nemeth - Serenity and Samara sang "This is Me"
• Second place - Brooklyn Ford-Hack - Brooklyn sang "Never Enough"
• First place - Andy Kyte - Andy performed "Good Old Medley" 

Our best wishes go out to all of the contestants and an extra special "BRAVO" for the winners. 

We're proud to have the Mission Optimist Club as part of the Pacific Northwest District, doing its thing, serving its community, and helping kids be great since 1985*.

*Helping kids be great since 1985 is the Mission Optimist Club's motto.

Students and teachers are honored by Hillsboro Optimist Club

The Hillsboro Optimist Club held its annual youth appreciation program May 31, 2018, at Trinity Lutheran. Twenty students and educators were recognized at the Optimist Club Student & Staff Awards Program.

Hillsboro Optimist Club member JV Torgerson was the master of ceremonies at this event that included entertainment from the HSD Mariachi Una Vos, a keynote address from Audrea Neville, Executive Director of the Hillsboro Middle Schools, and the presentation of awards by principals of Evergreen Middle School, J. W. Poynter Middle School, R. A. Brown Middle School and South Meadows Middle School. The flag salute was given by Boy Scout Troop 855.

The following outstanding students were recognized:

• Evergreen Middle School - Chanelle Roberts, Omar Flores Reyes, Sabine Tronco, and Samuel Brodniak
• Poynter Middle School - Brenda Lopez Fuentes, Ryan Fyfe, Lily Donis, and Ian Byrd
• R. A. Brown Middle School - Kelsey Moore, Mikah Gill, Reem Kamel, and Matthew Chhunkeo
• South Meadows Middle School - Addison Swannack, Josue Flores Contreras, Beatriz Lopes-Preciado, and Spencer Dickinson

The following outstanding educators and personnel were recognized:

• Evergreen Middle School - Kathy Grant and Amy Grant
• J. W. Poynter Middle School - Kelsie Burkhardt and Nathan Ross
• R. A. Brown Middle School - Ben Ross and Brigitte Skipper
• South Meadows Middle School - Abby Garcia and Connie Briceno

The Hillsboro Optimist Club Youth Appreciation ceremony was organized by members John Meek and Rennia Meek. The photos are courtesy of Jack Thornton.

Click here to see more photos on Facebook.

PNW Optimist Clubs recognize more outstanding students

The Oregon City Optimist Club was not the only one to celebrate outstanding youths this week. Three other Optimist Clubs shared pictures with us that we in turn share with you. Sorry, names and stories were not included, but that doesn't make them any less special!

In Hillsboro, Oregon, the Optimist Club recognized students and teachers at its annual youth appreciation event. (right) Their celebration included a Mariachi Band. See more pictures from the Hillsboro Optimist Club event here.

In Lebanon, Oregon, the Optimist Club hosted more than sixty students at its its JOYA program. (left) JOYA stands for Junior Optimist Youth Appreciation, but don't be confused; it's not a Junior Optimist Club, but rather students that the Optimist Club recognize for their positive behavior, among other things. I think this may be the biggest celebration that I've seen!









The Twin Falls, Idaho Optimist Club celebrated Youth Appreciation with the Canyon Ridge High School HAWK Award Breakfast. (right) Coordinating with the school, the Optimists recognize students for outstanding knowledge, will power, humanitarian endeavors and activities.



Congratulations to all!

Oregon City students are recognized for kindness

On Saturday, May 13, 2017, I was honored to be invited and to attend the Oregon City Optimist Club's 2017 Citizenship and Youth Appreciation Awards.  Seventeen students were chosen by educators in eight schools to be recognized at the event and their teachers and administrators were on-hand to tell us just why they had earned the respect of their peers.

The stories included two common themes: kindness and service to others. Most were scholars and athletes, some were thespians and writers, and all were good citizens with perserverence, patience, enthusiasm for life recognized as positive traits.

Those recognized for their outstanding contributions to their school and community were:

• St. John the Apostle Catholic School - Mandy Sisul and Liam Broughton
• North Clackamas Christian High School - Eli Perse and Madison Steele
• North Clackamas Christion Middle School - Ashlynn Kerekffy and Caleb Mattias
• Springwater Environmental School - Izzy Hix and Paige Norton
• Oregon City High School - Whitnie Warren and Soud Zaidan
• Oregon City Service Learning Academy - Beatrice Owens
• Clackamas Academy of Industrial Arts - Grace Christensen and Zane Freeman
• Gardiner Middle School - Shay Gionson and Jesse Orozco
• Octon Middle School - Bethany Lemmon and Katie Sterba

Joanne Truesdell, President, Clackamas Community College made a keynote presentation where she complimented each student and their parents and/or caregivers for their leadership. She explained that she had been asked to speak about the vital role of community service, but realized that just hearing the stories of those being honored was explanation enough.

"It is about your approach to life," said Truesdell. "Show up, smile and be kind. You may be too humble to believe this, but it is all about you."

"What you do, what you are being recognized for, it's not as easy as it might seem," she continued. "But push through the big projects and those things that you do every day because that's what keeps your community healthy." 

Quoting Mother Theresa, she reminded all assembled that love is vital to community. She concluded her words by saying we should all strive to achieve this goal: "When all is said and done, I have served my moment well." 

Congratulations to all students! Thanks to all the parents and teachers and kudos to the Oregon City Optimist Club for such a fine event.

Optimist Club hosts Youth Appreciation in Vancouver, WA

Curt Scheidel and Jason Lee Middle School Honorees

The Vancouver, WA Optimist Club recently held its third annual Youth Appreciation event recognizing students from Gaiser, Curt Scheidel, and Jason Lee Middle Schools.

According to The Van-Guard bulletin editor Mary White, about 75 people joined the club at Salmon Creek United Methodist Church for the festivities that included a pizza and ice cream social as a prelude to the award presentations.

The Vancouver Optimist Club works with the middle schools to recognize students for overall citizenship. Mary reports, "This program goes beyond the academically and athletically gifted to recognize those who 'make a difference' in many ways to their schools."

Gaiser Middle School Honorees

Shown in the pictures are:

• (Top) Elizabeth Russell, Jose Orozco, Kauanoe Soares, Casey Struckmeier, Karla Velazquez and Liyu (Larry) Huang
• (Bottom) Parker Burnett, Erin Narvasa, Cody Mowery, Aylin Mijares-Gamino, Daryna, and Justin Warner

Optimist International has promoted Youth Appreciation since 1956 as a way to recognize students for their positive behavior and contributions to society. It was once celebrated only in November; however, Optimist Clubs work with students year-round and now use the Youth Appreciation recognition awards as a way to interact with students at different times of the year.

Please click to find out more about  Optimist International Youth Appreciation programs. 

Chilliwack Optimist Club hosts new project

The Chilliwack, BC Optimist Club hosted a new project last weekend and gave away a $1,000 prize.

What was it?
A songwriting contest for teens. 

The teens performed their original songs in front of an audience and a panel of three judges announced the winners. In addition to the $1,000 prize, the winner also gets to record their song in a professional studio and have it posted on YouTube.

Here's a link to the newspaper article about the contest: https://goo.gl/lDftsV

What a great idea! It's contemporary and fun and allows students to share their point of view and talent.

What is your Optimist Club doing to reach out to the pop culture?

Please send photos, links or stories about projects in your community to pnwoptimist@gmail.com and we'll help you celebrate the impact you make on the youth of your community.

Photo: Pictured is Sariah Loewen, submitted by the Optimist Club of Chilliwack.

Albany Optimist Club hosts Youth Appreciation Awards Night

A little more than 100 people were in attendance at Linn Benton Community College on Tuesday, March 8, 2016, as the Optimist Club of Albany, Oregon honored 21 students at the annual Youth Appreciation Awards event.

A keynote presentation given by Doug Marteeny. He shared 4 of the 5 secrets of success.

Please enjoy some photos from the event shared by the Albany Optimist Club on Facebook.

21 of our finest students get recognized
Posted by Optimist Club, Albany Oregon on Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Has your Optimist Club held a Youth Appreciation Activity? Please share your photos and story with us here. Thank you.

Salem Optimists honor Youth of the Year

Several years ago, the Salem Optimist Club began recognizing students of the month. Each month during the school year, they would ask different schools to help determine youth who were doing exceptional things including scholarship, community service, artistic flair, entrepreneurship,
technology achievements and more.

This month, they brought the 2014-2015 school year to a close by recognizing the Youth of the Year. According the club's post on Facebook, West Salem High School's Keelana Meyer was chosen because:

The student pictured here has a story of triumph and courage. Very little was shared, but it was clear that she has overcome obstacles that most of us would avoid.

Keelana Meyer has attended nine different schools because her life has been so fraught with change, yet she will graduate with a 3.7 GPA. This is a woman to watch. We were honored to meet her.

Keelana is shown here with Mike Barbour of the Salem Optimist Club.  We congratulate her for her achievements!

Click here to see more students recognized by the Salem Optimist Club. 

Chehalis-Centralia Optimist Club hosts Student-of-the-Month presentations

Governor Dick Disney visited the Chehalis-Centralia Optimist Club on Tuesday, December 16, 2014 for Student-of-the-Month presentations and a delicious ham dinner. President Emma Ball with the assistance of her husband, Don, and Monique Connors provided the potluck enjoyed by Optimist Club members, students and parents. The activity was held at the Chehalis Senior Center.

A signature event for the club, the program recognizes students each month and asks them to make an oral presentation about their background and their future ambitions and desires. Club members then ask questions of the students while four Optimist Club members scorethem. The results of the evening will be tabulated with other Students-of-the-Mont and scholarships are then provided to the winners to establish a College Fund they may add to in preparation for college.

According to Governor Dick, it was an engaging evening, enjoyed by all, including the proud parents of the special Student-of-the-Month honorees.

Photo, left to right: Olivia Rodriguez, Adna School; Emma Ball, Club President & District Sec/Treas;Ruby Bower, Adna School; Monique Connors, Lt. Gov. WA Zone; Chase Conaway, Chehalis Middle school; Dick Disney, PNW District Governor

West Tacoma Optimist Club awards students for Tri-Star Basketball

Shirley Zurfluh, Chair, Tri-Star Basketball Program, West Tacoma Optimist Club, was on hand at the Narrowsview Intermediate School Awards Assembly held Friday, June 13 and Monday, June 16, 2014.

She was there to share the results and present awards to the students who participated.

Following are photos of the grade level awards.

Fifth Grade
First Place: Zeek Joseph King, Jordyn Horton
Second Place: Kyle Bailey, Victoria Reardon
Third Place: Thomas Sacks, Alyssa Ramos

Sixth Grade
First Place: Andy Hong,Takara English
Second Place: Savion Rollins, Courtney Bogman
Third Place: Tyreek Wright, Natalie Gronlund

Seventh Grade
First Place: Tejohn Potts-Woods, Savannah Tripp
Second Place: Yassine Ghjarram, Salese Clark
Third Place: Jered Kukrashima, Isabella Tyner

Photos by Kryger, submitted by the West Tacoma Optimist Club

HOBY students served by Boise Noon and Caldwell Optimist Clubs

HOBY youth leaders at the College of Idaho, 2014

For many years (I'm not going to guess how many), the Boise Noon Optimist Club has served lunch to the Hugh O'Brian Youth (HOBY) Leaders in Idaho during their week-long leadership camp. About four years ago, the program moved to the College of Idaho campus in Caldwell so the Boise Noon Optimists contacted the Caldwell Optimist Club to get them involved in the fun. On Saturday, June 7, 2014, the Caldwell and Boise Noon Optimist Clubs were there in full force to celebrate the achievements of these outstanding students.

The HOBY program is endorsed by Optimist International. "Founded in 1958, HOBY’s mission is to inspire and develop our global community of youth and volunteers to a life dedicated to leadership, service and innovation," reads the About page on the HOBY website. It's easy to imagine why an Optimist Club would want to influence these young leaders.

Over the years, the HOBY program has grown and developed and now offers multiple leadership development conferences and camps to participants and alumni along with scholarships and community service opportunities. It's another way to empower accomplished students to do even more by becoming peer leaders, mentors and strong community servants.

Find out if your Optimist Club can be involved with a HOBY program in your area at this link. 

Salem Optimist Club continues its Youth Appreciation Program

Shea White-Toney and Larry Young

While Optimist Clubs shared holiday cheer throughout the Pacific Northwest District and around the world, the Salem Optimist Club continued to do what Optimist Clubs do best: celebrate the accomplishments of children.

Following their ongoing commitment to recognize students at its regular meetings, on Thursday, the Salem Optimist Club honored Shea White-Toney and Heather Kramer with the Optimist Youth Appreciation Award.

Shea is drama student at Blanchett High School. According to his high school counselor, he is hard-working and committed, with a wonderful work ethic. "He gets it," said Tom Hewitt. "He understands the focus and passion it takes to create a strong character and build a great performance. He also understands 'ensemble', that it takes all parts, large and small, to achieve something meaningful." He concluded his praise by saying that Shea is a joy to work with.

Shea is a senior at Blanchett and although he knows that theater arts will always be a part of his life, he considering physical therapy as a college major.

Heather Kramer and Joe Miller

Heather Kramer is also a senior. She attends Sprague High School and was honored for achievement in fine
arts and performing arts. Jay Crystal, Assistant Principal, lists Heather's talents in her involvement in Concert Choir, Musical Theater (acting AND singing), Framework (Acapella choir) and other great contributions to Sprague's fine arts programs.

Heather is considering Stanford and Seattle Pacific to complete her education.

Thanks to the Salem Optimist Club for the stories and pictures. To see other students honored by the Optimist Club this year, please visit Optimist Club of Salem on Facebook.

Albany Optimist Club recognizes outstanding students

The Albany Optimist Club recognized 8 schools at the Youth Appreciation Awards on February 19, 2013. The students were chosen by their school based on leadership in academics, community service, church activities, and citizenship.

The Albany Optimist club has held this event annually for more than 30 years.

Additionally,  awards for the Optimist International Essay Contest were given to Daniel Stoner, first place; Emily Henry, second place; Lydia Rose Parker, third place; and Amanda Kitchen, fourth place.

See more information in an article from Karl Kuessel here. 

See pictures from the event in a Facebook album here.

Salem Optimist Club shows youth appreciation every month

Salem Optimist Club member Frank Masser
and Kelsey Nanneman

The Optimist Club of Salem, Oregon celebrates Youth Appreciation throughout the school year. For January  2013, they will recognize students for for achievement in mathematics and science. 

At their most recent luncheon, club members met and honored Kelsey Nanneman, Senior, Blanchet Catholic High School. Gifted in mathematics, Kelsey completed the courses offered at Blanchet as a sophomore and has been taking courses at Willamette University for two years.  She has also excelled in other courses and is a member of the swim team. 

Kelsey also believes in community service and is involved with "Love Reins," a nonprofit group that provides horse therapy for disabled children. 

After high school, Kelsey hopes to attend Brown or Rice University where she plans to major in biomedical engineering. 

Congratulations, Kelsey, and great job, Salem Optimists. Thank you for making youth recognition an ongoing project. 

See more students at the Salem Optimist Club Facebook page. 

The importance of Optimist Club programs and projects

The McCall Optimist Club is planning for one of their biggest events of the year: the Senior Party. It's a grand event for the grads and a fun-filled, if long, evening for the Optimist Club members. There are prizes, food, casino style-fun, raffles, wally-ball, table tennis, basketball and swimming and other activities to keep the teens busy and safe after graduation.

The McCall Optimist Club is also one of those that takes a few months off from weekly meetings (but not projects) in the summer. Living in a resort community, it's probably not a bad idea. In preparation, Tom Crawford just announced the last presentation before the break and it sounds great! He said:

This Tuesday will be our last program for the season, but it’s one you won’t want to miss. Isaac and Bjornen Babcock will speak about their experience spending a year in the Frank Church Wilderness filming wolves and other wildlife. PBS produced their work into the Nature film, River of No Return that premiered on April 18, 2012. Here is a chance to listen and talk to them about their incredible story.

Watch River of No Return - Preview on PBS. See more from Nature.

The club meets Tuesdays, 7:00 a.m. at the Pancake House. Why not take a road trip and enjoy!

We all choose to belong to an Optimist Club for different reasons. For me, I enjoy learning new things. Sometimes that comes from fellowship and sometimes that comes from the projects that we perform; but the most consistent way to stay involved and knowledgeable about our community and the world around us is to  invite a wide array of speakers to our club meetings. Be diverse and inclusive and you'll find your club programs can be a retention, recruitment and awareness booster. 

Salem Optimist Club recognizes students every month

In an effort to connect with students on a regular basis and to showcase some of their remarkable talents, the Optimist Club of Salem, Oregon has started a monthly recognition program. This month, Samantha Jackson, Alicia Zieg and Lorena Alvarez received awards. Lorena and Alicia received their awards for being most involved in community affairs and Samantha was the first time female award winner in vocation technology. Congratulations!

You can see the monthly choices by liking the Salem Optimist Club's page on Facebook.

Please send us links and pictures of how your Optimist Club recognizes students and youth in your community. And don't forget to like our PNW District page on Facebook too. Thanks!

Caldwell Optimists take kids to the movies

Earlier this week, the Idaho Press Tribune ran a short but impressive tribute the Caldwell Optimist Club. They recognized them, along with Mayor Garrett Nancolas, for honoring the youth of the community at Youth Appreciation Day on November 12.

As part of the activities, Mayor Nancolas  signed an official proclamation declaring the day to be Youth Appreciation Day in the City of Caldwell and the Caldwell Optimists sponsored free movies for children through 5th grade at the Reel Theatre.

According to Marlene Terry, a columnist for the Idaho Press Tribune who writes under the pseudonym Ida Chatter, the Caldwell Optimist Club is also known for youth soccer and bringing back the PAL Boxing Invitational, among other things.

Sometimes it takes a little time and persistence for our media outlets to recognize the small, but meaningful activities our Optimist Clubs perform in our communities. Thanks to the Idaho Press Tribune for noticing and many thanks to the Caldwell Optimist Club and President Connie Holt for all that you do.

Salem Optimists honor 5 students at Youth Appreciation Day

Salem Optimist Club
Youth Appreciation Day

The Optimist Club of Salem honored five students at Youth Appreciation Day on December 9. Recognized for achievement in fine and performing arts were Derrick Holmes, Nick Bailon,  Abby Brockamp,  Rosita Olaide and Brandon Conrad.

The Salem Optimist Club shared the following story about the students on their Facebook page .

Paul Negstad, chairperson for youth appreciation for many years, shared the emcee role with club president Calvin Steck. Three boys and two girls received plaques and a cash award at the ceremony's conclusion.

Senior Derrick Holmes of Chemawa Indian School is a member of the Hopi tribe in Arizona. He sings and dances with a performing arts group, and also is a student lead in his second year at Chemawa. Derrick intends to attend Arizona State University, major in engineering or architecture and then return to his tribe.

McKay's honoree, Nick Bailon, is a sophomore who both plays cello and makes pottery. His first chair in botht eh McKay and Salem Youth Symphony Orchestrats. Called "an original thinker" by his potter teacher, Nick is in four advance-placement classes. His mother, Lisa Garcia, joined Nick at the luncheon.

Abby Brockamp of North Salem has won first place two years running in district choral competition. A junior, Abby is a soprano who sings in her church choir and directs a choir at girls camp. She is vice president of Norths' Concert choir. Abby's mother, Tammy, was a luncheon Guest.

"She is the embodiment of our choir program." That's how Spraque senior Rosita Olaide was described by directory David Brown. Rosita told the luncheon crowd that she wants to go to Chemeketa Community College and study psychology. At some point, Rosita added, she plans to take over her parent's business, which is a prison drug and alcohol treatment consulting firm.

Brandon Conrad, a senior at Western Mennonite School, told luncheon attendees that he participates in every musical thing at the school. For example, Brandon is in the Jazz band, a cappella choir, and the lead in a musical. Brandon heads the worship team in chapel and he plays the guitar as well as the bass and piano. He is hoping to attend Seattle Pacific University and major in music.

What a nice honor!

Hillsboro Optimists recognize middle school students

Tammi Hilp hosted the Hillsboro Optimist Club Youth Appreciation Breakfast on April 19 where sixteen middle school students were recognized for their outstanding achievements.

A full list of honorees:
Poynter Middle School: Leeanna Weislogel, Michael Nield, Shelby Lewis, Mark Hopper
Brown Middle School: Marissa Edgmont, Francisco Toledo-Chavez, Amanda Dostert, Trever Hennigan
Evergreen Middle School: Taylor Gerst, Stuart Tierney, Ashley Hoff, Joseph Snell
JB Thomas Middle School: Rachel Fullman, Henry Hernandez-Flores, Yvonee Backlud, Luis Godinez