Talk about a great youth event. But first some history.
Like many Optimist Clubs, the Brighton group conducted a 'youth appreciation' event every year. One of Optimist International's (OI) 'legacy' events, it was originated to recognize kids for just being good kids. Over the years, Brighton took nominations from parents, neighbors, teachers - almost anybody, really - and set aside a day to present the kids with certificates. Family was invited, refreshments provided. It was a good event.
But participation started to fall off. It was getting tougher to get nominations. Fewer teachers participated. The event just quietly went away for a number of years. And sadly, nobody in the community asked about it. One of our members, Peggy Hall, then went a Michigan District Conference, her first appearance at one in 12 years. She went specifically to try to get some ideas for re-establishing 'youth appreciation'. And did she ever!
At a roundtable session, she heard about a spring break day concept that the Alpena Optimist Club had been conducting. They got permission to use the high school during spring break, when it would normally be closed, and had this great event for the kids. Peggy came back charged up and started making plans.
On April 5, 2011, the Brighton Optimists will conduct their 2nd Spring Break Fun Day, aimed at grades K-4. There will be sessions on karate, yoga, origami, geology, musical theatre, cooking, swimming, kayaking - and a lot more. Some classes are tought by local businesses, things like yoga, karate and kayaking. Others that are more hobbyist in nature are taught by either Optimist members or others in the community.
This event is totally FREE to the kids and a light lunch is provided, too. Registrations are pouring in and it looks like we will easily surpass the 150 kids that we had last year. The event is open to all Livingston County residents. It's just one more way that a group of dedicated people are trying to make a difference in their community, and in the lives of children.
The Brighton Optimists have been very busy as of late. They awarded a $500 scholarship to their Essay Contest Winner in early March, awarded two $500 scholarships to their Oratorical contest winners later in March, they're doing the Spring Break Fun Day on April 5th, and planning the 25th Anniversary of their Free Fishing Derby For Kids on June 11th.
Showing posts with label spring break fun day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spring break fun day. Show all posts
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
A Small Step Yields BIG Results For Community Youth
I'm privileged to be the Zone 10 Lt. Governor for the Michigan District Optimists. There are seven clubs in my Zone, and I sometimes send the club officers a note about events. This is one that I sent last week after my home club sponsored a first-time activity called Spring Break Fun Day. I think it's self explanatory, whether you're an Optimist, or not.
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Fellow Optimists, here is a perfect example of how freely sharing ideas and experiences can help your community and its youth.
A Brighton Optimist, Peggy Hall, wanted to chair her club’s Youth Appreciation activity but had no clear focus regarding its format. She did know that she wanted to try something ‘different’ from what the club had always done (participation and interest had been flagging), but wasn’t sure of how to proceed. Peggy went to this year’s First Quarter Michigan District Meeting in Pontiac (October 31, 2009) and attended a breakout session called, “Best Practices Discussions.” In that session, there was give and take among the participants and moderators on Essay and Oratorical Contests, Youth Appreciation, Fundraising, and Achievements & Awards. Obviously, Peggy was most interested in the Youth Appreciation topic.
She heard a member of the Alpena Optimist Club talk about their Spring Break Fun Day, where 800 kids (yes – 800!) attend and have a fun-filled day of many different activities, including a lunch. All for free. Peggy came back charged up about this format and immediately petitioned her club’s Board of Directors for start-up funding, started investigating costs to use the local High School when it was empty during Spring Break, and formed a committee of other interested members. All of this knowing that she had only a few months to do an investigation of feasibility, work out a budget and plan how to safely conduct the event.
Peggy had also heard about the OIF Club Grant Program during a general session at the District Meeting and she set herself to writing a grant proposal. While grants have not yet been announced, she has received word that she made the ‘first cut’ and her Spring Break Fun Day grant is ‘provisionally accepted’. If you’re not familiar with this program, the OIF is giving out $500 matching grants to clubs for NEW projects. (Peggy checked with OIF to be sure that this event would qualify as a ‘new’ project before writing and submitting the grant application.)
This past Tuesday, April 6th, the Brighton Optimist Club held its first Spring Break Fun Day with around 140 kids in attendance. Gym activities, bounce house, jump roping, swimming, face painting, gardening, no-bake cooking, first aid and craft classes were all available to the kids, along with a free lunch. It was restricted this year to grades K-5 and some parents stuck around to volunteer, in addition to the HS basketball players that assisted in the gym, a local jump rope team, and of course, Optimists. The Brighton Area Fire Department brought a fire truck out for a demonstration, too. Executive Chef Tim Ortbring at Mt. Brighton’s Bauery Restaurant got his vendors to donate almost all of the food for that day – hot dogs, juice boxes, chips, fruits, veggies and cookies. Peggy and her team have noted areas to improve next year’s event, but everybody was happy with the final product – especially the kids.
What a great story and what a great result for the kids and the community. I see many lessons from this experience. Here are just a few:
1) If you’re really committed to serving your community and its youth, you owe it to them to get to at least one District Meeting a year. If it can’t be you, it should be somebody in your club. There’s too much valuable information there for your immediate use and for the immediate benefit of your community.
2) You and your club may be able to help another club the way Alpena did with Brighton. Where else would those two geographically diverse members have met and exchanged ideas if not at a District Meeting? I haven’t talked with Alpena, but I’m sure they are not offended that another club used their idea to serve kids in another community. I doubt that any of us would feel that way, so why not share YOUR successes with other clubs? Or if you need a success of your own, find a model for one at a District Meeting.
3) Don’t be afraid to try something new. Just because you or your club has always done something a certain way does NOT mean that it won’t work another way, or perhaps be even better. Many clubs are struggling to attract new members. Some are struggling to attract any members. Younger members think and react differently than older members. Don’t let the great achievements and the history of your clubs wither away because you’re in a rut of not getting new members. Shake things up a bit and see what happens.
4) Be enthusiastic. Peggy and her committee could have powered the county with the energy they displayed, and positive energy is contagious. Generate it! Tap into it!
5) Support the Optimist International Foundation. They supply the scholarships for the CCDHH, Oratorical and Essay Contests and the Club Grant Program, as well as other programs. If your club doesn’t have a Club Foundation Rep, please appoint one and support the Foundation because whether you know it or not, they are supporting you. See a full list of what they do for kids and clubs at: http://www.oifoundation.org/oifprograms/programs.htm - and please support them somehow, at least a little. Every dollar counts and every dollar is important.
It’s easy to come up with reasons for not going to District Meetings. I hope that you’ll be optimistic, go to an upcoming District (and a Zone) Meeting, and attend with an attitude that you’ll get something valuable from the experience. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed – but then again, I am an Optimist.
By the way, the First Quarter District Meeting that Peggy Hall attended was her first District Meeting appearance in a very, very long time! Who would have thought that the one little step of registering for a District Meeting would have such an huge impact on the kids in her community? Of course, being a member of the Brighton club myself, this example was right in my field of vision. I’m sure you all have a success stories of your own, so please share them with us. We all need a shot of Optimism now and then!
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Fellow Optimists, here is a perfect example of how freely sharing ideas and experiences can help your community and its youth.
A Brighton Optimist, Peggy Hall, wanted to chair her club’s Youth Appreciation activity but had no clear focus regarding its format. She did know that she wanted to try something ‘different’ from what the club had always done (participation and interest had been flagging), but wasn’t sure of how to proceed. Peggy went to this year’s First Quarter Michigan District Meeting in Pontiac (October 31, 2009) and attended a breakout session called, “Best Practices Discussions.” In that session, there was give and take among the participants and moderators on Essay and Oratorical Contests, Youth Appreciation, Fundraising, and Achievements & Awards. Obviously, Peggy was most interested in the Youth Appreciation topic.
She heard a member of the Alpena Optimist Club talk about their Spring Break Fun Day, where 800 kids (yes – 800!) attend and have a fun-filled day of many different activities, including a lunch. All for free. Peggy came back charged up about this format and immediately petitioned her club’s Board of Directors for start-up funding, started investigating costs to use the local High School when it was empty during Spring Break, and formed a committee of other interested members. All of this knowing that she had only a few months to do an investigation of feasibility, work out a budget and plan how to safely conduct the event.
Peggy had also heard about the OIF Club Grant Program during a general session at the District Meeting and she set herself to writing a grant proposal. While grants have not yet been announced, she has received word that she made the ‘first cut’ and her Spring Break Fun Day grant is ‘provisionally accepted’. If you’re not familiar with this program, the OIF is giving out $500 matching grants to clubs for NEW projects. (Peggy checked with OIF to be sure that this event would qualify as a ‘new’ project before writing and submitting the grant application.)
This past Tuesday, April 6th, the Brighton Optimist Club held its first Spring Break Fun Day with around 140 kids in attendance. Gym activities, bounce house, jump roping, swimming, face painting, gardening, no-bake cooking, first aid and craft classes were all available to the kids, along with a free lunch. It was restricted this year to grades K-5 and some parents stuck around to volunteer, in addition to the HS basketball players that assisted in the gym, a local jump rope team, and of course, Optimists. The Brighton Area Fire Department brought a fire truck out for a demonstration, too. Executive Chef Tim Ortbring at Mt. Brighton’s Bauery Restaurant got his vendors to donate almost all of the food for that day – hot dogs, juice boxes, chips, fruits, veggies and cookies. Peggy and her team have noted areas to improve next year’s event, but everybody was happy with the final product – especially the kids.
What a great story and what a great result for the kids and the community. I see many lessons from this experience. Here are just a few:
1) If you’re really committed to serving your community and its youth, you owe it to them to get to at least one District Meeting a year. If it can’t be you, it should be somebody in your club. There’s too much valuable information there for your immediate use and for the immediate benefit of your community.
2) You and your club may be able to help another club the way Alpena did with Brighton. Where else would those two geographically diverse members have met and exchanged ideas if not at a District Meeting? I haven’t talked with Alpena, but I’m sure they are not offended that another club used their idea to serve kids in another community. I doubt that any of us would feel that way, so why not share YOUR successes with other clubs? Or if you need a success of your own, find a model for one at a District Meeting.
3) Don’t be afraid to try something new. Just because you or your club has always done something a certain way does NOT mean that it won’t work another way, or perhaps be even better. Many clubs are struggling to attract new members. Some are struggling to attract any members. Younger members think and react differently than older members. Don’t let the great achievements and the history of your clubs wither away because you’re in a rut of not getting new members. Shake things up a bit and see what happens.
4) Be enthusiastic. Peggy and her committee could have powered the county with the energy they displayed, and positive energy is contagious. Generate it! Tap into it!
5) Support the Optimist International Foundation. They supply the scholarships for the CCDHH, Oratorical and Essay Contests and the Club Grant Program, as well as other programs. If your club doesn’t have a Club Foundation Rep, please appoint one and support the Foundation because whether you know it or not, they are supporting you. See a full list of what they do for kids and clubs at: http://www.oifoundation.org/oifprograms/programs.htm - and please support them somehow, at least a little. Every dollar counts and every dollar is important.
It’s easy to come up with reasons for not going to District Meetings. I hope that you’ll be optimistic, go to an upcoming District (and a Zone) Meeting, and attend with an attitude that you’ll get something valuable from the experience. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed – but then again, I am an Optimist.
By the way, the First Quarter District Meeting that Peggy Hall attended was her first District Meeting appearance in a very, very long time! Who would have thought that the one little step of registering for a District Meeting would have such an huge impact on the kids in her community? Of course, being a member of the Brighton club myself, this example was right in my field of vision. I’m sure you all have a success stories of your own, so please share them with us. We all need a shot of Optimism now and then!
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