South Seminole Optimist Newsletter

Dec/Jan, 2016/17 District:60…Promise Yourself…Promise Yourself…Promise Yourself…Promise Yourself…Zone: 5

In This Issue

President Adam

Ronals McDonald

House

Rhythms at the

Roost

Save the Mudwalk

JOI News

Face Painting

OI President Jim

Kondrasuk

Holiday Party

Upcoming

12/5-Rachel’s Sleigh

Ride. Meet at Lyman

4:30

12/8-Night meeting

at Denny’s in

Altamonte, 6:30 pm

12/10-Milwee

Beautification. 9:00

am at Milwee.

12/10-Holiday Party

at Steve and Eileen’s,

140 Springwood Tr,

Altamonte, 5-11 pm.

12/15-Board

meeting. Sem. Co.

Library. 6:30 pm

12/22-Night meeting

at Denny’s in

Altamonte, 6:30 pm

12/22-Christmas

Carol Concert at

Wekiva Springs Park,

7:00 pm

12/27-Give Kids the

World visit, 5:30-9pm

A Message from Prez Adam My fellow optimists, It's inconceivable that just a

couple of months ago I started this

monkey business of being your

president. We started the year off

with a bang. From starting a new

JOI club at Winter Springs High

School, a successful Safe Trick-or-

Treat event at Cranes Roost,

pouring the beer at the Rhythms at

the Roost concert series, helping support the Mud Walk

5k, and so much more. Though my favorite project of

the year has to be Optimist Cheer. This is really the

one project that inspired me as a young member to

continue with this great club. Our JOI kids get to

actually see the impact our organization has on our

local community. I have to say this was probably the

most successful Optimist Cheer we've ever had. We were

able to get nearly everything donated. A big THANK YOU

to all of those who helped to bring this project

together.

One of my objectives this year is to bring technology

to the forefront of our club. We started by setting up

a reminder service of sorts. It's actually called

“Remind”. I will be sending out text/email messages

through this platform whenever we have something going

on to remind you. If you are interested in being a

part of this, send me an email at

AltamonteSpringsOptimists@gmail.com. Also, we are now

utilizing a projector at our meetings. This has given

us the ability to highlight videos and pictures from

our projects in a way that we couldn't have before.

Please be sure to send me your pictures so I can get

them added on. I can't wait for what the rest of this

Optimist year will bring. We couldn't do all of this

without you. And finally, I want to wish you

and your family a happy and safe holiday

season. Now where did I leave those bananas...

Links OI web page:

www.optimist.org

North FL District site:

http://www.nfdoi.co

m/nfdoi.com/NFDOI

_Welcome.html

See what’s going on

at our local website www.southseminole

optimistclub.com.

2016-17 Officers:

Adam Helwig-Prez

(407-617-3987)

Steve Kranzberg-Vice

Prez (314-267-1197)

Susan Harvey-Vice

Prez (321-303-3571)

Ken Ritter-Treasurer

(407-466-0703)

Marcia Fitzgerald-

Secretary (407-325-

9394)

Board of Directors:

Mike Duffy ‘18

Karen Duffy ‘18

Marty Ritter ‘18

Kurt Dowd ‘18

Mike Spalding ‘18

Dottie Compton ‘18

2016-2017 International

Notables

President: Jim

Kondrasuk

Southeast Region

Vice President: Daniel

Rich

North Florida District #60

Governor: Sonny

Kincheloe

Another Great Visit to Ronald McDonald House

Our visit to Ronald McDonald House this year was based around a

fall theme. We had 3 adults and 7 JOI kids, all 4 JOI clubs were

represented. Our menu consisted of quesadillas: cheese, beef, and

chicken. We also served rice, black beans, refried beans, and apple

crisp. Our novelty desserts included boo banana ghosts, vampire teeth

apples, mandarin orange pumpkins, and Frankenstein, monster grape

cups (it was a week before Halloween). The tasks were divided up and

everyone was working diligently to get the meal ready for our guests.

Eric from Lake Brantley along with Jared from Lyman, both novice

cooks, took on the task of making the apple crisp. They used an apple

peeler corer slicer to prepare the apples for the crisp which had both

the volunteers and guests enthralled.

Macheal from Lyman along with adult

member Suzanne Lyons were working

on the ground beef and chicken.

Cheyenne from Milwee and Alyssa from

Winter Springs High School made all

our novelty desserts. They did a fabulous job and it showed. Jade

learned how to make rice on the stove and Carson and Jade where

cutting up tomatoes and peppers for the quesadillas. Jenifer and I

were keeping everyone on task and assisting where needed.

Once the feast was ready several members were taking quesadilla

orders making sure the side items were available, filling drink

requests, and delivering completed orders. Several of us were making

quesadillas as we had 5 machines on hand (we came prepared). Our

little Macheal from Lyman was out in the dining room talking and

making our quests feel very welcome. She also took the majority of

the pictures. All our JOI kids were complimented on their ability to

interact and communicate with the guests staying at the house. I

would love to do this program more than the 2 times a year. Our club

members both adult and JOI get so much out of it along with the

service it provides to the guests at Ronald McDonald House. Thank

you to everyone that participated. You all deserve a huge pat on the

back. Another South Seminole Optimist Club success story.

Great Job by ALL!!!

Article submitted by Susan Harvey

Governor Elect: Bill

Large

Lt. Governor Zone 5:

Joe Knorr

NFL District JOI

Governor: Haley

Lockmiller

MISSION STATEMENT: Optimist International’s mission

is to foster an optimistic way of

life, through a network of

optimists, dedicated to the full

development of their potential in

order to provide ever-expanding

service to youth, the community

and the world.

Nov. 18 “Rhythms at the Roost”-a Fun Time Sisaundra Lewis has a voice that is a cross between Tina

Turner and Aretha Franklin and she can really

belt out the tunes. Sissaundra is a local talent

that made it big on the hit show “Voice” and came

back to her home town to perform at the

most recent installment of “Rhythms

at the Roost”. We certainly enjoyed her

performance and that of the opening act

Sam Jaffe. The Sam Jaffe band played a mixed

bag of hits as well as some of their own songs. The crowd

wasn’t as big as

expected, but it

didn’t stop us

from having a

good time selling a

variety of alcoholic

beverages. Being well versed in

“craft” beer, Ken Ritter got rid of a lot of our craft beer left over from the last

“Rhythms at the Roost” event. It may not have been our biggest money making

event we’ve had at Crane’s Roost, but the weather was perfect, the music

sensational and the camaraderie was extraordinary. Looking forward to our next

event at Cranes Roost: Food Truck Wars in February.

We Helped Save the Mudwalk?!?! Each year the Environmental Studies Center in Association with Seminole

County Public Schools has held a fundraising event called the “Save the

Mudwalk 5K”. For the past three years, we have helped to sponsor this event

financially and with volunteers. Normally this is held at the Environmental

Center but it was changed this year to Winter Springs High School because of the

construction going on across from the Center which is the normal parking area for

this event. Susan and Marcia handed out Optimist Club fliers at our sponsor table

while Marty, Jennifer and myself along with half a dozen JOI kids did our best to

keep runners hydrated at a water station. Afterwards, a pancake breakfast was

served to all and awards given out. The event coordinator, Tammy Potosky,

announced our club’s name several times during her presentation and it was nice

to be appreciated. Next year the 5K will move back to the Environmental Center

and we would like to be a part of this each year as a sponsor. Hey our name was

even on the back of the shirts the runners were given. Very cool indeed!

Meetings:

Meetings are held

every 2nd and 4th

Thursdays of the

month at Dennys on

436 in Altamonte

Springs.

Meetings start at

6:30 pm

To be so strong that nothing

can disturb your peace of

mind.

To talk health, happiness

and prosperity to every

person you meet.

To make all your friends

feel that there is something

in them.

To look at the sunny side of

everything and make your

optimism come true.

To think only of the best, to

work only for the best, and

to expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic

about the success of others

as you are about your own.

To forget the mistakes of

the past and press on to the

greater achievements of the

future.

To wear a cheerful

countenance at all times

and give every living

creature you meet a smile.

To give so much time to the

improvement of yourself

that you have no time to

criticize others.

To be too large for worry,

too noble for anger, too

strong for fear, and too

happy to permit the

presence of trouble.

JOI News

Maya Gluck from the Milwee JOI club has

been working on a project for over a year now.

Her project is associated with Give Kids the

World Village. Give Kids the World Village is a

79-acre, nonprofit resort in Central Florida that

provides weeklong, cost-free vacations to

children with life-threatening illnesses and their

families.

The Village and its community partners provide

children and their families accommodations in

fully-furnished villas, transportation, tickets to theme parks, meals, daily

entertainment and much more.

Each year 27,000 children in the United States are diagnosed with a life-

threatening illness. Half of all children eligible for a wish through a partnering

wish-granting organization choose to visit Central Florida and its collection of

theme parks and other attractions.

Their goal, quite simply, is to provide everything

these deserving families need to make their trip the

vacation of a lifetime. Since 1986, more than

146,000 children and families have had their dreams

fulfilled in a whimsical Village unlike any other

place on earth.

Maya has had the Milwee JOI members working on

making bracelets for the kids that are at the Village

and has arranged for a trip to present these bracelets. Following is an email I

received from Maya’s mother, Melanie, concerning the planned visit on Dec. 27:

We have the opportunity to volunteer at Give Kids the World on Tuesday, December 27th from 5:30 pm – 9:00ish. There are limited spots so we need commitments from you as soon as possible. Prior to volunteering you must fill out an application online. Please complete the volunteer application on the website: www.givekidstheworld.org/volunteer as soon as possible. Scroll to where it says APPLY TODAY. All JOI members must also turn in a parental agreement. It can be sent to Give Kids The World Fax: 888-577-9406 email: AbigailP@gktw.org or given to Maya at the meetings. During our volunteer time, we will hand out the bracelets that the Milwee Club has been working on and also work in the dining room serving trays and cleaning tables. For any questions, please call Maya Gluck 407-961-9291. We are very proud of Maya for heading up this very worthwhile endeavor and look forward to seeing it come to fruition.

Great Quotes ”Christmas is the spirit of

giving without a thought

of getting. It is happiness

because we see joy in

people. It is forgetting

self and finding time for

others. It is discarding

the meaningless and

stressing the true values”

Thomas S. Monson

“Then the Grinch thought

of something he hadn't

before!

What if Christmas, he

thought, doesn't come

from a store.

What if Christmas

perhaps...means a little

bit more!”

― Dr. Seuss, How the

Grinch Stole Christmas!

“The main reason Santa

is so jolly is because he

knows where all the bad

girls live.”

― George Carlin

Face Painting, Pumpkin Painting and Bounce Houses-Oh My!

Every now and then an opportunity pops up for us that will not only give our

JOI kids an opportunity to perform community service, but also earns us some

money. The One Stop Heating and Cooling Company offered us one of these

opportunities. Each year they have a company-wide picnic and they asked us to

provide some kids that could face paint and monitor the bounce houses. No

problem. They also needed a couple of people to oversee the pumpkin painting.

No problem. They also had free cotton candy, popcorn, and drinks. No problem.

A very relaxing, fun-filled day and we graciously accepted a $200 check from

former Oviedo/Winter Springs Optimist Club President Susan Mesina who sought

us out for this event because “I knew you guys would come through”. It’s nice to

have a good “rep” around town.

New Member Opportunity I

As Optimists, we work together to serve more youth and communities,

and grow personally through our service. Optimists work each day to make the world a better place - one child and one community at a time. We must remember how beneficial the Optimist International organization and the Optimist philosophy is to our Clubs, our communities, and to the youth we serve. To thank each Optimist Club for their service, Optimist International is offering the "Season of Giving" to our Optimist Clubs. It is our hope that by waiving the New Member Fee for all new Members added between December 1, 2016 and January 31, 2017, it will be easier for Optimists and Optimist Clubs to give the gift of Optimism to others who share our passion for helping children. In turn, it is our hope that this will strengthen our Clubs and will result in Optimists serving even more children.

This is the "Year of the Honor Club" - Together We Can! Together We Will.” Jim Kondrasuk 2016-17 Optimist International President

The Holiday Extravaganza

It’s official. Steve and Eileen didn’t learn their lesson last December.

They have invited all of us back again for another holiday extravaganza at

their home at 140 Springwood Trail in Altamonte Springs. Festivities will

start at 5:00 pm and continue until 11:00 pm at which point you will be

escorted to the door. A little elf told me there will be clowns, musicians,

jugglers and magicians. Okay, that little elf has a way of exaggerating but

it is confirmed that there will be a magician to entertain all of us after the

four-course meal.

It's a great time to get together and exchange white elephant presents

(bring one $15 wrapped gift marked for male, female, or either). Steve

and Eileen would especially like to see those members that we don’t see

too often. So please consider coming and sharing the spirit of the season

and enjoying the camaraderie of your fellow Optimists. The courtesy of an

RSVP is expected by Dec. 8. So give Steve (314-267-1197) or Eileen (407-

770-7370) a call to reserve a seat. And, by the way, don’t forget to be

ready to sing that song that was sent in your invitation. If you don’t “sing

your way in” you may have to eat on the front lawn.

Steve: Knock, knock.

Eileen: Who’s there?

Steve: Murray.

Eileen: Murray who?

Steve: Murray Christmas, one and all!

…and from the editor: “Murray Christmas to all and to all a good night”.

Contact Mike Spalding

407-921-2063