On April 10, the Optimist Club of Erin will get together with fellow clubs from Brampton, Caledon, Georgetown, and Orangeville, along with members of the Erin community, to celebrate 30 years of Optimism.
The club was chartered on April 11, 1980 with 30 members, a few of whom are still active in the club today.
The Optimist Club’s mandate is Friend of Youth. The club has sponsored special days for hockey skills, baseball skills, and soccer skills, providing trophies and ribbons to the participants.
In the late 1980s the Optimists built a BMX track for the youth to play and compete on, and held several tournaments for the young racers.
Several playgrounds have been built in the town by the Erin Optimists and are being well used. For the past 20-plus years the Erin Optimists have run a food booth at the fair to raise money for their work with the youth in town.
Every year all the schools are contacted to recommend a student who has been a good example of volunteering, mentoring, involvement in the school community and academic success – and that student, along with their families, are invited to a dinner in their honour called youth appreciation night.
They are presented with a plaque and the school has a plaque on its wall with all the names of the winners from each year.
The Erin Optimists created and ran the CHICKEN Club – which stands for cool, honest, intelligent, clearheaded, keen, energetic, and not interested in drugs, alcohol or tobacco – for students in the grades 3 and 4. Those youngsters were given T-shirts to wear and were rewarded with treats from the local businesses who helped by sponsoring the club.
Since that club ended, the Optimist Club now supports the DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program, which is presented at local schools by the OPP. The Erin Optimists have also organized and run the Terry Fox run in September every year for the past 27 years.
Last year, many of the Erin Optimists, along with several other groups and individuals, help to build the gazebo in town at the McMillan Park.
The Optimists meet twice a month on the second and fourth Tuesday in the Erin Agricultural dining hall.
Anyone wanting to attend on April 10 should call Val Stinson at 519-833-9085 to reserve a spot.
Tickets are $30 each for a prime rib dinner, wine on the table and entertainment.
Those who cannot attend the dinner are still invited to join the meeting.
