Looking for a club with good members who care about kids?
We might be the one you're looking for. We are small but mighty (Somos pequenos pero poderosos.)!
The Optimist Club of St Petersburg was established in 1924, the first in the southeastern United States. We are celebrating 99 years!
Purpose of an Optimist Club:
To develop Optimism as a philosophy of utilizing the tenets of the Optimist Creed; to promote an active interest in good government and civic affairs; to inspire respect for law; to promote patriotism and work for international accord and friendship among all people; to aid and encourage the development of youth in the belief that the giving of one's self in service to others will advance the well-being of human-kind, community life and the world.
Friend of Youth
Bringing out the Best in Kids
Club Event(s)
NOTE: We are using the regular location of Po Folks Restaurant at 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM every 4th Monday of the month and on the 2nd Monday we are using Skype. If you can't attend live, you can via Skype(R). See the address in Contact us for Skype(R).
FOO (What is a FOO?)
FOO is Friend of Optimists. Members of the community don't always have time to devote to the giving of themselves to help others, but still want to be helpful in many ways. Being a FOO is a way to do this. Becoming a FOO is easy, donate $120.00 and complete the FOO application from our club and you are a Friend of Optimists. The donation is given back to the community and the kids. This is something that can be renewed each year.
Fill out the application in the attached brochure and send it to us with your check payable to: Optimist International. Give back to the community, become a FOO!
Email: [email protected] or come to one of our meetings as our guest for dinner.
Optimist Club Members receive as much as they give:
The fellowship of people who get things done and the example they set for embracing it similar optimistic mindset.
New social and working relationships with individuals from a cross section of our communities
The opportunity to develop and demonstrate leadership skills locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally.
The satisfaction of making a difference in lives of children as well as our communities.
Whether you are searching for an outlet to help your community, personal development, or rewarding camaraderie, you'll find what you're looking for in our Optimist Club.
What should I expect?
Every Optimist Club was formed by people who wanted to reach out to help youth and the community. People like you and me. Members of an Optimist Club usually live in or work in the community. Members have joined together to serve others and to promote Optimism as a way of life.
Each Optimist Club is chartered as a Member of Optimist International. This gives the Club the right to use the Optimist name and provides each Club with services and programs offered by Optimist International.
Each Optimist Club operates independently of each other. They choose their own activities, elect their own Officers and raise their own funds. A Club’s service activities are based on the needs of the community. What a Club can do is limited only by imagination and resources of the Members.
Optimist Clubs do share certain similarities. This offers you, the Member, the assurance of knowing wherever you are, should you wish to attend an Optimist Club’s meeting, certain components will be the same.
The programs and guest speakers offer the Members an opportunity to learn, grow and improve themselves. The program features the youth in the community, as in the Essay and Oratorical Contests or in the Youth Appreciation Week. These meetings help to reinforce our commitment and allow us to take pride in our accomplishments.
We offer a Family Plan:
Interested in more than one family member being involved in Optimism? Then you need to contact us to learn about saving with our Chapter. See the Contact Us page and contact one of us for more information.
Our New Fund Raiser
We are always looking for ways to get funds so we can continue to help the kids in the community. One of our members came up with a great one - a Coloring Book based on the Optimist Creed. We got approval from Optimist International and it has now been completed and printed. One can color with crayons or ink markers which makes this a great book. If you are interested in purchasing it just get in touch with us (see the Contact Us page) and we will take care of it for you. If you are interested in purchasing the "Be an Optimist" coloring book in multiple copies see the attached Order Form. Order Form
New Meeting April 14th on line - April 28th at Po Folks
Our meeting is held at the Po Folks Restaurant at 6:30 PM - feel free to come and attend. We look forward to seeing you. Our first of the month meeting will be by Skype.
Our Club's 100th Anniversary was the best!
The celebration of our 100th Anniversary was amazing. It was great to have so many people come out to acknowledge our being helpful to kids in the community for 100 years. The entire event with the food, drinks, desserts, raffles, silent auction, 50/50 and music being played was something else. The cake made by Sam's Club was really beautiful and delicious. Having Mason Dixon and his wife Patricia from Q105 really was nice too. Our OI President, Tracy who presented a Proclamation from OI to us was a nice surprise. Certificates of Appreciations are being hand delivered to the donating businesses.
Up Coming and Completed Events
Saying Thank you and Recognizing Donator
Helping Families with Kids celebrate Christmas
We helped 80 families with kids to celebrate Christmas by providing food to them on this special holiday. We are doing this with the 3 schools we sponsor in the club.
We also donated $500.00 to Mason Dixon Christmas Wish Fund - this is our 20th year of doing this. Mason knows he must do it with families with kids.
We would like to recognize Leaders Furniture as a generous donator to our club. Over the last years they have participated in supplying us with a patio clock for 5 years and now they have given us cash to help us with the projects we are working on. Especially this Christmas to help us provide food to 80 families with kids. We are most appreciative for their efforts.
Easter Holiday Celebration - April 18th
The Optimist Club of St Petersburg (www.OptimistClubofStPetersburg.org) will hold an Easter egg hunt for the folks at ProjectFREE (www.MyPronectFREE.org) on Good Friday, 18 April. Last March, the Optimist Club hired their band Solar Flair to perform at the Club’s 100th Anniversary celebration and they were a hit of the party! You may have seen the band rocking the Gulfport Community for the last 10 years at Gulfport Pride, Gecko Fest, etc.
Join us March 28th thru March 30th at John's Pass Seafood Festival. We will be at the Friendly Fisherman Restaurant giving out free cards for treats. We are happy to say that we were busy all 3 days and it was good.
ProjectFREE is a 501(C)3 performing art program whose mission is to enhance the lives of individuals with diverse abilities through the Magic of Theater, Rock Band Academy, and self-employment through their Artisan Entrepreneurship Program. ProjectFREE artists earn 100% profit on each piece of art they sell. They’ll be participating in the Gulfport Art in the Yard event on Saturday, 22 March. And if you’re looking for a great way to get some jewelry, ornaments, charms, plaques, table decorations, promotional articles, etc made – at reasonable prices – or for music to entertain at a celebration, they can fulfill your needs splendidly. Plus, you’d be supporting local artists and musicians! BTW: Visitors are most welcome.
The Optimist Club of St Petersburg is looking forward to celebrating the season with ProjectFREE.
101 Anniversary
We celebrated our 101st Anniversary Monday at our regular meeting. The cake was delicious and we shared it with Po Folks employees.
