July 2015 | Vol. 42, No. 10
From the President…
It looks like summer is finally here. July is a great month; the days are long and there are so many things to do that sometimes we overlook the simple things. And that, my friends, leads to the goal for July.
At least once this month, take time to take in both a sunrise and a sunset. Pick the right place and the right companion, then sit back and enjoy Mother Nature’s show.
I like to stand on a tee box at sunrise and watch it slowly illuminate the golf course. In the evening, I sit on the eastern shore of a lake when the sun sets and watch how it changes the colors of both the lake and sky. Of course, some hors devours and cold beverage always seems to add a little extra to the experience.
So once or twice this month, take some time to sit back, reflect and thank God for of our many blessings while enjoying one of the many perks of summer. Trust me, nothing is cheaper, relaxing and more beautiful than a sunrise and sunset.
Have a great July and smile so much that your face hurts!
Jerry Mislang
Executive Board Meeting – June 16…
The Board meets on the third Tuesday of the month, and please remember that Board meetings are open to all club members.
We had a presentation from soccer players Jami Lessila, Maggie Griefenkamp, Brianna Bachman, MJ Lessila and Natalie Clayton. They asked for $750 to help offset costs fund a tailgate sendoff along with T-shirts, tickets and busses for students wanting to attend the State Tournament Soccer game (total cost was $5,800). The request was discussed and approved.
We agreed to match last year’s $730 Optimist International Dime-a-Day program.
We also agreed to make supply popcorn for the CMH Wheeling for Healing fundraiser, same as last year.
The donations for June totaled $1,480.
We discussed several potential new fundraisers including a Casino Night, Horse Racing games, Rummage Sale, Harlem Ambassadors Basketball program and a Hunting EXPO. All of them have plusses and minuses and need to be discussed in more detail with their sponsors.
Once again it was another very productive meeting. Thank you Executive Board members for your time and talent.
Jerry Mislang
Welcome New Members!
Welcome Tracey and Michael Wilson sponsored by Lynette Shepherd!
New member who have not yet been sworn in will have their ceremony at the night meeting on July 29th. Watch for an email reminder.
THANK YOU!!!
The 2015 July 3rd parade is now history, but what a night it was for all involved. We have spoken to many people who watched the parade and they felt this was one of the best they have seen. The weather was perfect! The units were enjoyed by all. We sold out of over 1000 bags of cotton candy and over 600 boxes of popcorn. The Bucket Brigade did an outstanding job. All the numbers have not been crunched yet but we are quite certain the club made a small profit this year.
This is only possible because of all the people that stepped forward to help out. It takes over 100 volunteers to make the parade a success, which is too many to list here. Words can’t express our appreciation to all who helped this year. The parade committee had a new co-chairperson in Steve Fleming this year. And he along with veteran parade co-chair Charlie Keller did an outstanding job of getting all the units and doing all the behind the scene things that are necessary. Many non-members joined the fun and made and sold cotton candy and popcorn.
Thanks to everyone who helped out. We already have a list of volunteers who are signed up for July 3, 2016 to do it all again. Let us know if we should add your name to this list.
The Parade Leadership Team
P.S. And…the photo below came to the newsletter offices via e-mail, with the subject line reading: “Greatest Parade Director ever.”
OI Junior Golf Qualifier…
The OI Junior Golf Qualifier took place on Monday June 22nd at Brown Deer Golf Course in Milwaukee. Although this course was the former home of the GMO (later known as the US Bank Classic), the Junior Golfers made playing this course look easy. Low score for the day was 73 while the high score was 115 out of 34 golfers ages 10-18. Of the 13 qualifying spots given to our tournament from Optimist International, we were able to qualify 8 golfers to go to the International tournament that will be held in late July at PGA National in Palm Beach Garden, FL. This tournament last year had 31 countries represented, so it truly is an international tournament. Good luck to the golfers that qualified and it will be fun to hear how they played and of their experiences at the tournament. My thanks go out to my co-chair Tom Carls for helping to set up and run the tournament, along with the following volunteers from our club: Marcia Hebbring, Barb Schmit, Larry Hebbring, Larry Barbera, Charlie Keller, Bill Hathaway, and Jerry Mislang. Without your help, it would be hard to pull off this tournament. Thanks to those volunteers that sat through a 2 hour rain delay that day, so we could get the full outing in. Who would have thought as the rain poured and the winds whipped, that by the end of the day it would be sunny and beautiful outside. As they say in Wisconsin – if you don’t like the weather, wait a few hours – which we did and it all worked out.
Todd Paulus
Falls Fest Popcorn Wagon…
Reminder…Falls Fest is July 19-26, and our Popcorn Wagon will be on duty again.
Attached to this e-mail is a spreadsheet that shows who has volunteered to work the wagon, and the time slots remaining that need to be covered. This is an invitation for signing up to help at the wagon (Terry Fitzsimmons 414-587-93222) or Jess’s Place (Todd Paulus 262-502-1332). At any rate, make sure you stop by for a beverage and a bag or two of delicious popcorn.
Terry Fitzsimmons
Popcorn Wagon in High Gear…
Here are the results of the first 5 weeks at the wagon. That would be as follows:
Tom Dueppen = $468 (bad weather and people didn’t know we were open yet but a solid start)
Tex Reiter = $701 (a great week and a lot fun times at the wagon, a lot of people, me included, owe Tex a thank you for the beer)
Kathy Matthiessen = $646 (didn’t bring as much beer as Tex, but a very good week with some weather woes holding down a couple nights)
Schools = $2004 (what can you say – they have connections)
Meg Latus = $881 (a team that always makes a big extra effort to connect with people and it paid off again)
Members Tom Ciskoski and Greg Mattson have offered the following challenge: Greg and Tom would offer up $100 towards a night of refreshments for the team that sells the most popcorn during their week. (Excluding Schools Week!) Looks like Meg’s team would be collecting at this point, but still many weeks to go including their own!
At this point the $881 by Meg Latus is the number to beat. Time to fire up your teams to give her a run for her money.
Larry Podolske
July Meetings/Speakers…
1st—Final parade preparations
8th—Chad DeLuca – Boy Scouts
15th—Ham Radio Operators (maybe)
22nd—Patio Players
29th—Night meeting at Trysting Place, with Mike Barney, the Miller/Coors chemist; New Member Induction Ceremony
Distinguished Young Women…
Distinguished Young Woman of Menomonee Falls, Ritika Punathil, is busy preparing for the state competition on August 1st. She has been studying current events, working on her pushups, and soliciting donations to support the state program. At the moment she is off to Panama on a service trip. Ritika will stay with a host family for a week prior to a program during which time the 2016 participants will rehearse, make public appearances and participate in service projects.
Thanks to all the Optimist Club members who sponsored a “Best Wish” for Ritika! We raised $117 and will have a long list of Ritika fans in the program book. Our club also places a ½ page ad in the program book. Ritika has said many times how thankful she is to have an Optimist club in her community.
Stay tuned to the club’s Facebook page for news and updates from state week. Good luck Ritika!!
2015-16 Annual Membership Dues….
Invoices for membership dues for the 2015-16 year will be ready for distribution on Wednesday, July 15, 2015. The due date to receive your payment is September 1, 2015. The dues structure remains the same for the upcoming year.
Fees
Member: $90
Couple: $160
Life Member: $60
(Life Member = Past Presidents before 2001 who were eligible.)
Life Member & Spouse: $140
As you can imagine, collecting dues from 201 members is a huge job for the treasurer and the membership committee. We must have our roster set with Optimist International by October 1, 2015. It is critical that we have an accurate roster by that date as our club is charged quarterly dues at that time.
Optimist International collects $62.37 annually per regular member. The bulk of that is used to provide liability insurance coverage for our club. Other expenses include payroll for the OI staff, travel for the OI President and Board of Directors, and the Optimist magazine.
If, for any reason, you do not wish to or are unable to continue your
membership with the club please let me know. While we are sorry to see anyone leave we also understand that things change in your life. We just need to know one way or the other so that our roster is as accurate as possible.
If there are financial reasons that make it difficult to pay your dues please see me make arrangements for payment.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation!
Cathy Sharkey, Membership Committee
New Marcus Center Season…
The 2015 and 2016 Season for the Broadway Shows at the Marcus Center for the PAC is out, and a copy of that schedule is attached.
Once again our club member and ticket sales director for the PAC, John Barnes has reserved Orchestra seats for all the shows and the price is listed. Make a copy of those two sheets and keep them for safe keeping. This is becoming a very popular event for the Falls Optimist and their friends. In most cases we get a special price.
Make your reservations early. REMEMBER YOU CAN CALL JOHN BARNES OR KERI-AYN HOUGH DIRECTLY. That is a super bonus. You don’t want to miss Wicked—Newsies—Cabaret—or any other shows. Something for everyone!
Otto Optimist…
Great truths about growing old:
Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
You’re getting old when you get the same sensation from a rocking chair that you once got from a roller coaster.
One of life’s mysteries is how a two-pound box of candy can make a person gain five pounds.
Time may be a great healer, but it’s also a lousy beautician.
Age doesn’t always bring wisdom. Sometimes age comes alone.
Inside some of us is a thin person struggling to get out, but they can usually be sedated with a few pieces of chocolate cake.
