Presidents Corner

Hello Optimist!

    April is another busy Optimist month.  First a rundown of some local recognition your club has received  The Marshalltown Chamber of Commerce, CVB (Convention and Visitors Bureau) recognized Optimist members Brian Danielson and Bob Winner for bringing visitors to Marshalltown Iowa through our club activities of MOBI, Golf and the Tractor Pull.  While serving youth through these projects we are also promoting the community of Marshalltown and help the economy of our community.

    Three Optimists will also be attending a Healthy Marshalltown appreciation lunch in Marshalltown at Ebenezer's On Friday, Ken Walton, Carlton Peterson, and Mary Langbehn.  Your club is being recognized as helping to build healthy assets in Marshalltown youth.  I think it is exciting to be a member of such an outstanding club. Each time you participate in a youth project you are helping to strengthen both our youth and our community and future.

    Speaking of a strong club, this is the time of the year we ask for strong leaders to step forward and volunteer for board membership and/or officer positions.  The nominating committee for this year is Sean Ervin, Bob Wenner, and Larry Park.  Please contact them about your willingness to lead the club!! We will be announcing the incoming slate of officers soon and will be voting on the last Thursday of the month, Thursday, April 25th.

    Cyndi Barber and Jill Voigts have stepped forward to co-chair youth appreciation, please talk to either of these optimists if you'd like to help or have some ideas for Youth Appreciation.

    Remember there are a couple activities, both on Saturday April 13th!!  Oratorical and Special Olympics.  Attend one or both, see articles by the Chairs here in the newsletter or contact them for more details.

Optimistically Yours,

Mary Langbehn - President

Happy “April” Birthday to:

4/04  Mike Wickham

4/11  Roger Heatwole

4/12  Glenn Ytzen

4/25  Rachel Iverson

ESSAY

Rachel Johnson, 11^th grade at MHS has won our club Essay contest.  Her essay advanced to the District level.  Winners of the District Essay contest were, 1^st place, Grant Blythe, Cedar Rapids, 2^nd place, Matt Trotter, Treynor, and 3^rd place, Joseph Brookover, Council Bluffs. 

My Life in a Changing World

By Rachel Johnson

    My life in a changing world.  The world has always been changing and will keep changing.  Like every human, I am living in a time of change.  History is full of change.  The discovery of the America’s, was a great change in history of the world.  Immigrants traveled to the new land to start a new life, creating a different culture and lifestyle.  September Eleventh was a significant change for the world, with the attack on the World Trade Center.  This day brought countries together to conquer an evil, namely, terrorism.  Technologies are constantly changing.  There is evidence of this in our everyday lives, such as, automobiles, telephones, atomic energy, space travel, computers and e-mail.  Breakthroughs in technology have created discoveries in medicine and improved our standard of living.  We are all recipients of this change.

    My life may not accomplish spectacular events or breakthroughs, but I believe every person influences the world.  As a Christian, my goal in life is to give witness to the good news of Jesus Christ.  As a citizen of my country, I model my Christian ethic.  This is my place in a changing world.  Such a place can help to influence others as they too live in a changing world.

    One does not have to hold a prominent position in society to be influenced in this world.  Isaac Asimov’s, Bicentennial Man, reinforces this belief.  The Bicentennial Man, a humanoid robot named Andrew Martin, lived through many generations and change over his two hundred years of life.  He never held an influential position, yet he knew his place in a changing world.  Throughout each generation, he found a different vocation of influence.  For the first part of his life he was a woodworker.  As the world changed and that generation passed away, he found a different vocation, that of an author.  Again, that generation past away and led him to become a designer of prosthetic devices.

    Even though Andrew was discriminated against, because he was a robot, he continued to find his way in a changing world, imposing his influence as a woodworker, an artist, or a designer of prosthetic devices.  However, he was able to accomplish this because he understood the value of education, and was able then to anticipate change and find his way in a changing world.

    One must know where he has been, to know where he is going in the future.  Leaning yesterday’s history enables one to anticipate tomorrow’s.  As one learns the sciences and arts, and the history of man, he can adapt to the future.  Through education, man is best able to adjust and impose his influence upon a changing culture.  This is why I believe a college education gives my best chance to make my way in a changing world.

Manpower is still needed in all events. We need 2-4 more workers in each event such as, swimming, softball throw, and afternoon track events, except shot put, long jump.  The parade of athletes will start at 9:30am.  We need the workers at the MHS at 9:00am. Dawn has done a terrific job of obtaining donations.  We’ve got sandwiches from four fast food places, chips, fruit, pop and dessert.  The chorus is  on target to sing.  Please call or Email Anne Fiscus to volunteer.    - Thank You, Anne Fiscus

M.O.B.I.

MOBI presentations to Anson, Miller and MHS will be at our regular noon meeting on Thursday, April 18.  While the final figures are still not available, it looks like this MOBI will set a record for net profits!  A special award to a MOBI supporter will be given at this meeting.  This person is not an Optimist but has helped us for many years!  Next years dates are:

    Girls MOBI--Saturday & Sunday, February 8-9,2003

    Boys MOBI--Saturday & Sunday, March 8-9,2003

The Iowa Valley Leadership /

Optimist Connection

    With very little fanfare, Noon Optimists are making a significant contribution to the leadership development of four Marshalltown Senior High students again this year.  Financial support from the club has helped four 11^th grade MHS students participate along side the 24 adults in Iowa Valley Leadership (IVL) 2002.

    Emily Backes, Nicole Lukan, Rachel Johnson, and Adam Sipe are all 11^th grade students with excellent grade points, outstanding leadership roles, and very busy lives. They were selected from among 13 of their peers to participate in IVL because of their potential to add the voice of teens to the program’s issue-based forums and to model what they lave learned with their peers at school.

    Optimists can look forward to hearing from these 4 outstanding youth at the April 18^th meeting. 

    Iowa Valley Leadership, now in its 16^th consecutive year, is a nine-month-long community leadership development program sponsored by Iowa Valley Community College District and the Marshalltown Area Chamber of Commerce. The program’s purpose is to instill stewardship values and skills in prospective community leaders.

    With IVL graduation approaching in May, the four MHS students are ready to share their thoughts about the program and its impact.

- Submitted by Pam Swarts, Iowa Valley Leadership facilitator

Optimist “STARS”

Some of the noon optimist members are "stars" in the Junction Lounge "Peetza Pie" commercial. Deanna has a tape of it and would be happy to show it.  Some of our "own" bellied up to the bar.  I want to thank them for participating.  We sure had allot of fun that evening and the commercial started running on Saturday, Feb. 2nd.  I will let you know which channels we are on.  For sure we are on ESPN, Fox News and I think, TLC.  That's the one I'm not sure about.  We changed our mind a few times.  – Thank you.  Deanna Davis