Optimist International - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Optimist International is an international service club

Service club

A service club or service organization is a voluntary non-profit organization where members meet regularly to perform charitable works either by direct hands-on efforts or by raising money for other organizations. A service club is defined first by its service mission...

organization with 3,200 clubs and almost 100,000 members in more than 35 nations throughout the world. The international headquarters is located in St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

.

Optimist International is also the sponsor of Junior Optimist Octagon International

Junior Optimist Octagon International

Junior Optimist Octagon International is an active youth service organization that was created in 1988 and is affiliated with Optimist International, its sponsor...

, designed for elementary through high school youth.
Optimist International's motto is "Friend of Youth" and the organization also uses the branding statement "Bringing Out the Best in Kids." Optimist Clubs demonstrate their caring attitude by carrying out the mission of the organization, "By providing hope and positive vision, Optimists bring out the best in kids."

Organization

Optimist International is made up of autonomous Optimist Clubs that do work in their communities. Each club raises its own funds and chooses its own service projects to improve the lives of children. Examples of typical projects are sponsoring youth athletic leagues, scholarship essay and speech contests and supporting local schools.

History

The international organization was founded at a convention in Louisville, Kentucky

Louisville, Kentucky

Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...

, in 1919, uniting various local and regional clubs, the first of which was founded in Buffalo, New York

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

in 1911. At the convention, the first official charter of the international organization was awarded to the club in Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana

Indianapolis, Indiana

Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...

which was founded in 1916.
On October 1, 2006, the first female international president in Optimist history, Ronnie Dunn, took office for the standard one-year term. In October 2007, Theo Golding of Jamaica became the first international president from outside of Canada or the United States.

Membership has declined in recent years, and there are currently about 85,000 individual members who belong to more than 2,850 autonomous Clubs. Optimists conduct 65,000 service projects each year, serving six million young people. Optimists also spend $78 million on their communities annually.

Vision Statement

Optimist International will be recognized worldwide as the premier volunteer organization that values all children and helps them develop to their full potential.

The Optimist Creed

Promise Yourself-

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.

The Optimist Creed was developed by Christian D. Larson

Christian D. Larson

Christian D. Larson was a New Thought leader and teacher, as well as a prolific author of metaphysical and New Thought books. He is credited by Horatio Dresser as being a founder in the New Thought movement...

Purposes of Optimist International

To develop optimism

Optimism

The Oxford English Dictionary defines optimism as having "hopefulness and confidence about the future or successful outcome of something; a tendency to take a favourable or hopeful view." The word is originally derived from the Latin optimum, meaning "best." Being optimistic, in the typical sense...

as a philosophy of life

Philosophy of life

There are at least two senses in which the term philosophy is used, a formal and an informal sense. In the formal sense philosophy is an academic study of the fields metaphysics, ethics, epistemology, logic, and social philosophy...

utilizing the tenets of the Optimist Creed; To promote an active interest in good government and civic affairs; To inspire respect for the 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 humankind, community life and the world.

External links

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