Optimists conduct service projects to benefit youth

Dec. 11, 2013

By Robert Jansen

There seems to be a club for everything these days, and a group dedicated to people with positive attitudes is no different. UW-Whitewater’s Student Optimist Club is dedicated to radiating its positive message to the community through “serving youth within Whitewater, and worldwide as

well with the goal of putting enjoyment in serving those around us,” said group president Laura Schoenike.

On Dec. 7, the Student Optimist Club partnered with the community Optimist Club to put on Breakfast with Santa. Schoenike, a senior, said the event had a great turnout with over 650 people served. Children had the opportunity to get their photo taken with Santa, and partake in activities such as story time, and coloring.

Many events planned for next semester will benefit the Whitewater community.

“I have all these projects and thoughts about how we can make things even better,” Schoenike said.

Along with weekly meetings, the group uses its time together to conduct service projects or put on social events. The club has done projects such as operation military kids, a program supporting the youth of military families throughout the deployment cycle, making blankets for Dodge county social services and the campus blood drive in the spring and fall.

“Our goal is that we’re helping someone while we’re having fun,” Schoenike said.

Along with the big events, every other week the Student Optimist Club heads over to Whitewater High School and Whitewater Middle School to help conduct vision and hearing testing.

The club also collaborates with the Whitewater community Optimist Club, part of the international movement, on many of its events so it can involve UW-Whitewater staff and other community members.

Schoenike said she was thrilled when she got the opportunity to be on the group’s executive board.

“I loved what they were doing, and had the drive to take the club even further,” Schoenike said.

Junior Jenny Stingle is the group’s fundraising chair. She said she chose to take the leadership position because there was a good direction, and it was how she saw she could fit in to help the club to the best of her ability.

The club itself has been on campus since 1994. It was founded by Kim Adams, who is now an adviser with James Lanouette.

The club currently has around 30 members, but Schoenike said that number fluctuates at any given event. The Optimist Club is always open to new members.

“We love when we get a group of excited members at an event ready to help out and have fun,” Stingle said.

The club meets every Wednesday in the UC down under room 68 at 5:15 p.m.

“Being the Optimist Club, we tend to have pretty optimistic, pretty spiritual meetings that we really want people to enjoy,” Schoenike said.