100 Years of The Optimist Creed December 2011
By Dennis Osterwisch, Associate Executive Director
It has been recited by hundreds of thousands of Optimists at, perhaps, millions of Optimist Club meetings since it was adopted as the official creed of Optimist International in 1922. It has inspired countless numbers of others. In hospitals, it has been used to help patients recover from illness. In locker rooms, coaches have used it to motivate their players. It began as a chapter in a book written 100 years ago by a 38-year-old philosopher and magazine editor.
Christian Daa Larson was born in Iowa in 1874. He attended Iowa State University and later a theological school in Pennsylvania. In his early twenties, he became interested in the Mental Science teachings, which were popular around the turn of that century. Little is known about his personal life and what originally led him to take up his intensive study of Mental Science, but its teaching of logic and analysis of thought provided him with a way to combine theology and science and provide a practical and systematic philosophy of life.
In 1898, Larson moved to Cincinnati and in January of 1901 organized the New Thought Temple at his home. Later that year, he began to publish Eternal Progress, for several years one of the leading New Thought periodicals in the world with a circulation of over a quarter of a million. While acting as editor of the publication, he began a prolific book writing career with forty books published during his lifetime. He also gave more than 5,000 lectures in public halls and private homes. In 1908, he relocated to the Los Angeles area where he continued his writing and lecturing.
One of his books, Your Forces and How to Use Them, published in 1912, began with a chapter titled, “The Building Principle of Man.” It started with a short piece called “Promise Yourself.” As originally written by Larson, it contained twelve tenets which he believed people could use to harness their latent talents and combine with the proper attitude to achieve success in their lives.
Soon after the end of World War One, the wife of James V. Westervelt, the Club bulletin editor of the Optimist Club of Los Angeles, found a small item on Optimism in a local newspaper and gave it to him thinking he might be able to use it.
Westervelt reprinted it in the Club’s 1919 yearbook under the title “Promise Yourself.” As the original newspaper article did not identify the author, Westervelt labeled it simply as “Selected.” It contained only the first ten tenets of the piece written by Larson. Members of the Club copied it and a couple of years later when they journeyed north to recruit new Optimists and build new Clubs in San Francisco and Oakland, they took it with them. In this short document, they felt, could be found all that Optimism is and Optimists should be.
With so many California Optimists familiar with the piece, it was inevitable that someone would send it to the Optimist magazine, where it appeared in the December 1921 issue. When the next convention was called to order in Kansas City in 1922, nearly every delegate present had a copy of “Promise Yourself” in his pocket. Hundreds of copies had been brought and distributed by Optimists from San Francisco and Oakland. Still without knowing the author, the convention adopted it as ‘The Optimist Creed.’ Beginning with the August 1922 convention issue, the Creed has appeared in every issue of the Optimist magazine for 90 years.
Jim Westervelt, however, was curious about who the author was and after a little literary detective work uncovered the writings of Larson. Once his existence was known, delegates at every International Convention from 1923 until Larson’s death in 1962 at the age of 88, telegraphed greetings and reaffirmed their appreciation of the Creed to its author.
This story originally appeared in the winter 2012 issue ofThe Optimist magazine.
Making Service and Membership Fun November 2011
How do you combine a fun event for kids with promoting membership? The Sawnee-Cumming Optimist Club in Forsyth County, Georgia, participated in the 9th annual "Play at the Park Family Fun Festival," a community service function sponsored by their local County Parks and Recreation Department.
During the event, the Club played and entertained 2500 to 3000 children of Forsyth County. Members staffed one of the 48 booths at the event that provided a variety of information on local groups and services.
The Club chose to participate in order to speak to parents and grandparents and make sure they were aware that the Optimist Club was running the annual Oratorical and Essay contests, as well as all their mentoring programs. Many parents were familiar with the scholarship opportunities, but not aware that the Optimist Club made the events possible and supplied the scholarships. Members realized the importance of educating the public about Optimism and their Club.
Members also used their participation in the event as a membership campaign to hand out brochures that detailed the Club’s goals and projects. They hope their efforts will bring in interest from the community and result in new Members. The Club also plans to participate in next year’s event.
The 'Phoenix Awards' rise again in Texas June 2011 By Paul Lucas, Member of the Optimist Club of Odessa, Texas
What is the best way to start a great youth program? For the Odessa Optimist Club in Texas, it was as simple as taking a program that was highly successful just 145 miles to the north in Lubbock and bringing it to their community to benefit even more kids! The Odessa Club initiated this project five years ago, after seeing the program succeed in Lubbock and recognizing that it truly exemplified the Optimist Motto of "Bringing Out the Best in Kids."
On May 31, the Club presented nine students with "Phoenix Awards." Like the mythological bird that rose from the ashes, they have overcome challenges and are poised for the greater achievements of the future. These awards consisted of certificates of achievement and Visa gift cards to assist them in continuing their education.
Permian High School’s Christopher Applewhite said he was able to go from living in foster homes with people he didn’t know to joining the U.S. Navy. The Navy's requirement that he graduate from high school was a motivating factor for him. "There were a lot of problems that I had," Applewhite said. "I just kept on trying because I did not want to fail."
Permian student Rosemary Venegas hands her 1-year-old son, Ezekiel, to fellow student Jonathan Priddy as she gets up to receive her Phoenix Award.
Photo courtesy of the Odessa American
Jessica Granger of Odessa High said she was picked on and had to deal with her father leaving the family and even being homeless at one point. "A lot of abuse was going on," she said. Now she plans to attend Odessa College and would eventually like to transfer to the University of Texas of the Permian Basin and become a doctor.
Optimist Arleene Loyd was instrumental in bringing the program to Odessa. "I think it helps each individual young adult to know that somebody supports them, somebody appreciates how far they've come," Loyd said, "and we have expectations that we would like to see them grow and blossom into responsible young adults in our community."
Haircuts of hope May 2011
A few months ago, Members of the Central Ontario District witnessed two very special haircuts. Denise Nacev, Member of the Optimist Clubs of Burlington and Brampton in Ontario, and her niece Isabel Malseed donated their hair to Angel Hair for Kids. Angel Hair for Kids is a Canadian organization that makes wigs for children from underprivileged families who lose their hair due to illness.
The journey to these haircuts started two years ago in February 2009 when Denise's mom and Isabel's grandmother started chemotherapy treatments for lymphoma. When Nina Strickland, Past Governor of the Southwestern Ontario District, lost her hair due to the treatments, Isabel and Denise started growing theirs as a sign of support. Five-year-old Isabel bravely donated 10 inches while Denise donated 13 inches. Isabel's mother, Debra, is a Member of the Burlington Club as well.
Isabel says goodbye to that beautiful braid.
With the generous support of the Optimist Clubs in the District, family and friends, these haircuts also raised almost $2,000 for the Childhood Cancer Campaign. To thank everyone for donating, Isabel created special thank you cards. Thanks to Gord Holly, District Secretary/Treasurer, who performed the haircuts!
Denise and Isabel were able to provide a little comfort for children who are battling cancer and celebrated that Isabel’s grandmother is now cancer free.
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Off and running in Ontario
When you find a new volunteer who is ready and willing to serve, don't let them pass your Optimist Club by! In Norwich, Ontario, one new volunteer has meant new energy, new leadership and new publicity for the Club!
A couple of years ago, a new local resident named Laura Barker inquired about the Optimist Club in her area. Her request made its way through the Midwestern Ontario District to Clayton Tokarz, then President of the Optimist Club of Norwich and District.
Clayton and Laura exchanged a few e-mails and spoke on the phone. They met so that Clayton could give her an application.
At that point, Laura told him that she and her husband, Craig, had moved into the area a couple of years earlier and were looking to get involved with a community group. They had been involved with groups in the past and were ready to get started again.
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"Rather than waiting until our meeting in September, I asked Laura to come and help at a couple of events that we were having prior to that," Clayton says. "I thought if she was as motivated as she sounded, we had better get her involved quickly."
The first event was a fundraiser called the Norwich World Roundup. Laura showed up with a completed application in hand, turned it into Clayton and quickly got to work.
After the fundraiser came the Norwich Optimist Tractor Pull, and before Laura could pause to rest, she joined the Norwich Optimist Corn Maze Committee. Clayton is quick to note that this all happened before she ever attended a Club meeting!
A NOW event was on the calendar for November, and Laura volunteered to help Clayton organize the meeting and make a PowerPoint presentation about the Club's activities. The Club welcomed 10 new Members because of that NOW event.
By last April, she had been to almost every Optimist event and had gotten her husband involved as well. She designed a web page for the Club as well as for the corn maze and the tractor pull, and she raised the Club's profile with a Facebook page that has more than 1,100 friends.
Last spring, less than a year after attending that first fundraiser, Laura was elected Club President. She has since led the Club and served as chair of various programs. She spearheaded last fall's NOW meeting and the Club added another 10 or so Members.
"Laura Barker is one of the most motivated Members in our Club and is certainly an inspiration to our Members both new and old," says Clayton.
2011: The 100th anniversary of the first Optimist Club By Dennis Osterwisch, Associate Executive Director
One hundred years ago, a young insurance man named E.L. Monser returned to Buffalo, New York, from a business trip. Somewhere in the West he had come across an idea and a name for a club and enough enthusiasm to get it going. He discussed the idea with his friend Charles Grein.
"I've picked up what I think is a great idea," Monser reportedly told Grein. "Why don't we organize a club of men from different businesses and professions and promote the old ‘you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours' system? A man just naturally wants to do business with his friends, and in such a club we would all be friends. I think it would be great for all of us."
There must have been more than a little enthusiasm and sincerity in the young insurance man's presentation, for Grein was quick to buy the idea. He agreed to host a meeting in his office with Monser and three other men on February 16, 1911. With Monser and Grein that day were O.L. Neal, a dealer in Victrolas and Indian motorcycles; Eugene Tanke, a jeweler; and J. Raymond Schwartz, a brewer.
"In these times," Monser told the men, "it is mighty difficult for men in the business world to stand alone." And he outlined for them his idea of a club organized for mutual benefit.
Before 1911, clubs bearing the Optimist name had been organized, some as early as the 19th century. There may have been some correspondence between individual members of the widely scattered clubs. And certainly some of them came into being because their organizers were traveling men who encountered the name and the idea in another town. But none of those clubs remained in existence long enough to become links in an international chain.
As far as Optimist International is concerned, the beginning started with the organization of the Buffalo club. Monser and his four friends formed the nucleus of a membership committee and for the next six weeks devoted considerable effort and spare time talking about the club idea with other business and professional men. By the first of April, 1911, they had interested enough men to officially organize a club. Twenty-five were present at the first meeting, where they agreed upon fundamental purposes, decided the time, place and regularity of meetings, and elected as their president John G. Shuler.
The newly formed club looked forward to rapid progress in the building of their club and its rise to a high plateau of prestige in their city. But, as one its founders was to write four years later, there followed months of disappointment and delays. Yet their enthusiasm was not dampened. As the writer added, "Since we adopted the name of 'Optimist' nothing could come but success."
"Big Brother" work, with young boys referred to them by the Probation Department of Syracuse.
Shortly after the Rochester club was organized, the three clubs incorporated together under the name of the Optimist Clubs of New York State. This was the first attempt toward any unification of clubs. In 1919, these clubs joined others from the Midwest and West in the formation of Optimist International. Fittingly, E.L. Monser was elected second vice president of the organization when officers were chosen at the first International Convention in Louisville, Kentucky.
This story originally appeared in the winter 2011 issue ofThe Optimist magazine.
