1. Downtown Optimist Club A periodic newsletter of the
St. Petersburg - Downtown Optimist Club
North Florida District, Zone 9, Club #60447
May 18, 2010
Meets the first and third Tuesday of the month at 6:30 pm
Tick Tock Restaurant 8123 Fourth Street North, St. Petersburg (727) 498-8563
Editor: E. Gardner Harshman, telephone 727-592-0243 or email: gharshman@tampabay.rr.com
Interim Editor: Sharon Dennany, telephone 919-274-1311 or email: shar1558denn@yahoo.com
Today’
Today’s meeting at Tick Tock…we had 9 members and 1
guest, Bob Lasher, Community Relations Manager, from PSTA (Pinellas
Suncoast Transit Authority. As Gardner said “We are a small, but mighty
club”. Lee announced there will be a bowling party for the JOOI club,
Salvation Army Sally House and Children’s Village on June 5th. He is
looking for adult volunteers to help out. The event begins at 2pm at
Seminole Lanes on Park Blvd. Sabrina Schmidt and Saagar (Rico)
Gupta won the Regional Oratorical Contest held May 8th at the Tampa
Library. Both went on to compete at the conference. Installation of
Officers Banquet will be held in September. Gardner and Moonie are
headed to North Carolina until around October and Bob and Roseanne
Costa are head to New York until sometime in September.
Tickets…
Fund Raiser Raffle Tickets
are on sale now. Purchase one ticket
for $5, three tickets for $10 and eight tickets for
$20. First prize is a 2 night stay at the Alden Beach
Resort, 2nd prize is $50 gift certificate to Outback
Steakhouse, 3rd prize is $50 gift certificate to Publix and
4th prize is $50 gift certificate to Derby Club. The drawing
is August 8th.
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2. Speaker…
Guest Speaker
Our speaker for the evening was Bob Lasher,
Community Relations Manager at PSTA. He
gave us really good information about what
PSTA now doing in the community and future
plans. He spoke a bit about the proposed
Light Rail System that would serve Tampa to
Orlando. There would be five stops –
Downtown Tampa, Lakeland, Celebration,
Orlando Convention Center and the Orlando
Airport. It would travel at 168 miles per hour at
top speed and would be run by the State.
Some other highlights he spoke
about:
Enhanced bus transit,
running new hybrid buses
14 additional hybrid buses
coming this year with
passenger amenities
81% of Pinellas County
residents wants improved
transit
Tampa/St. Pete is rated
as the 60th worst city for
commuting
Mass transit creates the
most jobs
Bob also passed out maps of
PSTA’s bus service routes. For
more information visit psta.net,
facebook or twitter.
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3. It’
It’s My Birthday!
May 3 – Viki Pena
May 21 – Jerri Paul
May 23 – Jennifer Maldonado
May 31 – Laura Morris
It’
It’s My Anniversary!
May 5 - Henry Goodyard
May 8 – Gov. Ric Carvalis
May 15 - Carol Sirrianna
Maxine’
Maxine’s Corner
"The trouble with bucket seats is
that not everybody has the same
size bucket."
"After a certain age, if you don't
wake up aching somewhere...
you may be dead."
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4. 50/50 Drawing is up over $600
Vi drew the 7 of Spades, but
no luck in finding the Joker.
Observations of Growing Old
Your kids are becoming
you...and you don't like
them...but your grandchildren
are perfect!
Three things in life that
you should never lose…
Peace – Honesty - Hope
Conference…
3rd Quarter Conference
Vi reported the conference was a good one. The hotel was nice,
they are great to work with. The banquet food was great. There
was no training at this conference. The head table had young
faces, which was refreshing. Entertainment was a jazz band which
was excellent. The conference moved right along with some fun
stuff throughout. The hospitality room was fabulous.
Approximately 32 door prizes were given out each night and a
50/50 drawing. There were 95 adults and 30 JOOI kids who
attended. While at the conference the JOOI kids elected their new
officers. The kids also put on a great performance. They also
judged the poster contest, however Zone 9 did not have a winner.
Our Oratorical contest winners competed at conference. Sabrina
Schmidt competed against five other girls and won $2,500.
Congratulations to Sabrina! Jean was presented as Zone 9
governor. Vi would like to encourage all members to attend the
conference on Aug 6th – 8th, which will be in Tampa.
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5. Memorial Day, which falls on
the last Monday of May,
commemorates the men and
women who died while
serving in the American
military. Originally known as
Decoration Day, it originated
in the years following the
Civil War and became an
official federal holiday in
1971. Many Americans
observe Memorial Day by
visiting cemeteries or
memorials, holding family
gatherings and participating
in parades. Unofficially, at
least, it marks the beginning
of summer.
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Q. How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the
Unknowns and why?
A. 21 steps: It alludes to the twenty-one gun salute which is the highest honor given
any military or foreign dignitary.
Q. How long does he hesitate after his about face to begin his return walk and why?
A. 21 seconds for the same reason as above
Q. Why are his gloves wet?
A. His gloves are moistened to prevent his losing his grip on the rifle.
Q. Does he carry his rifle on the same shoulder all the time
and, if not, why not?
A. He carries the rifle on the shoulder away from the tomb. After his march across
the path, he executes an about face and moves the rifle to the outside shoulder.
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6. Downtown Optimist Club of St. Petersburg
3558 100th Terrace
Pinellas Park, FL 33782-4100
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.
CLUB OFFICERS DIRECTORS
President Gardner Harshman. . . . . . . . . . . 592-0243 Jim Sirrianna (1) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392-2718
Vice Pres. Scott Kaplan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 535-6939 Viki Pena (1) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 421-3721
Vice Pres. Vi Hayworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527-2656 Chuck Hayworth (1) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .527-2656
Sec/Treas. Lee Warnock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 577-7159 Jean Rutan (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 522-6143
Sgt-At-Arms Jim Sirrianna . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392-2718 Rick Rutan (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 522-6143
Chaplain Rick Rutan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .522-6143 Judy Warnock (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458-8278
COMMITTEE CHAIRS
Oratorical Contest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Lee Warnock
Essay Contest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jean Rutan
Programs/Speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rick Rutan
Fellowship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Vi Hayworth/Viki Pena
Poster Contest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Jean Rutan
O.I. Foundation Rep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jane Ridings
Respect for Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gardner Harshman
Youth Appreciation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Lee Warnock
New Community Dev. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vi Hayworth
Get Away Raffle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Easter Egg Hunt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Scott Kaplan
Bell Ringing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vi Hayworth
First Friday . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lee Warnock
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