The Annual Gettysburg Optimist Oyster and Shrimp Feed is upon us.  As in the past, members will be asked to roll up their sleeves, slip on their gloves, man their favorite tool and prepare to shuck, pad, steam and fry.  This is a last call for members to tune-in and turn out and prepare for the onslaught of hungry oyster and shrimp eaters that will be charging the buffet line this Saturday, March 9, beginning at noon.

As is always the case, effectively meeting the challenge depends most upon our preparation, so all members are encouraged to show up on Friday evening at 6:30 pm for the 2013 annual oyster pad-off.  Project leaders Wayne Hill and Stacey Green will be providing the inspiration and an adequate supply of bandages for eager participants.  Saturday’s preparation will begin at 10:00 am and the feeding frenzy will commence at Noon and run through 4:00 pm.  We have experienced an increase in ticket sales this year and expect to be busy during the length of the event.

Please bring a desert!  Spouses, kids, grand kids, significant others, friends and volunteers are invited to help out.

If you have not yet heard, this years Event is being held at the 1863 Inn (the old Holiday Inn) located on Baltimore Street, at the intersection with Steinwehr Avenue, in Gettysburg.  A prize will be awarded to any member who shows up at the Gettysburg Fire Hall appearing confused, as to why they don’t recognize anyone, and thinking that they may have the wrong date for the event.  Winners will have to be present and admit to their mistake in front of all their fellow members in order to receive their prize.

The Optimist Club of Gettysburg Membership Meeting scheduled for this evening has been cancelled due to inclement weather.  The next regular membership meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 20 at 6:30 pm.  Stay tuned for updates as to the location.

Matt Sheads began his association with the Optimist Club of Gettysburg in 2004 and soon after became the Chairman of the Optimist of Gettysburg Youth Basketball Program.  Each year since, accompanied by Optimist members, parents and interested volunteers, the program has flourished and provided hundreds of Gettysburg area boys and girls the opportunity to learn and play basketball.  We appreciate Matt’s continued leadership and his generous, ongoing effort to “Bringing Out The Best In Kids.”

This Saturday, March 2, the program will continue.  The schedule is as follows:

OPTIMIST MEETING NOTES 2/20/13

Invited guests: We had a great turn-out as donations were given to the Reading Is Fundamental and Outdoor Education programs.  We learned about the hundreds of books given out to students, themed classroom decorations, and mock elections.   One group of students even surpassed their goal of reading more than 2,013 books in three months.  Some of our young guests expressed their love for the program because “reading is a lot of fun” and “books take you places that you haven’t been” .

James Gettys school has invited the Optimist Club to participate in their last RIF program of the school year from 9am-3pm on Friday, April 19.

Dr. O’Connor, the representative from Outdoor Education told us about how this program is such a great opportunity for “learning by doing”.  Our donation will help to maintain the program through difficult budget Many of Optimist members could recall fond memories of participating in this week long event.

Optimist Moment: Jean clearly recalls her first Optimist meeting where everyone was so welcoming.  Every single member present took the time to come up to her and chat about themselves and the organization.  That cemented Jean’s desire to become a part of the club.

Upcoming Events: Optimist Basketball returns this Saturday from 9-11:45.  Members are encouraged to come and lend a hand to help with drills, coaching, or refereeing.

The Optimist Oyster and Shrimp Feed  is fast approaching on Saturday, March 9, 2013.  Please continue to sell tickets.  A count by the members present indicated that 125 tickets have been sold to this point!   If you need more tickets please contact Wayne.  Don’t forget the new event location is at the 1863 Inn of Gettysburg on Baltimore Street.

 On Tuesday, March 26^th the East York Optimist Club will be holding their Annual Oyster Feed.  Please see Joe for more details.

Members are encouraged to continue to seek out sponsors for the Optimist Golf Tournament in order to make it another successful event.  We are able to support many youth programs by the funds raised at this event so please take the time to seek out a sponsorship.

Other notes: Jim has started to work on the design for a portable banner that the club can bring to Optimist events to help encourage recruitment.  The members who were present at the meeting voted for Jim to proceed with ordering the banner.

***Important Meeting information: There will be a new venue for the next Optimist meeting on Wednesday, March 6th.  Due to the Refectory already being in use, our meeting will be held down the street in Valentine Hall (Two doors down from the Chapel and directly across from the parking lot that is next to the Refectory).  We will have a presentation from the Boy scouts.