Optimists set sights on North End club

Published 3:00 pm Saturday, September 23, 2006

POULSBO — The North End is about to become more kid-friendly as an international organization is set to make children its No. 1 priority.

Optimist International is in the process of starting a club in Poulsbo to join other local global service organizations including the Lions, Kiwanis, Rotary and the myriad of groups in the area.

“We’re hoping to have 30 members join so we can charter an Optimist Club here in Poulsbo,” said Sons of Norway Administrator Adele Heinrich, who is leading the effort along with her husband Bob Heinrich.

After being involved with the Optimists in Portland, Ore., Adele Heinrich said what sets the Optimists apart from other groups is its single-minded focus.

“With Optimists, it’s all about kids and working with the schools,” she said.

The club prides itself in working with children to provide civic, educational and recreational activities to enhance the communities in which it has a presence, Heinrich said.

“I’m already talking with the schools about what they need and what we can provide for them,” she said.

With clubs across the globe, Optimists brings instant credibility and a host of opportunities that can directly benefit children, Heinrich said. Even though it will take some time to get the Poulsbo club up and running, Heinrich said she expects it to have an immediate impact in the local community.

According to the Optimist International Web site, the club’s mission statement is “By providing hope and positive vision, Optimists bring out the best in kids.”

There are 105,000 members who belong to more than 3,200 autonomous clubs around the world. Optimists conduct 65,000 service projects each year, serving six million young people. Optimists also spend $78 million on their communities annually. Once Poulsbo’s club is charted it will be the first Optimist Club in Kitsap County joining other area clubs in Shelton, Tacoma and Vancouver and becoming the ninth club in Washington.

In its first five years in Shelton, the Mason County Optimist Club has blended in well with the other service organizations in the area, Mason County Club President Lorraine Coots said.

“The Optimists are a great asset for the community,” Coots said.

The Mason County club was founded after Kiwanis International dropped its sponsorship of Kiwanians, she said.

“We had about 16 ladies in the club, and after searching for a like-minded organization, we found the Optimists,” she said.

Each year their club sponsors a junior parade for Forest Fest in Thurston County, which has been a largely successful event, she said, adding that he club has also donated its time and fund-raising efforts to providing playground equipment for local parks as well.