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| Community Resources Featuring endorsed, national and regional organizations that offer service resources and/or partnering opportunities to Optimists, listed by geographical location. Members interested in additional information concerning any listing are requested to forward all inquiries directly to the contact identified in the listing. The Resource Library and Community Resource page are ongoing works in progress, with information updated on a regular basis. Clubs that would like to submit an organization/resource for consideration for inclusion in the Community Resource section can do so by contacting the Programs Department at programs@optimist.org or (800) 500-8130, ext. 235. The Programs Department will send the appropriate submission form for your Club to fill out in order to initiate the evaluation process. Community organizations nominated for inclusion must provide a service scope large enough to cover an entire state, province, country and/or District. |
| Citizenship Community Improvement Culture and Education Health and Welfare |
Joint Projects with
a JOOI Club or Youth Organization Safety Sports and Recreation Youth Appreciation |
| Citizenship Projects/resources with the intent of enhancing citizenship, civic responsibility and government involvement. For example, Respect for Law awards, flag displays, mock trials, voter registration drives, youth-in-government days, community forums and scouts would be included in this category. Boy Scouts of America (USA) P.O. Box 152079 Irving, TX 75015-2079 (972) 580-2000 www.scouting.org Community Improvement Designed to improve the physical development or appearance of the community and its facilities such as park development, highway adoption, tree planting, graffiti cleanup and recycling centers. Culture and Education Devoted to the development and improvement of community culture and education standards such as tutoring, mentoring, school bands, orchestras, student exchanges, religious instruction, spelling bees, scholarships and reading projects. Health and Welfare Projects designed to improve the health and welfare of all citizens such as blood drives, senior citizen activities, disabled persons projects, hospital visitations, benefit meals and food for the needy. Substance abuse prevention programs that focus on physical well-being, such as D.A.R.E., are also a part of this category. Camp Quality Canada (Canada) (Endorsed Organization) National contact: Cindy Anthony Camp Quality Canada #62 Denvale Road Toronto ON M4B 3B8 Canada (519) 272-3533 or (866) 738-8011 Fax: (519) 273-3776 cindy@campquality.com www.campquality.com Camp Quality USA (U.S.) (Endorsed Organization) National Headquarters Patty Harris, Executive Director 1444 Mockingbird Circle Stow, OH 44224 (330) 671-0167 pjh1444@sbcglobal.net www.campqualityusa.com Camps for children with cancer. Optimists have built Camp Qualities in Indiana and New Jersey. Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) (Endorsed Organization) Brenda Scheider Chief Development Officer 2501 COTA Drive Bloomington, IN 47403 (800) 366-2682 www.cota.org A national not-for-profit organization that raises funds for families with a child or young adult who needs or has had an organ or marrow transplant. The organization assists families by training and working with volunteers to organize fundraising campaigns. Joint Projects with a JOOI Club or Youth Organization Involves Clubs that have conducted community service, youth or fundraising activities with Junior Octagon, Junior Optimist or Alpha Clubs, or other community-based youth groups or organizations. Leadership training and development programs targeted at enriching youth are included in this category. Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) (International) (Endorsed Organization) Rose Santini, Director of National Programs/Southeast Region 5556 Hwy. 200 Hazen, ND 58545 (701) 748-5946 www.hoby.org Leadership training for high school sophomores Safety Activities focused on preventing personal injury, including school bus safety, bicycle safety, skills competitions, in-line skating demonstrations, Halloween nights, fire prevention awareness, traffic and pedestrian safety, drunk driving, seat belt use, school patrols and gun/hunter education programs. Harrison’s Hope (formerly Kids in Cars) (Applicable throughout the U.S., based in EMO) Terrill Struttmann, Executive Director 918 Glenn Ave. Washington, MO 63090 (636) 390-8268 Fax: (636) 390-9412 contactus@kidsincars.org www.harrisonshope.org Dedicated to preventing injuries and deaths that occur due to children being left unattended in or around vehicles. Public education is essential to end preventable injuries and deaths of children left alone in or around motor vehicles. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (Endorsed Organization) Ju’Riese Colon 699 Prince St. Alexandria, VA 22314 (703) 837-6129 jcolon@ncmec.org www.missingkids.com Individuals and communities are critical to the center’s success. Consider the difference your Club can make in the fight to locate and recover missing children and raise public awareness about ways to prevent child abduction and sexual exploitation. Hosting safety events and presentations on topics such as Internet and neighborhood safety can provide your community with the tools and resources to help keep children safer. One of the most important things parents can do is have an up-to-date, good quality picture of their children. Free Child ID Events are great ways to enhance community events and offer a way to help families keep children safer. Wireless device users can opt-in to receive free text messages when an AMBER Alert is released in their local area. Sign up at www.wirelessamberalerts.org. More than 350 companies, organizations and office buildings currently display missing child posters. One in six missing children are found thanks to being recognized from a poster distributed by NCMEC. Encourage your friends and family to pay attention to missing child posters and to report any information to the National Center at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-743-5678). National Crime Prevention Council 2345 Crystal City Drive Suite 500 Arlington, VA 22202-4801 (202) 445-3610 Fax: (202) 296-1356 www.ncpc.gov.sg/ A not-for-profit organization committed to promoting public awareness of and concern about crime and to spread the concept of self-help in crime prevention. The council’s objectives are to examine, develop and recommend crime prevention measures suitable to the public and to coordinate the efforts of organizations in crime prevention. SafeAssured ID Ken Hofmaster 7575 Bombardier Ct. Suite 300 Wausau, WI 54401 (715) 848-5263 www.safeassured-id.com SafeAssured LLC was established to provide families with prevention materials to keep their families safe and prepare them with the latest technology to help find their loved ones should an emergency arise. Avoiding any use of a database, the program allows Clubs to create SafeAssured IDs for families at schools, businesses and community events. SafeAssured offers Optimist Members the opportunity to conduct a positive service project for their communities by providing them with the most comprehensive identification system available. There is a cost associated with the program and the company also gives Clubs the option of renting the necessary equipment to run the program. Sports and Recreation Projects include sports activities such as baseball leagues, basketball teams, Tri-Star Sports events, fishing derbies, sports camps, field days, hobby clubs and junior golf tournaments. Easter egg hunts, Breakfasts with Santa, parades and related recreational activities are included in this Sports and Recreation category. Youth Appreciation Consisting of projects conducted solely for Youth Appreciation and/or recognition. |
